An invitation to originality at the National Pop Music and Song Festival 2011

‘We should not let the music sector suffer from negative actions and copy almost everything from abroad which has become a bad habit that makes us lose our national spirit and become dependent on foreigners.’ (PM Hun Sen)

Kep City. The words of the Cambodian Premier are meaningful of what we all expect from this kind of events like the National Pop Music and Song Festival 2011 that gathers this year more than 30 groups. Cambodia is, first of all, a nation with a long and standing culture and civilization. One way to underline it is precisely by art. I expect to create soon a school of fine arts at the side of this inspiring national park, just because we have to awake the ancient spirits of the Cambodian sensitivity for beauty and harmony.

Koh Puos, the Snake Island of Sihanoukville, has a bridge to development

Where there are not ethical principles, it is hardly to expect an authentic development.

All that is valuable in human society depends upon the opportunity for development accorded the individual.
Albert Einstein

Read more: RFA: ‘Russian Pedophile Pardoned On Government Request‘

Hun Sen suspended mine project at Cardamom Mountains

The Cambodian primer minister Hun Sen suspended a big mine project of titanium to the happiness of several environmental observers like Mongabay site, Wildlife Alliance and The Phnom Penh Post newspaper that have campaigned in the defense of one of the virgin jungles of the country. The move of the primer minister was unexpected, said different resources that already lost hope in hold such project that was expected to produce incomes for 1.3 billion US dollars per year according to the promotions of the Cambodian Economic Group. However, observers questioned such conclusions of the economists and suggested that the project was not going to be so successful for the economy while destroying a vulnerable environment that is the house of several endemic species like the Siamese crocodile, the Indochina tiger, the Malaysian bear and the natural migration route of Asian elephants.

US-Cambodian negotiations on Lon Nol debt

On March 1970 General Lon Nol assumed the power in a troublesome Cambodia, moving prince Sihanouk from his position of head of state and putting Cambodia at the side of Washington. Technically it is not possible to say that Lon Nol introduced Cambodia in the War of Vietnam, because the situation was already unsustainable, but his goverment opened widely the doors to the worst Cambodian decades in the 20th century. He is so far in history the only president of a millennial kingdom. The Nixon’s administration, by its part, drop over Cambodia about 2,756,941 tons of bombs, a cost that historians like Kiernan and Taylor estimates in 7 billion US dollars. Besides it, the Lon Nol administration received from Washington a loan of 445 million US dollars for programs of agriculture and development in a country that was being bombarded ! Now US wants its loan back.

No Cambodian has been reported missing in Japanese quake

Official statement of the Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs about no missing Cambodians so far in Japan.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cambodia released this Sunday a statement to say that no Cambodian citizen has been reported missing so far during the Sendai earthquake and tsunami. It says also that Cambodians living or studying in Japan, can get in contact with their embassy for any situation related with the natural disaster. The embassy published the following information for urgent contacts:

To our Cambodian compatriots: With regard to the 11th March earthquake, the Royal Embassy of Cambodia in Tokyo requests you to inform the following diplomats if you have any relative or friends missing: 1-Mr. Sim Vireak, First Secretary: Tel: (81) 80 4075 5704 - Email: simvireak@hotmail.co.jp. 2- Mr. Hok Sophea, First Secretary: Tel: (81) 80 4075 5702 - Email: sopheakh@gmail.com. 3-Mrs. Sok Soboth, Second Secretary - Tel: (81) 80 4075 5701 - Email: sobothsok@yahoo.com

Primer Minister Hun Sen sent his condolences to Primer Minister Naoto Kan and the people of Japan. The Royal Goverment of Cambodia and the Cambodian Red Cross has donated 100 thousand US dollars and 20 thousand US dollars respectively to the Government of Japan for the relief of the victims by the 8.9-9.0 M_W megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 on 11 March 2011 (in Cambodia was 12:46 on March 11). The epicenter was reported to be 130 kilometers off the east coast of the Oshika Pensinsula. The tsunami did not affect the Cambodian coasts.

According to the census of 2010 of the Cambodian Student Association of Japan, there are 331 Cambodians studying in Japan. However, there is not a report of Cambodians working in that country and none of Cambodian tourists that were in the area during the earthquake.

If you are a Cambodian in Japan or you know Cambodians in that country, feel free to use also this website to report any incident or ask information for Cambodians.