China official plays down yuan shift

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Chen Jian on Sunday played down talk of a shift in the central bank's currency policy as well as mounting expectations of a rise in the yuan's exchange rate. Speculation that China might let the yuan resume its climb after a 16-month pause swirled after a change last Wednesday in the long-standing wording used by the People's Bank of China to describe its currency stance.137334China official plays down yuan shiftBEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Chen Jian on Sunday played down talk of a shift in the central bank's currency policy as well as mounting expectations of a rise in...

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No double-dip US recession

The pace of the recovery in the US economy remains sluggish but Mr Strauss-Kahn does not believe there will be a double-dip recession. -- PHOTO: AFPTHE International Monetary Fund's managing director, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, said on Friday the pace of the recovery in the US economy remains sluggish but he does not believe there will be a double-dip recession.He also said China's economic stimulus is helping to rebalance its economy towards relying more on domestic demand but it still needs to let its currency rise over time.In October, the IMF raised its US growth outlook to 1.5 per cent in 2010 but Mr Strauss-Kahn said that forecast could be...

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Times coverage: Funeral held for Melody Ross, 16

Chantha Ross, right, puts a rose on the casket of her daughter, Melody. As the three-hour funeral service ended, other mourners also placed roses there. Credit: Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times (California, USA)The Times' Ruben Vives reports from Saturday's funeral for Melody Ross, a 16-year-old Cambodian American teen who was shot and killed Friday, Oct. 30, in the 4400 block of East 10th Street in Long Beach while leaving her high school's homecoming football game. Tom Love Vinson and Daivion Davis, both 16-year-old black males, have been charged as adults in her slaying, which authorities say was gang-related. From the...

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Cambodian AIDS orphans have good plans for future

By Zhang RuilingPHNOM PENH, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- They are a hidden population, living with HIV/AIDS at a very young age. What we do know is that they are very vulnerable. It is this state of being hidden that puts AIDS orphans at special risk during their lifetime.But those living with HIV in Cambodia are lucky. They live in the National Borey for Infants and Children, a state-run orphanage located in the suburb of the capital city Phnom Penh, which is supported by the government and humanitarian agencies."The center accommodates more than 100 orphans, among them 27 are living with HIV, and Sei La is one of them," Sani, a teacher at the center, told Xinhua while pointing at the boy who was orphaned at an early age when his parents died of AIDS.Sei La is a typical Khmer boy with brown skin....

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Hun Sen defiant on Thaksin role

Updated November 16, 2009 13:46:37In Thailand 15,000 People's Alliance for Democracy members rallied over the weekend to denounce convicted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen.Relations between Cambodia and Thailand hit another low last week after Mr Thaksin began his role as an economic advisor to Prime Minister Hun Sen. It's led to the recall of diplomatic staff by both countries, and a Thai extradition demand for Mr Thaksin, that Cambodia has turned down. Mr Thaksin's begun his new job with a pledge to regenerate the Cambodian economy, saying that will be good for both Cambodia and Thailand. But analysts say all he'll do is to deepen fractured relations between the Asian rivals even further.Presenter: Matt ConwaySpeakers: Hun Sen, Cambodian Prime...

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Thai-Cambodia border trade reviving

SA KAEO, Nov 15 (TNA) – Cross-border trade at the Thai-Cambodian frontier in Sa Kaeo’s Aranyaprathet district on Sunday showed a gradual return to normal after convicted former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra left Cambodia.At Aranyaprathet’s Ban Klong Luek border crossing, trade activities at Rong Klua market were lively as most Cambodian traders from Poipet resumed their business activities in the area.Border tensions eased after Thailand’s fugitive ex-premier flew out of Cambodia's Siem Reap on Saturday.Many Cambodians were following Cambodian media reports on Thursday’s detention of a Thai engineer by Cambodian authorities in Phnom...

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Thailand's PAD rally against Thaksin, Hun Sen kicks off in Bangkok

www.chinaview.cn 2009-11-15 17:27:51 BANGKOK, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- The People's Alliance for Democracy's (PAD) protest against ousted former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen kicked off on Sunday in Thailand's capital Bangkok. By 18:30 p.m. local time, over 10,000 PAD protesters or the yellow-shirted people were rallying at Sanam Luang in the center of capital Bangkok after they officially started their protest from 04:00 p.m. local time. The PAD rally, which was participated by the supporters from both Bangkok and many provinces across the country, was occurring after Thailand and Cambodia have downgraded their diplomatic relations due to conflict over an appointment of Thaksin as an economic advisor to Cambodia's government and Hun Sen on Nov....

