CCAWDU leaders deny corruption during questioning at court
The Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Wednesday questioned three senior officials from the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union (CCAWDU) who stand accused of embezzling $92,929. Speaking after questioning under the court’s deputy prosecutor Ek Chheng Huot, union president Ath Thorn denied siphoning off the money, which was intended as a settlement payment for workers embroiled in a dispute with their bosses at a garment factory. “I didn’t commit what I have been accused of,” he said. “We helped workers to be reinstated and demanded that the money be given to them.” … The questioning comes after 40 workers, along with two former CCAWDU organizers, last month filed court complaints against Mr. Thorn, the union’s deputy president Kong Athit and secretary-general Ek Pheakdey. The complaint alleges that workers were only paid between $1,250 and $2,700 in a 2008 settlement with E Garment Factory that should have seen them get between $3,000 and $4,000 each. Mr. Thorn is among six union leaders who have been the target of numerous legal threats from factory owners and the government for their efforts to organize nationwide strikes and protests calling for a $160 minimum wage in the garment sector. …
Khuon Narim
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/ccawdu-leaders-deny-corruption-during-questioning-at-court-55670/
