Cambodia

PM Hun Sen Threatens To Jail Quarantine-Breakers

Cambodia's strongman premier Hun Sen threatened quarantine-breakers with jail time Saturday and warned civil servants they could lose their jobs if they go unvaccinated, as the country grapples with a growing coronavirus caseload.In the past two days Cambodia has registered more than 1,000 infections – many among garment workers and market vendors – bringing the country's tally to 4,081 cases and 26 deaths.Authorities this week banned travel between provinces, imposed a night-time c

11 April 2021
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Rising Anti-Chinese Hostility In Cambodia?

When the novel coronavirus first emerged in Wuhan, China – the unknown and new virus was initially referred to as the “Wuhan virus” or “China virus.” Outbreaks have always been associated with places and regions, such as the Spanish Flu and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).

2 March 2021
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Cambodia Sets Up China-Style Internet Firewall

Cambodia's government moved to exert near-total control over the country's online life Wednesday, setting up a national internet gateway which activists say will stifle freedom of expression and block content via a China-style firewall.Cambodia has seen a rapid increase in internet use in recent years, and Premier Hun Sen's government - which dissolved the main opposition party in 2017 - has intensified a crackdown on online dissent.A government spokesman dismissed concerns ove

18 February 2021
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COVID-19 Slowing Cambodia’s Fight Against Hunger

Hunger is an issue that has long plagued a number of countries in Southeast Asia. Cambodia, a developing country between Thailand and Vietnam, remains one of the poorest nations in the region.But, in recent years, Cambodia has made notable progress towards improving citizens’ nutrition. This can be seen from the reduction of children’s stunting occurrences (low-height-for-age) from 42 percent in 2005 to 32 percent in 2014.

9 February 2021
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China Delivers 600,000 Vaccine Doses To Cambodia

China delivered 600,000 doses of its Sinopharm coronavirus vaccine to ally Cambodia on Sunday, making the kingdom the latest country to use Chinese jabs despite concerns about their efficacy compared to Western alternatives. Cambodian leader Hun Sen announced last month that China would donate one million doses of its coronavirus vaccine to the kingdom - which will cover 500,000 people because two doses are required.On Sunday, the strongman premier greeted the arrival of the first ba

8 February 2021
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ASEAN’s Migrant Worker Clusters

According to think tank, the Institute for Human Rights and Business, across Southeast Asia, an estimated 10 million migrant workers live and work in major destinations such as Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Malaysia is home to around two million documented migrant workers, comprising about 15 percent of the country’s total workforce. In neighbouring Singapore where its population is over five million, roughly one million people are in the foreign work force.

18 January 2021
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China To Donate Million Vaccine Doses To Cambodia

China will donate one million doses of its Sinovac coronavirus vaccine to Cambodia, the kingdom's strongman premier Hun Sen has said, thanking "friend" Beijing for its generosity. Cambodia has long been a staunch ally of Beijing, receiving billions of dollars in soft loans and investment from China.While many countries reacted early in the pandemic by closing its borders to Chinese travellers, Hun Sen refused, and even travelled to Beijing to meet with leader Xi Jinpin

17 January 2021
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Hun Sen Hails Extraction Of 'First Drop Of Oil'

Cambodian premier Hun Sen announced Tuesday that the kingdom had extracted its first drop of crude oil from its waters, a long-awaited milestone for one of Southeast Asia's poorest nations.The Gulf of Thailand boasts significant oil deposits, with Chevron first finding proven reserves off Cambodia in 2005.But production stalled as the government and the United States (US) giant failed to reach a revenue-sharing agreement, leading the firm to sell its stake to Singapore's KrisEnergy

30 December 2020
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Cambodia's Giant Tonle Sap Lake In Danger

As night falls over his floating village, fisherman Leng Vann puffs on a cigarette and heaves a sigh for Tonle Sap, the great inland lake that has sustained Cambodia for centuries.More than a million people live on or around the lake, the world's largest inland fishery, but water levels have plummeted and fish stocks dwindled because of climate change and dams upstream on the Mekong.Tonle Sap was once renowned for its abundance of fish and wildlife – 43-year-old Leng Vann recalls catchin

27 December 2020
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Cambodia Begins Trial Of 120 Opposition Figures

A mass trial of more than 120 Cambodian opposition figures kicked off in Phnom Penh on Thursday, amid United Nations (UN) concerns the proceedings were politically motivated and violated due process.The case is linked to attempts by exiled opposition figurehead Sam Rainsy to return to Cambodia last year from France, where he has lived since 2015 to avoid jail for convictions that he says are bogus.Prime Minister Hun Sen is one of the world's longest serving leaders, maintaining a 35-year

27 November 2020
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Coronavirus Deepens Cambodia's Loan Crisis

Trapped under a mountain of crippling debt, Cambodian farmer Roeurn Reth fears she will have to sell her land to repay microfinance loans that have ballooned due to pandemic-spurred job losses in her family.What started as a US$3,000 sum from a loan shark for her son's wedding has now grown to about US$7,000, she says - the result of additional financial needs that have cropped up.Her sons - who crossed illegally into neighbouring Thailand - previously sent money home to help with repaym

16 November 2020
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