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Miss Cambodia Landmine 2009 to boost self esteem

By Men Kimseng, VOA KhmerOriginal report from Washington14 November 2009 Cambodian community in Norway will organize a beauty contest for landmine victims on Saturday after failing to organize it in Cambodia. The event, organized in collaboration with the Association of Cambodians in Norway and the Khmer Buddhist Council in Norway, will also feature Khmer traditional dance and food display. There are 20 landmine victims taking part in the contest, but since no contestant is able to travel to Norway, organizers will ask volunteers there to dress up as beauty queens and carry photos of the contestants. A winner will then be selected by potentially more than 300 participants.“We want to show [people of the world] that our society doesn’t need a war and landmines to kill more people. We want...

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Thaksin Shinawatra: Cambodia’s advisor par excellence?

Op-Ed by Khmerization15th November, 2009 “Mr. Thaksin, due to his business success and his wealth of economic knowledge, could be Cambodia’s advisor par excellence if he is not a fugitive of the Thai government. However, under the political climate and his fugitive status, he is advisor non par excellence.”In have opined and editorialised in the past that I see no benefits in the appointment of Mr. Thaksin as Cambodian government’s advisor, beside to irk and to irritate Thailand. Mr. Thaksin would not be able to entice billions of dollars of trades and investments to Cambodia.In fact, his lecture delivered in Phnom Penh on Thursday the 12th of November has proved just that. His advice had turned out to be not a magic wand for Cambodia’s current economic woes. It was just another seminar...

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Thailand's PAD rally against Thaksin, Hun Sen kicks off in Bangkok

BANGKOK, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- The People's Alliance for Democracy's (PAD) protest against ousted former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen kicked off on Sunday in Thailand's capital Bangkok.The PAD protesters or the yellow-shirted people officially started their protest at Sanam Luang in the center of capital Bangkok from 04:00 p.m. local time.The rally was occurring after Thailand and Cambodia have downgraded their diplomatic relations due to conflict over an appointment of Thaksin as an economic advisor to Cambodia's government and Hun Sen on Nov. 4.A day after the appointment of Thaksin, the Cambodian government announced recall of its ambassador to Thailand in a move to respond to the Thai government's recall of its ambassador to Cambod...

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Cambodian man arrested on suspicion of spying for Thailand

Saturday, November 14, 2009Everyday.com.khTranslated from Khmer by SocheataIn the morning of 13 November, near the border in Poipet, Cambodian police arrested 29-year-old Chuob Sovann, an employee of the Tropicana casino. The man was arrested for taking pictures of Thai red shirts boarding a car convoy to Siem Reap. When he was sent to the Poipet police, the man said that Pachai, a Thai administrator of the Tropicana casino, ordered him to take pictures of the activities conducted by the Thai red shirts people, as well as their reception at the Cambodian border for reporting purposes. The man was arrested at 2:30PM on 13 November 20...

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Some wild suggestions to end Thai-Cambodian row

Friday, November 13, 2009By Veera PrateepchaikulBangkok PostOusted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra must feel at home with the red-carpet welcome accorded him by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and with his new job as economic adviser to the Cambodian government.Mr Thaksin’s meeting with some 300 top Cambodian businessmen and officials on Thursday morning in Phnom Penh, when he delivered a lecture on economic affairs and slammed the Thai leadership, most certainly gave him a sense a de'ja'vu – recollections of the old days when he sat at the head of the table controlling the cabinet meeting and lecturing his ministers who merely listened and rarely raised objections.And, as in the good old days when he was always surrounded by his followers, the fugitive will today be feted by Hun Sen in...

