Corruption Monitor Issue 2 - January 2008 Clean Monthly Review of Corruption-Related Stories in the Cambodian Media

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THIS MONTH TEACHERS DEMAND FULL WAGES Due to the sensitivity of the top- FOR THURSDAY CLASSES ic it is understandable that Cam- bodian media have a hard time Primary school teachers in Svay Education minister dated January 2, finding sources willing to provide Rieng province have demanded full teachers in all primary schools in the their names for reports on corrup- payment of overtime wages for Thurs- province received only three months tion. This doesn’t prevent media days, traditionally a day of no primary of Thursday overtime wages in the aca- from covering the topic: the five classes in Cambodia, alleging years of demic year 2006-2007. Each time there newspapers monitored for this delay, reported newspapers January 3. was also a reduction of 5,000 to 10,000 survey produce so far an average A primary teacher who teaches on riel (US$1.25 to US$2.5) for each teach- of almost 500 corruption-related Thursdays should receive 10,000 riel er, added the letter, reported Khmer stories a month, the four radio sta- (about US$2.5) in overtime wages as Machas Srok. tions 150. Stories aired on radio are stipulated by the Ministry of Education, The incidence occurs in many other more verifiable than those in news- according to a letter thumb-printed by provinces, said Rong Chhun, accus- papers as radio reports tend to teachers in a number of the schools ing that “top level” officials embezzle quote sources. Newspapers, both seeking intervention from Rong Chhun, the money because the ministry never pro-government and otherwise, president of Cambodian Independent uses up the budget allocated to it by the are filled with stories containing Teachers’ Association (CITA), reported government, the letter claims, reported serious, many times anonymous, Sralanh Khmer. Khmer Machas Srok. accusations of corruption commit- However the ministry and its pro- The teachers claimed that unless ted by high ranking officials, politi- vincial department have paid them the they give some money to their leaders, cians, police and army . Samples of overtime for only a few months each they will not receive regular payment these stories are presented in this year with numerous wage reductions on time, reported Sralanh Khmer. edition, the focus of which is on for- for unspecified reasons, the teachers The newspapers failed to report est-related corruption (page 2). claim, reported the newspaper. comments from officials in charge of the According to a CITA letter to the issue.

ECONOMIC, POLITICAL STA- ALLEGED CORRUPTION BILITY ATTRACTS US INVESTOR BLIGHTS RURAL PROJECT

A US can-manufactur- us feel optimistic that invest- A road construction proj- bodian government to spend ing firm’s decision to pour ment in Cambodia will grow. ect spanning six provinces US$1 million annually on road tens of millions of dollars of We are still hopeful although and with a budget of more maintenance. investment into Cambodia [we] are solving many chal- than US$10 million is allegedly Officials claim that the is partly due to the Cambo- lenges such as corruption, riddled with corruption, anon- private companies in charge dian government’s efforts poverty, and land disputes,” ymous officials involved in the of the regular road mainte- to maintain political and he said. project recently claimed. nance have done too little to macro-economic stability in US Ambassador to Cam- Corruption has appar- justify the high salaries paid the Kingdom, Deputy Prime bodia Joseph A. Mussomeli ently blighted the Tertiary by the government. Most Minister Sok An recently said that the investment re- Roads Improvement Program of the roads have not been claimed. flects the trust which foreign (TRIP-IV), a project using €7.6 repaired, officials claimed, Sok An, who presided investors have in Cambodia, million (over US$10 million) though contractors are still over the inauguration cere- suggesting that Cambo- worth of German aid for the being paid their wages. mony of the Crown Beverage dia should maintain its fight construction of roads, mar- The claims are backed up Cans (Cambodia) manufac- against corruption to fur- kets and ponds in Kompong by a report by Thomas Mraz, turing plant in Phnom Penh ther improve investor confi- Speu, Kompong Chhnang, then-engineer of the proj- December 4, said that the dence. Kompong Thom, Kompong ect, who went to investigate firm has invested US$30 mil- He expressed hopes that Cham, Kratie and Prey Veng the allegations in Kompong lion in the facility. Cambodia would attract oth- provinces, said officials who Thom October 8. “Political and macro-eco- er US investors. asked not to be identified. “After investigations at nomic stability are the two key Rasmei Kampuchea TRIP-IV, which began in the place, I cannot support factors which lure foreign in- December 5, 2007 2005 and is scheduled to end clearing the cheque for vestment. These points make next year, requires the Cam- Continued on page 3 No.2 • January 2008 Corruption Monitor

