VOA Khmer

Cambodia and Vietnam say they will hold border talks next week, following clashes between Cambodian activists and Vietnamese border security forces. The head of Cambodia’s border committee, Var Kim Hong, told VOA that Phnom Penh would raise a number of sensitive issues with Hanoi, including road-building, ...

Unicef and the Cambodian government have launched a campaign to promote better health for children and newborns. Cambodia has made some progress improving the health of women and children, but a high rate of death for children remains a major concern. It saw its newborn mortality ...

Pro-democracy and rights groups in Cambodia have launched a three-day demonstration in an attempt to stop the passage of a law to regulate NGOs. The protest is expected to continue Tuesday. Organizers said that if they are not satisfied with the Assembly’s actions, they will ...

Most media in Cambodia focus on the achievements of the government. That’s because most stations are owned by members of the government or its supporters. But the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party is now preparing its own channel, after it was offered a license during political ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen has ordered the formation of a special committee to investigate cold-case murders of several labor leaders. The most prominent killing, of popular unionist Chea Vichea, took place in January 2004. Leaders Hy Vuthy and Ros Sovannareth were killed in 2004 and 2007, ...

As Cambodia seeks greater integration with regional and global economies, a language expert warns against overreliance on foreign identity and language. Chan Virak, a doctorate student in culture, literacy and language at the University of Texas at San Antonio, says Cambodia should invest in its own ...

A group of 300 pro-democracy and rights organizations and their supporters delivered a petition to the National Assembly on Tuesday, calling for lawmakers to reject a draft law to regulate NGOs. ...

On the southern outskirts of Cambodia’s capital, a ramshackle factory turns out tens of thousands of bricks each month. Pale rows of freshly fired bricks wait for buyers under the corrugated iron roof, while a 50-meter-long oven leaks a dull heat as it bakes a ...

The Cambodian Center for Independent Media has set up a website for public comment on a contentious draft law to regulate Cambodian cyberspace. The website establishes a “wiki”-like crowd-sourcing platform for comments on the law, even though the public has not been able to see the ...

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy says his party will do its best to prevent the passage of a controversial draft law to regulate NGOs. Chheang Von, a lawmaker for the ruling Cambodian People’s Party and the National Assembly’s spokesman, said Sam Rainsy was only making promises ...

Cambodian health authorities are on high alert, following the first confirmed case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, or MERS, in Thailand, Thursday. Diagnosis systems have been installed at major border checkpoints and at the airports of Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. ...

The European Union ambassador on Wednesday called on the Cambodian government to help combat climate change, foremost by reducing red tape for communities who want to form groups to protect what remains of the country’s forests. ...

A small group of women technologists made the semi-final round of a global entrepreneurship competition recently, after designing a mobile app that could help farmers get better prices for their goods. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen is set to take over the presidency of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party, following the death of party leader Chea Sim last week. The move will shore up solidarity in the party, which has become increasingly united, party members say. ...

Representatives of pro-democracy and human rights groups met with the National Assembly’s vice president, opposition lawmaker Kem Sokha, on Wednesday, repeating calls that a controversial law to regulate NGOs be tabled. ...

Despite widespread concern it could curtail pro-democracy and rights work in the country, a bill to regulate NGOs in Cambodia arrived at the National Assembly Tuesday, where it must be debated before its likely passage into law. ...

With the death last week of Chea Sim, a ruling party stalwart and former Khmer Rouge cadre, Cambodians are again reminded that the powerful are rarely prosecuted, Human Rights Watch says. ...

Labor leaders say they are concerned that a number of unions would be shuttered if a new law to govern them is passed. Labor Minister Ith Samheng said the law will not “put pressure” on unions. “We take unions and other vocational organizations as our ...

A gathering of some 50 youths from five different provinces met in Phnom Penh last week to discuss the problems of forced migration and its dangers. The Community Youth Network leaders came from provinces where migrant work is common, to discuss how to make it ...

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy on Monday extended a rare compliment to Cambodia’s foreign minister, who has sent two missives since Friday to Vietnam, accusing the government allowing encroachment in Ratanakkiri province. ...

The government has released a schedule for minimum wage discussions with unions and factories this year, as workers continue to demand $177 per month to keep up with the rising cost of living. More talks are scheduled from July through January. ...

Cambodian laborers continue to be deceived by dishonest recruitment companies, which are poorly regulated, a lawmaker says. Mu Sochua, a National Assembly legislator for the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party, told “Hello VOA” such companies should bear responsibility for their workers, not only in Cambodia but ...

Chea Sim, the ruling party leader who died earlier this week in Phnom Penh, was a political dealmaker and staunch constitutionalist, officials said this week. He was often put in charge of the country when the late King Norodom Sihanouk was away. His even-handedness will be ...

In a small courtyard in downtown Phnom Penh sits the city’s oldest public school. Founded more than 100 years ago, Tuan Hoa features a Chinese temple and Mandarin language instruction for its 2,000 students. ...