Social development

The Education Ministry is failing students by not doing enough to improve schools before graduates face tougher competition from their Asean peers, the head of the National Assembly’s education commission, Yem Ponhearith, told Khmer Times. ...

How should one react when accused in court of defaming a provincial judge and prosecutor? Ny Chakrya just laughs. ...

Six activists from Phnom Penh’s Borei Keila and Boeung Kak communities were arrested on Saturday morning while handing out leaflets denouncing the controversial NGO law, passed by the National Assembly last week. ...

Authorities in Phnom Penh arrested and released five activists on Saturday for handing out leaflets urging residents to “Say No” to a pending NGO law that critics fear will be used to muzzle critics of the ruling CPP. ...

Foreigners who join protests against the government will now be subject to arrest and deportation, Phnom Penh’s governor and the government’s spokesman said yesterday, in the latest effort by the CPP to curb outside influence in the country’s political affairs. ...

The contentious law on associations and NGOs will likely pass the Senate this week, after it is reviewed tomorrow and Wednesday opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) senator Kong Korm said yesterday. ...

On a walkthrough visit of Phnom Penh’s Prey Speu social affairs center on Friday, municipal governor Pa Socheatvong pledged to send 10 new caretakers to work at the center, which has been the subject of claims of serious abuse at the hands of staff. ...

Cambodia’s budget for mental health care must be increased dramatically if the government aims to properly respond to the mounting demand for services in the Kingdom, health experts said yesterday. ...

U.N. human rights expert Maina Kiai on Thursday urged Cambodia’s Senate not to pass a controversial NGO law that the National Assembly approved this week, warning that the legislation could have “disastrous” effects. ...

The Ministry of Education plans to spend less than its allocated $3 million budget for the upcoming high school exit exam due to a decrease in this year’s exam registrants, an education official confirmed yesterday. ...

Opposition lawmakers in Cambodia’s Senate said Thursday that they would boycott an upcoming vote in the upper house of parliament on a draft law that regulates nongovernmental organizations working in the country if senators failed to amend the legislation. ...

United Nations human rights expert Maina Kiai on Wednesday urged Cambodia to reject a draft law that would allow authorities to shut down and criminalize any group advocating for human rights, basic freedoms and good governance, saying it is not too late to reverse the ...

The Commerce Ministry on Wednesday released a draft of the country’s first food law, which establishes a Food Safety Authority charged with protecting domestic consumers and ensuring that exports meet international standards. ...

The International Committee of Jurists has given its backing to human rights activist Ny Chakrya, calling for the Cambodian government to end legal proceedings against him. ...

Young Cambodians are becoming increasingly engaged in social issues, with many university students volunteering for causes they consider important for national development, student leaders and youth organizers say. ...

Chinese police began installing surveillance cameras on the streets of Phnom Penh on Tuesday, following a donation from Beijing to assist authorities in monitoring crime and traffic in the capital, an official said Wednesday. ...

Hean Chanthorn, 20, a grade 12 student from Chea Sim Santhor Mok High School in Phnom Penh, says he wakes at 4 a.m. every morning to revise. He heads to school at 6 a.m. and stays there until 7:30 in the evening. After dinner, Chanthorn ...

About one in 25 Cambodians have speech and swallowing disorders, with tens of thousands dying each year due to related complications, according to experts. ...

A draft of Cambodia’s first alcohol law—which if passed would introduce a drinking age of 21 and ban the sale of alcohol between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m.—will be sent to the Council of Ministers by the end of the week, Health Minister Mam Bunheng ...

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Monday began questioning a leading human rights campaigner who stands accused of defaming and attempting to coerce two judicial officials over a land dispute in Siem Reap province. ...

Police are searching for a 26-year-old unlicensed dentist in Tbong Khmum province who is believed to have used a rope to strangle a patient to death at his clinic in order to steal her jewelry and motorbike, along with about $3,000 in cash, an official ...

A visit to the temples of Angkor Wat, followed by a stop at an orphanage, are part of the travel experience for many of the more than four million tourists who come to Cambodia every year. ...

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Monday convicted a Chinese man and three Cambodians of human trafficking over an attempt to send three Cambodian women to China as brides. ...

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) is increasing funding to support a rehabilitation and prosthetics project for people with disabilities in Cambodia. ...