CNRP cites assaults in nixing talks
The opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party yesterday withdrew from talks with the government scheduled for today in protest against soldiers cracking down on monks and demonstrators during a garment worker strike in the capital. Special Forces Airborne 911 Unit soldiers with metal pipes, knives, AK-47s, slingshots and batons cracked down on demonstrators near the Yakjin garment factory in Por Sen Chey district, making a number of arrests, including monks and union leaders, according to rights groups Licadho and the Community Legal Education Center. “We withdraw from the negotiation front, because they crack down and arrest [people],” CNRP lawmaker-elect Yim Sovann told the Post. “We condemn the act of violence against the monks, against the workers who are demanding the minimum wage of $160.” Speaking to demonstrators at the CNRP rally in Freedom Park last night, party president Sam Rainsy said his party would “not talk with such barbarians”. …
Shane Worrell and Meas Sokchea
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/cnrp-cites-assaults-nixing-talks
