News
Proposed changes to reserve requirement meets controversy
A proposed increase in the reserve requirement would decrease lending and slow Cambodia’s economic growth, according to some bankers and experts. The National Bank of Cambodia is set to hold a meeting later this month discussing a possible raise of the reserve requirement from 12 ...
Union makes poisoning claim
More than 70 employees continued to protest in front of a luxury resort in Siem Reap town yesterday, demanding that 18 workers be reinstated after they were allegedly dismissed for attempting to unionise. Chhey Phi, head of the Angkor Village Resort Workers Union, claimed yesterday ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2011080550873/National-news/union-makes-poisoning-claim.html
Firing pregnant staff triggers strike
More than 500 workers at a garment factory in suburban Phnom Penh went on strike yesterday over what they described as their employer’s history of disregarding labour laws, including firing pregnant employees. Taiwanese-owned Nan Kuang Garment (Cambodia) allegedly forces staff to work overtime, employs under-age ...
One week deadline for beer strike resolution
Following “tough discussions” with Phnom Penh’s deputy governor yesterday, Angkor Beer promoters agreed to suspend their protest for one week starting today. Ou Tep Phally, vice-president of the Cambodian Foods and Service Workers’ Federation, said five beer promoters and one union representative negotiated with officials. ...
More than 1,800 families seek help
About 60 people representing 1,850 families from seven villages in Battambang province’s Sampov Loun district yesterday petitioned Interior Minister Sar Kheng and Prime Minister Hun Sen for intervention in a land dispute. Villagers claim that district authorities leased 4,095 hectares of their land in Chrey ...
Boss blames panic on alarm
About 2,000 workers fled a garment factory on the outskirts of Phnom Penh and an estimated 30 workers fainted yesterday after sparks started flying from a generator and a fire alarm went off at 10:00am. Chea Mony, president of the Free Trade Union, said the episode ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2011080550882/National-news/boss-blames-panic-on-alarm.html
Damning revelations
An environmental group has accused the Lao government of “unilaterally” pushing forward with construction on the controversial US$3.8 billion Xayaburi dam on the Mekong River, despite serious concerns about the project and an incomplete regional decision-making process. In a statement released yesterday, conservation group International ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2011080550883/National-news/damning-revelations.html
Visitors to Angkor Up 25 Percent in First Six Months
The number of visitors to Siem Reap’s Angkor Archaelogical Park in the first six months of the year increased about 25 percent over the same period last year, according to figures released yesterday by the Apsara Authority, which runs the site. According to the figures, ...
Business Registrations Up 34% This Year
The number of businesses that registered at the Ministry of Commerce during the first seven months of this year increased 34 percent compared to the same period last year, according to ministry figures released yesterday. According to the data, in the first seven months of ...
Newly Paved Road Expected to Up M’kiri Trade
With the paving of the road from Sen Monorom City to a planned international border crossing with Vietnam recently completed, cross-border trade in the area is expected to rise, officials said. Chinese-owned company Roch China Construction finished paving the 32-km road last month using a ...
Economic Plan for Mekong Region Gets Finalized
Ministers from the six Mekong region nations concluded a two-day meeting yesterday in which they solidified plans for an economic strategy that would span a decade and require billions in investment. Speaking at Phnom Penh’s Peace Palace at the annual ministerial meeting, Minister of Commerce ...
B’bang Protesters Seek Help in Land Dispute
About 60 villagers from Battambang province’s Sampov Loun district gathered in Phnom Penh’s Wat Botum Park yesterday to prtotested against a 4,065-hectare land concession granted to a company for agriculture development. Korng Sokheng, a representative for 1,850 families, said villagers submitted a petition to Prime ...
Fixed-Duration Contracts Threaten Garment Industry
Cambodia’s garment sector is in danger of losing its reputation for adherence to international labor standards because of the widespread use of “abusive temporary labor contracts,” according to a report released by Yale Law School on Wednesday. “Cambodian garment manufacturers have adopted the practice of ...
Plans Name Developer of Sisowath Quay Site
Architectural plans of a property development that is blamed for causing structural damage to French colonial-era buildings on Phnom Penh’s Sisowath Quay show drawings of a five-story residential building, complete with underground car parking. According to the plans, dated July 11, the mysterious company behind ...
Property tax questions asked
Cambodia’s property tax is to come into effect next month, though experts say the levy is not widely understood and may be too early. The property tax will initially focus on the capital’s properties, comprising an annual payment calculated of 0.1 percent of the value ...
Chevron talks oil production
Chevron Overseas Petroleum (Cambodia) has been actively exploring Cambodia’s offshore Block A, and applied for a permit to begin extraction from government authorities. Yesterday, The Post caught up with its President Steve Glick, who has been in his present role in Phnom Penh for about ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2011080450868/Business/chevron-talks-oil-production.html
Interest up at Angkor Wat
Increased interest by Asian tourists has led to about 33 percent growth for Angkor Wat ticket sales so far this year, according to the Apsara Authority. Revenues during the first six months hit US$20 million, compared with about $15 million in the period last year, ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2011080450870/Business/interest-up-at-angkor-wat.html
Current accounts in control
Cambodia’s current accounts deficit has increased in recent years, but is not yet a cause for concern, according to experts. The Asian Development Bank’s July update showed Cambodia’s current accounts deficit stood at 11 percent of GDP in 2010, and statistics show the trade gap ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2011080450869/Business/current-accounts-in-control.html
Two dollar strike to continue
Angkor Beer promoters yesterday rejected an offer from the municipality that would have required them to suspend their strike while officials negotiated a solution for them, telling Phnom Penh’s deputy governor that their protest is legal and that their employer is breaking the law. More ...
Residents tell tycoon to back off
Families protesting encroachment onto their land by a tycoon who is expanding a road in Phnom Penh’s Meanchey district filed a complaint to the Prime Minister’s cabinet and the Municipal Court on Tuesday. On Friday, employees working for tycoon Thong Sarath demolished fences on eight ...
Complaint over violence
Twenty-nine community representatives from Kampong Speu’s Phnom Sruoch district travelled in person to the National Assembly building in Phnom Penh yesterday to file a complaint against provincial governor Kang Heang and other officials, accusing them of “robbing a total of 950 hectares of farm land”. ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2011080450865/National-news/complaint-over-violence.html
Low Funds May Have Led to CPI Suspension
An official at the Ministry of Planning said yesterday that a lack of funds may be to blame fo the Ministry of Finance and Economy suspending the publication of June’s consumer price index. Sam Saroeun, deputy director of the statistics department at the Ministry of ...
City Hall Calls On Angkor Beer Promoters to Protest Peacefully
Phnom Penh City Hall yesterday warned Angkor Beer promoters to protest peacefully until a resolution could be reached on their pay claims, a union representative said. Protests held by the Angkor Beer promoters turned violent on Tuesday evening, with one promoter hospitalized after protestors clashed ...
Two Khmer Papers Told to Halt Publishing
The Ministry of Information on Tuesday ordered two Khmer-language newspapers owned by the same publisher to halt publication for failing to follow ministry rules. In a notice signed by Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith, Phnom Penh-based The Water and Fire News and The World newspapers ...