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Freedom Prize Laureate Sam Rainsy’s Speech at The Liberal International 56th Congress

Opposition leader Sam RainsyFREEDOM PRIZE LAUREATE SAM RAINSY’S SPEECH AT THE LIBERAL INTERNATIONAL 56th CONGRESSPRESENTATION OF BOOK “25 YEARS PRIZE FOR FREEDOM”31 October 2009 - Cairo, EgyptAung San Suu Kyi, Vaclav Havel, Benazir Bhutto, Corazon Aquino, Mary Robinson, Martin Lee, who doesn’t know these inspiring figures who have made the world’s recent history? They were also recipients of the Liberal International Prize for Freedom.Today we are launching a book to celebrate 25 years of LI Prize for Freedom.Founded in 1985, the Prize had 26 laureates (there were two laureates in 1991).I was honored to receive the Prize in 2006 in Marrakech...

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Funeral held for Melody Ross, teenager shot after high school football game

Sary Choeun, left, aunt of Melody Ross, sits with the girl's parents, Chantha and Vanareth Ross, right, at the funeral service. People across the country have expressed their sympathy and sorrow on a memorial Web page. (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times / November 14, 2009)Friends, family and dignitaries pay tribute to the Long Beach girl.By Ruben VivesNovember 15, 2009(Posted by CAAI News Media)Melody Ross, the Wilson High School honors student whose shooting death after a Long Beach football game touched off an outpouring of sympathy from around the country, was buried Saturday in Whittier.A hushed throng of family members, friends and dignitaries...

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The Cambodian Prime Minister: China Becomes the Constructor of the Longest Sections of Roads in Cambodia

http://cambodiamirror.wordpress.com/Posted on 15 November 2009The Mirror, Vol. 13, No. 638(Posted by CAAI News Media)“Stung Treng: The Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, Samdech Akkak Moha Senapadei Dekchor Hun Sen, said that China becomes the country that has constructed the most roads in Cambodia, sections of road of more than 1,500 km, which had been constructed, are being constructed, or are planned to be constructed. Moreover, China has provided loans to construct bridges with a total length of 3,014 meters, for which in total more than US$800 million have been offered for road construction and more than US$100 million for building bridges. Besides, there are hydro-electric projects in some provinces with 700 megawatt power, costing approx. US$1.7 billion.“Samdech Dekchor said...

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Thai protesters denounce Thaksin's royal remarks

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra attends a conference called "Cambodia and the world after financial crisis" to give a lecture on economic matters to more than 300 Cambodian economics experts at the Ministry of Economy and Finance in Phnom Penh November 12, 2009. REUTERS/Stringer(Posted by CAAI News Media)By Ploy Ten KateBANGKOK (Reuters) - Thousands of Thais gathered in central Bangkok on Sunday to protest at remarks made about the monarchy by fugitive ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.The demonstrators were also angry about the ousted premier's visit last week to neighbouring Cambodia, which refused to extradite him, sparking...

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Thailand's Abhisit: Early Poll Likely

http://online.wsj.com/By COSTAS PARIS and JENNY PARIS(Posted by CAAI News Media)SINGAPORE - Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Saturday that he will likely call early elections after the economy has firmly recovered."The likelihood is that there will be early elections once the economy is firmly grounded," Mr. Abhisit told Dow Jones Newswires. "The early poll could be called any time," he said, declining to specify a timeframe.Calling early polls would help legitimize the rule of Mr. Abhisit, who was selected by Thailand's Parliament late last year after top army leaders helped broker the formation of a new coalition government. If Mr. Abhisit's Democrat Party and its coalition allies secure a majority in parliament, it could help turn down the heat on years of turmoil in the...

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Thai PM, Indonesian president discuss bilateral relations, Cambodia

http://enews.mcot.net/(Posted by CAAI News Media)SINGAPORE, Nov 15 (TNA) -- Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono early Sunday conferred on bilateral relations as well as on the ongoing diplomatic standoff between Thailand and its neighbour Cambodia, according to Thai Foreign Affairs Minister Kasit Piromya.The discussion was held on the sidelines of the three-day 17th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings which are scheduled to end later Sunday in Singapore.Mr Kasit said Mr Yudhoyono expressed concern over the Thai-Cambodian dispute and offered to mediate the crisis. The Thai premier...

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BANGKOK, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- The People's Alliance for Democracy's (PAD) protest against ousted former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra and Cambodian P

http://www.chinaview.cn/2009-11-15(Posted by CAAI News Media)BANGKOK, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- The People's Alliance for Democracy's (PAD) protest against ousted former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen kicked off on Sunday in Thailand's capital Bangkok.By 05:00 p.m. local time, around 10,000 PAD protesters or the yellow-shirted people were rallying at Sanam Luang in the center of capital Bangkok after they officially started their protest from 04:00 p.m. local time.The PAD rally, which was participated by the supporters from both Bangkok and many provinces across the country, was occurring after Thailand and Cambodia have downgraded their diplomatic relations due to conflict over an appointment of Thaksin as an economic advisor to Cambodia's government and Hun...

