VOA Khmer

With the approval last week of a draft NGO law by Cambodia’s Council of Ministers, many pro-democracy and rights advocates say they should now have a chance to add their comments on the bill, before it goes to the National Assembly for debate. ...

Sitting with downcast eyes and the rough hands of hard labor, Thin Seangly stands as a warning for thousands of other impoverished Cambodians who want to seek better jobs and wages overseas. ...

In the wake of Chea Sim’s death, analysts say Prime Minister Hun Sen will hold even more power within his own party, though many agree that the internal politics of the party won’t change all that much. ...

A controversial draft law to regulate Cambodia’s NGOs has passed a major hurdle and will be moved on to the National Assembly for legislative debate. Om Chandara, a spokesman for the council, told VOA Khmer that two articles were withdrawn at the behest of Prime ...

As ASEAN heads toward greater economic integration at the end of the year, a Cambodian advocate says more needs to be done in the region for women’s rights. Asean has a working group for women’s issues, but the region faces challenges in social and economic equality, ...

The first four asylum seekers moving to Cambodia from the South Pacific island of Nauru will arrive Thursday, part of a controversial resettlement deal with Australia. ...

Human rights activists are calling for more transparency in any potential agreement to send Cambodian workers to Qatar. ...

US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Scott Busby, who heads the Bureau of Democracy, Human rights and Labor, is on a two-day trip to Cambodia. ...

A senior US diplomat has raised concerns over a proposed law to govern NGOs in Cambodia. Hor Namhong told reporters Tuesday the draft law is not meant to impose undue burdens on NGOs. Civil society will have a chance to comment on the draft when ...

Cambodian officials from two provinces bordering Thailand say they are awaiting confirmation of a meeting with Thai counterparts, to discuss illegal export of timber. ...

A final draft of the 26th ASEAN Chairman’s Statement says the group will call for intensified consultations on a code of conduct for the South China Sea. The draft, obtained by VOA Khmer from an ASEAN official who did not want to be identified, says the ...

China’s growing influence in Laos, marked by expanded investment and trade, has led some international agencies to warn Laos about an unhealthy financial dependence on China.  Analysts say Laos is looking to balance China’s influence by drawing support from longstanding backer Vietnam as well as ...

The Australian immigration minister on Wednesday made a blunt videotaped pitch to asylum seekers detained on the Pacific island of Nauru to accept a resettlement offer while stressing they should forget about ever moving to Australia. ...

In many parts of northeast Asia and Europe train travel in the 21st century is a safe and fast cross-country mode of transport. In South and Southeast Asia, riding the rails is frequently frustrating and sometimes dangerous with derailments and fiery crashes. Impoverished Cambodia has ...

A three-day holiday in the tourist town of Siem Reap has garnered millions of dollars in economic value, officials said Tuesday. The Angkor Sankranta, held near the famed temples of Angkor Wat, celebrates the Khmer New Year, a lunar holiday that typically falls in April. It ...

Phnom Penh Municipal Court again delayed a hearing for 11 opposition activists, shortly after opening one on Monday. But the case still hangs over them, along with charges that Human Rights Watch has called “ridiculous.” ...

Two officials from Cambodia’s Interior Ministry departed for Australia and the Pacific Island of Nauru Monday, to ensure that an initial group of asylum seekers there will move to Cambodia, part of a controversial deal with Australia. ...

Putting the final stamp of approval on a process that took months of negotiation, the Cambodian National Assembly has approved the new structure and membership of the National Election Committee, the body that will oversee voter registration and elections. ...

Recent studies show that Cambodia’s democratic development is backsliding. For many Cambodians the future is unpredictable, creating a sense of uncertainty for many, while political freedoms are on the wane. ...

According to a new survey, land disputes in Cambodia lead to employment insecurity, causing poverty, food insecurity, and increasing physical and psychological insecurity. The survey found that most expressed a desire for the government to eliminate land disputes and set a clear policy to address ...

Cambodia has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the region, and despite UN goals set up for the end of 2015, that number has remained high. There, only 75 percent of women giving birth were attended by trained health workers in 2012, according ...

The National Assembly has been presented with a full list of 24 candidates for nine positions on the National Election Committee. As the Assembly prepares to select the members, its women’s political committee urged that it select more women, and that a woman be chosen as president ...

For Cambodia to provide quality public services will require reform of its financial management system, an economist says. “Public financial management” is the balance of government revenue and expenditures, and it requires strong institutions to build public services like education, health and infrastructure, Heng Dyna, an ...

Asean integration at the end of 2015 will give Cambodia opportunities, but it will also mean economic competition that the country must be ready for, an analyst says. ...