Civil society

UNICEF yesterday awarded $400,000 to six NGOs to work with disabled people around the country through a series of community based programs. ...

A team of security officials led by a commune chief descended on a private home in rural Koh Kong province on Friday morning to prevent a group of students and ac­tivists from holding a democracy training session, an activist and officials said. ...

Cambodia’s efforts in HIV prevention and treatment have shown significant results in the past ten years and the government is now setting the bar even higher. Last December, Prime Minister Hun Sen committed to stopping new HIV infections by 2020. ...

After graduating from Setec Institute in Phnom Penh in 2014 with a degree in information technology, Chhit Chanmony, 23, is confident in her ability to build a website using various scripts. ...

The investigating judge involved in ongoing legal proceedings against human rights activist Ny Chakrya has said a warrant for the man’s arrest is under consideration after Chakrya failed to respond to a subpoena to appear in court yesterday. However, Chakrya’s employer, rights group Adhoc, said ...

In an effort to address speech and communication disorders, which affect about one in 25 people countrywide, Unicef Cam­bo­dia awarded the organization OIC: The Cambodia Project a $42,000 grant on Wednesday to provide informal speech therapy training to Cambodians. ...

An unlicensed health worker charged in Cambodia with murder and other crimes after allegedly causing a mass HIV infection by treating patients with reused needles will be brought to trial next week, sources said. ...

The Geneva-based Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders has appealed to the public to urge Cambodian authorities to end their “judicial harassment” of prominent human rights advocate Ny Chakrya, who stands charged with public defamation and attempting to coerce court officials. ...

A prominent human rights advocate says Cambodia continues to operate in a repressive environment, with a government that fails to respect local and international standards and laws. ...

ROSEBUD audiologist Fallon Arnold is about to head off on a two-week volunteer placement for All Ears Cambodia, based in the capital, Phnom Penh.The organisation offers a range of hearing health services to those afflicted with hearing loss or ear-health problems, such as infections. ...

Human rights activist Ny Chakrya has received a subpoena to give evidence at Phnom Penh Municipal Court in the latest development in a defamation case against him that has been heavily criticised by international observers. ...

Civil society organizations yesterday expressed concern about the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations last month, which they said would be hard to achieve under the new Law on Associations and NGOs (LANGO).   ​ ...

The child sex abuse trial of orphanage director and former head of child protection NGO APLE, Hang Vibol, began at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday, with the defendant reportedly testifying that the accusations against him were an attempt at revenge by aggrieved former colleagues. ...

The Interior Ministry has reiterated its claims that a new law requiring NGOs and associations to register with the government does not apply to small community-based groups, despite recent efforts by police to apply the legislation to a group of families in Kratie province. ...

Ms. Kem Sopheak, 32, is a mother, community leader and Grade 1 teacher at Roveang primary school in Kampong Cham province. ...

An NGO worker was detained on Friday after participating in a roadblock by Koh Kong province’s Poy Chorpun community to protest the activities of the Chinese firm Union Development Group (UDG). ...

More than 30 non-government groups have recently applied to register with the state or asked for changes to their current registration records, according to a statement from the Interior Ministry that hailed the requests as broad endorsement of Cambodia’s highly controversial new NGO law. ...

As Rhona Smith, the U.N.’s new special rapporteur on human rights in Cambodia, began her first official visit to the country Wednesday, leading human rights activists were at odds over how much her position could influence the situation on the ground. ...

The U.N.’s new special rapporteur on human rights in Cambodia, Rhona Smith will make her first official visit eight-day in Cambodia. ...

Human rights groups say the Foreign Affairs Minister was wrong to demand the incoming representative of Unicef not comment on controversial legislation to govern NGOs. In a statement Tuesday, the civil society groups said Minister Hor Namhong’s demands constitute a narrowing of democratic ideals. ...

Foreign Affairs Minister Hor Namhong on Monday told Unicef’s new country representative to focus on helping street children and refrain from criticizing a controversial new law regulating the country’s NGOs and associations, an official said Monday. ...

Reading has always been a popular hobby for Cambodian children, but NGOs are now saying it is difficult for children in remote areas to access books and magazines. ...

Noun Phymean is an executive director at the People Improvement Organization (PIO). Born in Kampong Cham province, she spent over 12 years with the United Nations and other international organizations. Now, the hardworking humanitarian is focusing on helping some of the country’s most impoverished children. ...

Police in Koh Kong province on Wednesday late evening set free 17 people, including for local rights workers who were arrested over a protest in the province. ...