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Detained engineer in Cambodia's fine

Published: 15/11/2009(Posted by CAAI News Media)The Thai engineer who has been arrested in Cambodia on spy charges is safe, Thai charge d'affaires to Phnom Penh, Chalothon Phaowibun, said on Sunday.The Cambodian government has accused Mr Siwarak Chothipong, a 31-year-old engineer working for the Cambodian Air Traffic Services, of stealing the flight information of deposed premier Thaksin Shinawatra and Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen."Mr Siwarak is being detained in a prison in Cambodia and he is safe. I have reported the details to the Foreign Ministry and the situation in Cambodia is still normal," Mr Chalothon said.Meanwhile, army spokesman Sitthichai Makkunchorn said no officer from the Armed Forces Security Centre under the name Manit was arrested in Cambodia.He said the centre had...

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Govt ready to fly Thais out of Cambodia

http://www.asiaone.com/Sun, Nov 15, 2009The Nation/Asia News Network(Posted by CAAI News Media)"The arrest of a Thai national will not lead to closure of the embassy [in Phnom Penh]. The Thai government will ensure security for the Cambodian Embassy in Thailand and we believe Cambodia will also take care of our embassy in that country," Suthep said."If bilateral relations become more violent, the government is ready to evacuate Thai citizens from Cambodia immediately," he added.In early 2003, the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh was burnt by rioters and several Thai-owned businesses in Cambodia were attacked following a rumour that a Thai actress had claimed the Angkor Wat temple - Cambodia's prized cultural icon - belonged to Thailand. An evacuation of Thai citizens followed the riots.Suthep said...

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PM wants Cambodia to revise stance

* Published: 15/11/2009 at 11:29 AM * Online news: BreakingnewsThe Thai-Cambodian dispute will end if Cambodia revises its position towards the Thai government, according to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva."If the Cambodian government adjusts its stance, the problems between the two countries will be resolved," Mr Abhisit said in his weekly broadcast on Sunday while attending the Apec summit in Singapore."Thailand, as the Asean chair, will not let the Thai-Cambodian issues affect other trading partners and I would like Thai people to be patient and show their sincerity by being good neighbours while protecting their national interest."He insisted his government did not start the problem, as ties between the two countries were smooth before the Cambodian government appointed ousted prime...

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Royalists protest in Thai capital against fugitive prime minister

Bangkok - A pro-royalist group Sunday protested in the Thai capital against the "ugly" Cambodian visit of fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.About 20,000 demonstrators were expected in central Bangkok where speakers denounced Thaksin for his lack of patriotism in allying himself with a foreign government "for personal gain."Thaksin left Cambodia Saturday after a five-day visit at the invitation of Prime Mnister Hun Sen, who hired him as an advisor and called him an "eternal friend" who was wrongly ousted in a bloodless 2006 coup.Thaksin's activities in Cambodia, including meeting scores of his Thai supporters, seemed designed to undercut Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva during the Asia-Pacific leaders conference in Singapore, Thai analysts said.Sondhi Limtongkul, a leader...

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Thaksin opponents to rally over Cambodia trip

Thousands of members of Thailand's royalist "Yellow Shirt" protest movement are set to rally in Bangkok on SundayBy Thanaporn Promyamyai (AFP) BANGKOK — Thousands of members of Thailand's "Yellow Shirt" protest group were set to rally in Bangkok Sunday against a visit to Cambodia by their arch-foe, fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.The royalist movement said it was also gathering to express outrage at comments that billionaire Thaksin, who was ousted by the army in 2006, made in a newspaper interview about Thailand's widely revered king.The yellow-clad People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) blockaded Bangkok's airports almost one year...

