Industries
Cambodia opposition leaders questioned in court
Cambodia’s opposition leaders were questioned in court Tuesday in connection with recent protests against strongman premier Hun Sen — a case they denounced as politically motivated. Prosecutors at Phnom Penh Municipal Court spent several hours grilling Sam Rainsy and his deputy Kem Sokha about unrest that ...
Channel News Asia Staff
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/cambodia-opposition/954294.html
Free Trade Union Reports Overall Jump in Labor Strikes in 2013
The Free Trade Union (FTU) on Monday reported an overall increase in industrial action by its local branches last year with 136 total strikes in the first 11 months of 2013, up 35 percent from all of 2012, when there were 101 strikes by its ...
Kampong Thom temples next on UNESCO wish list
Kampong Thom’s Sambor Prei Kuk temple complex will be the next Cambodian site nominated for inclusion on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, Deputy Prime Minister Sok An announced yesterday at the 20th Congress of the Indo-Pacific Prehistory Association (IPPA). The seventh-century complex, which predates Angkor Wat by ...
Stuart White
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/kampong-thom-temples-next-unesco-wish-list
Little Paris comes to Koh Pich
Construction on a four-year, $150 million commercial and residential development that will transform 70,000 square metres of land on Koh Pich into Parisian-style apartments with a replica of the Arc de Triomphe at the centre is reportedly scheduled to commence in the coming months. The Élysée, ...
Eddie Morton
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/little-paris-comes-koh-pich
Unions Want Government, Factories to Resume Wage Talks
The unions behind several days of strikes that turned deadly this month said they will officially ask the Labor Ministry today to resume negotiations on a new minimum wage for the country’s critical garment sector, and said they would hold more street protests if their ...
Aun Pheap
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/unions-want-government-factories-to-resume-wage-talks-50451/
Hotel with foreigners in mind set for PPSEZ
A hotel catering to foreign investors and expatriate employees is being built inside the Phnom Penh Special Economic Zone (PPSEZ), management confirmed yesterday. The project will be constructed through a joint venture between PPSEZ and the Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed Tama Home. ...
Daniel de Carteret
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/hotel-foreigners-mind-set-ppsez
Cambodians and Koreans Join Protest in Seoul
Hundreds of Cambodians living in South Korea protested in front of Seoul’s City Hall on Sunday, demanding justice for five garment workers killed in clashes with police on January 3, and calling for Prime Minister Hun Sen to step down. With public protests indefinitely banned in ...
Colin Meyn
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/cambodians-and-koreans-join-protest-in-seoul-50459/
Construction investment notably increases in 2013
Construction investment in Cambodia in the past 11 months of 2013 was worth of USD 2.4 billion or 1526 projects, covering construction area of 7 million sq km, said The Ministry of Urbanization and Construction. The ministry added that compared with the same period of last ...
The Cambodia Herald News Staff
http://www.thecambodiaherald.com/cambodia/detail/1?page=13&token=NTEzNDI5N2YzMGE
More foreigners visit Cambodia's two world heritage sites in 2013
Cambodia’s two world heritage sites, the Angkor Wat temple and Preah Vihear temple, continued to see growth in the number of foreign tourists in 2013, tourism officials said on Sunday. The Angkor Wat temple welcomed about 2.23 million international visitors in the year, up 8 percent ...
Xinhuanet News Staff
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2014-01/12/c_133038342.htm
Groups Demand Mandatory Minimum Wage, Threaten Protest
About 100 people, including 20 monks, held a ceremony in Phnom Penh on Friday in memory of the five people killed a week beforehand when military police opened fire on protesting garment workers, and demanded that the government introduce a mandatory, sector-wide standard minimum wage. In ...
Khy Sovuthy and Lauren Crothers
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/groups-demand-a-mandatory-minimum-wage-threaten-to-protest-50428/
Committees to ‘Research’ Minimum Wages, ‘Study’ Killings
Prime Minister Hun Sen on Friday assigned former Finance Minister Keat Chhon as the head of a newly formed committee tasked with researching the government’s capacity to introduce wage increases for civil servants and factory workers. The statement said that Mr. Hun Sen also spoke ...
Kuch Naren
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/committees-to-research-minimum-wages-study-killings-50431/
Japan Asked Government to Protect Its Interests During Strike
Japan has expressed its deep concern about the situation in Cambodia following the deadly crackdown on striking garment workers last Friday, and admitted Thursday that it had contacted the government during the protests to ask for protection of Japanese citizens and companies. Military police armed with ...
