Gov’t, Garment Sector Silent Over Letter Urging SEZ Probe

A senior official at the Commerce Ministry and the secretary-general of the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) were both silent yesterday regarding a letter sent to the ministry by garment buyers on Friday, urging the government to intensify its investigation of last month’s triple shooting of protesters at a Svay Rieng special economic zone (SEZ). Signed by several of the biggest customers of the domestic garment industry including H&M and American Eagle Outfitters, the letter urged the government “to conduct a full and transparent investigation… and hold those responsible for injuring workers accountable.” The statement is the strongest condemnation to date from international buyers over both the shooting and the government’s still unsolved, and at times baffling, investigation of the prime suspect-former Bavet City Governor Chhuk Bundith. …