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Cambodian gov't guarantees safety for all Thais, no sign against Thais: official

www.chinaview.cn 2009-11-14 23:54:33 PHNOM PENH, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia will guarantee safety and security for Thais including diplomats, business people and travelers in the country, government official said on Saturday. "The Cambodian government will ensure the safety and security for all Thais like diplomats, business people, travelers and other foreigners staying in Cambodia," Koy Kuong, spokesman and undersecretary of state of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation told Xinhua. "Thais should not be afraid of staying in Cambodia, the Royal Government will ensure security for them," he said. "We do not see any sign to protest against Thais or to run riot at Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh," Koy Kuong said, adding that no sign of riots against Thais at...

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Lucy Liu film highlights child trafficking

Published: Friday | November 13, 2009CAIRO (AP):ActressLucy Liu, who has produced a film about children sold into the sex trade in Cambodia, says the fight against human trafficking will be long.Liu praised several projects funded by the United Nations (UN) children's agency in Egypt, where she was promoting the film Red Light at the Cairo International Film Festival.The actress co-produced and narrated the movie, which follows the stories of a number of girls over the course of four years as they are kidnapped and sold to brothels in Cambodia.conservative societiesLiu said on Wednesday it "is really going to take a really long time" to fight human trafficking, labelled the third most profitable business in the world after weapons and drugs trading.That assessment rings true in the Middle...

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At 39, Loung Ung enters a new phase of writing and storytelling

Loung Ung has broken bread with Queen Noor of Jordan, lunched with Paul McCartney and opened her own restaurant, Bar Cento, in Ohio City.At 39, she is a world away from the childhood starvation that distended belly and drove her to swallow rotten leaves. Born into an upper-middle-class family, Ung was 10 when she fled Cambodia with an older brother. Eventually, they learned that more than 20 relatives, including both their parents, had been murdered by the Khmer Rouge.Those privations are contained in her 2000 memoir, "First They Killed My Father," a story that Ung tells in a child's voice. It is now widely taught and has been translated into...

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Author's found write balance in Cambodia

A FORMER Cleethorpes resident is enjoying a new life in Cambodia as a self-published author.Robert Webster's debut novel – Buddha's Tooth, which features characters from Cleethorpes – sold 1,700 copies inside a year and was downloaded from the Internet more than 7,500 times within three months.The 49-year-old, who used to live in Edward Street and was schooled at Matthew Humberstone, has a second book currently in production and a third planned.Mr Webster lived in Thailand for many years and moved to Sihanoukville, in south-east Cambodia, about three years ago.He said: "I was bored a few years ago and decided to try to write a novel.Click here for more"I thought it would be hard but it was not only easy but a lot of fun."Read more about Mr Webster's life in Cambodia in today's Grimsby Telegraph.You...

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PM Abhisit: Thai-Cambodian diplomatic standoff must be resolved by both parties

SINGAPORE, Nov 14 (TNA) -- Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Saturday that the ongoing diplomatic spat between Thailand and its neighbour Cambodia will not affect cooperation among members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), emphasising that the problem must be solved by the two countries.Mr Abhisit, now at the three-day 17th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings in Singapore, told journalists that ASEAN secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan advised that Thailand and Cambodian should resolve their tensions before ASEAN leaders meet US President Barack Obama on Sunday. He affirmed that Thailand, currently chairman...

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Ousted Thai PM rallies supporters to Cambodia

Thailand's former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra stands in front of Angkor Wat, the country's most popular tourist destination, during his private tour to the north province of Siem Reap, about 320 kilometers (199 miles) from Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009. Ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin has accused his detractors of false patriotism in a speech Thursday, following the uproar over his appointment as an economic adviser to the Cambodian government. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)By SOPHENG CHEANG (AP) – PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Thailand said Friday it would not be provoked into violence in its diplomatic tussle with Cambodia over fugitive...

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Cambodia Raises Stakes, as Ties with Thailand Plummet

By MARWAAN MACAN-MARKAR / IPS WRITERBANGKOK — Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen is known for his brash and earthy vocabulary even when, as he did in early April, he talks about himself. “I am neither a gangster nor a gentleman, but a real man,” the politician who has led his country for 25 years said in a fit of rage.The target of his ire at the time was Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, following comments the latter had made during a parliamentary debate in the Thai capital.Hun Sen criticized Kasit for calling him a “gangster” during that debate, but Kasit shot back, saying his description of Hun Sen in Thai had got lost in translation. The actual words were “Nak Leng,” Kasit had explained, which in Thai means “a person who is lion-hearted, a courageous and magnanimous gentleman.”It was...

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