Simon Henderson
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/japan-asked-government-to-protect-its-interests-during-strike-50399/
Svay Rieng garment workers fired, suspended
Factories in Svay Rieng province’s Manhattan Special Economic Zone have fired or suspended at least 50 workers – and are pursuing legal action against some – for participating in a strike last month that saw some 30,000 walk off the job. Heads of the Collective Union ...
Mom Kunthear and Sean Teehan
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/svay-rieng-garment-workers-fired-suspended
Major Brands Concerned About Cambodia Violence
Major labels that have clothing manufactured in Cambodian factories have written an open letter expressing concern for the recent shootings of workers demonstrating for higher wages. Adidas, Gap, H&M, Levi’s and Puma were among those that signed the January 7 letter to the Phnom Penh government, ...
VOA News Staff
http://www.voanews.com/content/major-brands-express-concern-for-violence-against-striking-cambodians/1826132.html
UN wants probe into Cambodian violence
The UN human rights agency urged Cambodia to launch an investigation into the “disproportionate” use of force by security forces last week against garment factory workers striking over pay. Military police opened fire on workers protesting outside a factory in Phnom Penh on January 3 and ...
Peninsula On-line News Staff
http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/news/asia/267595/un-wants-probe-into-cambodian-violence
Koh Pich: diamond in the rough slowly comes together
Since being designated for development by the municipal government in 2006, Koh Pich has been abuzz with activity. Now covered in the widest, least-congested roads in central Phnom Penh, this island is filling up quickly with residential, retail and hospitality projects aimed at affluent locals ...
Chris Horton
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/real-estate/koh-pich-diamond-rough-slowly-comes-together
Still much to learn about Times Centre
Construction on Times Centre’s three skyscrapers near Olympic Stadium will commence early this year, but little is known about several key aspects of the project, including the company behind the project. The Times Centre project, which will incorporate retail and office space with 1,000 condominium ...
Siv Meng
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/real-estate/still-much-learn-about-times-centre
Strikers fired in Svay Rieng
Factories in Svay Rieng province’s Manhattan Special Economic Zone have fired or suspended more than 200 workers – and are pursuing legal action against some – for participating in a strike last month that saw some 30,000 walk off the job. An accountant at Kingmaker (Cambodia) ...
Mom Kunthear and Sean Teehan
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/strikers-fired-svay-rieng
South Korean Embassy Denies Role in Strike Suppression
The South Korean Embassy on Wednesday denied a news report that it had lobbied Cambodian military authorities to “crack down on protesters” in a bid to shield Korean investments in the garment industry, prior to Friday’s killing of five protesters and the wounding of more ...
Denise Hruby
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/south-korean-embassy-denies-role-in-strike-suppression-50364/
As Strikers Return to Work, Factories Sue Garment Unions
As garment workers continued to return to their factories Wednesday after several days of strikes that turned deadly last week, some of their employers have wasted no time in suing the unions behind the strikes, demanding compensation. Phnom Penh Municipal Court chief clerk Prak Savouth said ...
Aun Pheap and Zsombor Peter
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/as-strikers-return-to-work-factories-sue-garment-unions-50360/
Workers Vow To Continue Wage Strike
Union leaders say workers will continue to strike over low wages, despite a violent crackdown by authorities last week and threats this week from factories who say they will be forced to move to other countries if strikes continue. Five different union say their workers will ...
Khoun Theara
http://www.voacambodia.com/content/workers-vow-to-continue-wage-strike/1825142.html
ILO doubts bleak garment outlook
The International Labour Organization (ILO) yesterday cast doubt on the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia’s (GMAC) bleak outlook for the rest of 2014, after the association claimed that deadly violence sparked by wage disputes would result in clothing brands reducing future orders. Speaking from Bangkok, Maurizio ...
Daniel de Carteret
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/ilo-doubts-bleak-garment-outlook
Garment manufacturers planning to sue unions
The Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia is helping its members sue several unions for damages after a walkout over demands to raise the minimum wage to $160. Ken Loo, GMAC’s secretary general, said that more than 150 members are jumping on board to sue: “And the ...
Daniel de Carteret
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/garment-manufacturers-planning-sue-unions
Cambodia Listed as a Top Retirement Destination
Cambodia has for the first time made it onto the Global Retirement Index, a yearly list of the world’s top retirement locations. The list, compiled annually for the past 30 years by International Living Magazine, compares countries throughout the world across a range of categories including ...
Simon Henderson
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/cambodia-listed-as-a-top-retirement-destination-50319/