CORRUPTION & FOREST CRIME times. “We just want to establish a community to protect the forest for people to use. But, authorities don’t agree. They said * Ethnic minorities in Ratanakiri province who suffered that they had given the land to Rothana Visal,” said 50-year- forest destruction on their ancestral lands organized a march old villager Hul Keal. December 19, demanding provincial authorities prevent for- But Srey Nou denied the allegation, saying that the local est crime and land grabbing, as ordered by the government. firm had received permission from the government with a 70- However, the march was blocked by provincial authorities year contract to develop the 3,000 ha forest land. who violently dispersed about 100 protestors, Moneaksekar SRP-lawmaker Eng Chhay Eang said that the fact that the Khmer reported December 20. commune authorities allowed a private firm to clear forest Observers and local human rights organizations strongly land and prevented villagers from establishing a community condemned the authority’s act, calling it “fear of shadows” and violates the law and he promised to seek intervention from “human rights violations,” because provincial and district of- the Ministry of Agriculture. ficials and armed forces are involved in illegal land grabbing * Following the Cambodian government’s announcement and forest crimes, Sralanh Khmer reported December 21. that more than 120,000 hectares of agricultural concession * The Appeal Court has to-date failed to rule a case con- land in the provinces Kratie, Kompong Cham and Kompong cerning forest crime committed by high-ranking Ratanakiri Thom have been given to private firms for development, the provincial officials from October 2003 to May 2004 in spite of Norodom Ranaridh Party (NRP) recently issued a statement the Phnom Penh Municipal Court’s ruling in 2005 to convict claiming that the forest land was being cleared by illegal those perpetrators, Rasmei Kampuchea reported Decem- merchants, WMC reported December 4. ber 20. Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Center of Human The case involves 15 provincial officials, five of whom are Rights said that only 10 percent of concession land is under jailed in Prey Sar prison, while others, including former pro- real development. WMC could not contact any senior officials vincial governor Kham Khouen, who was sentenced in absen- from the CPP for a response to the accusation. tia to 17 years in jail, remain at large. * The National Authority for Land Dispute Resolution has * The Asia-Tropic Research Institute issued a report reclaimed 86,335 hectares of forest land in Sihanoukville mu- December 9 claiming that Cambodia is a leading nation in nicipality’s Stung Hav and Prey Nob districts which had been terms of forest destruction in the region, reported VOD De- illegally encroached upon, following a recent summit at City cember 12. Hall, Rasmei Kampuchea reported December 13. According to the Danish institute Cambodia ranks first in Officials of the Gulf Forestry Administrative Inspectorate terms of most serious forest devastation in Southeast Asia, said December 12 that they will enclose the confiscated land where up to 70 percent of tropical forest has been destroyed. with a fence and define it as state property. The Cambodian government mocked the report, adding According to Chief Inspector of the Gulf Forestry Admin- that the institute should spend more time studying the real istrative Office Vann Sophanna, 6,356 hectares of the land are situation in Cambodia. located near the tourist resort of the Kbal Chhay waterfalls, Opposition leader Sam Rainsy backed the findings: “The 14,285 hectares in Ream National Park, with the remainder report reflects the truth. Cambodia is in such a rank. Cam- made up from forests in the districts. He said, as in Siem Reap bodia destroys a lot of forest because of corruption and law province, the land grabbers were not poor, but rather rich and violation by the powerful”, VOD broadcasted Rainsy saying. powerful. Sophanna requested that those occupying the land * More than 100 villagers armed with axes and machetes cooperate with authorities, according to Rasmei Kampuchea. surrounded December 13 twelve soldiers whom they accused of clearing their forest land in Bat- Kampuchea Thmey, December 26, 2007 tambang province’s Banon district, Kampuchea Thmey reported December 21. The protestors claimed that the forest clearance ordered by Ouk Nong, a military engineering official at Unit 5, had affected their living and crops and that they would not stop their protest as long as those soldiers did not end their activities. Ouk Nong rejected the accusation, saying that he did not order the clearance because he owns CCorruptorrupt no land there. He argued that the forest land had CCleanlean been distributed by the state to the 12 soldiers. However, he admitted he was unsure if the soldiers had encroached upon land or not. * Residents in Pursat province’s Kra Kor district accused Srey Nou, Anlung Thnot Commune chief, of paving the way for a The Corruption Monitor is part of a year- This review gives an overview of sam- long survey commissioned by USAID/ ples found. Corruption-related stories private company, Rothana Visal, to clear PACT Cambodia. During this survey the brought by other media are included if 800 hectares of a 3,000 hectare forest for following newspapers and radio news found relevant. animal farms and cashew, mango and programs are monitored on corruption- Articles are quoted and translated as is, related stories: without any warranty as to the accuracy coconut plantations December 2, Radio Rasmei Kampuchea, Koh Santepheap, of the information reproduced. Free Asia reported December 3. Kampuchea Thmey, Moneaksekar The Corruption Monitor does not nec- The villagers said they had requested Khmer, Sralanh Khmer and news broad- essarily reflect the views and opinion of casts of National Radio Kampuchea AM USAID/PACT Cambodia. the commune authorities to form a com- 918, FM 102 (Women Media Centre), For questions/comments: munity to protect forest land, but their Voice of Democracy (VOD on FM 105) request had been turned down several and Radio Free Asia (RFA on FM 105). [email protected] 2 Corruption Monitor No.2 • January 2008

SRP LAWMAKER: “CORRUPTION COSTS EDITORIAL: HALF A BILLION ANNUALLY” POLITICIANS AND Yim Sovann, chairman of the Fourth salaries and causing inflation, reported Committee of the National Assembly Machas Srok News. The loss of state NATIONALISTS and the opposition Sam Rainsy Party property, natural resources and forests (SRP) lawmaker for Phnom Penh, said is also due to corruption, he said. Politics in Cambodia has been much at a workshop held to mark Interna- Speaking at Chenla Theater Decem- the same since democracy was rees- tional Anti-Corruption Day December 9 ber 9, Sovann appealed for the quick tablished in 1993. Politicians, anxious to that corruption is to blame for most of adoption of the long-awaited anti-corrup- preserve good relations, tend to gloss Cambodia’s ills, newspapers reported tion law. “I detest corruption,” Moneak- over and ignore others’ achievements. December 10. sekar Khmer quoted him as saying. For example, opposition parties Claiming that the two largest prob- Mom Sitha, from NGO the Cambodian never acknowledge what the ruling lems facing Cambodia are corruption Independent Committee to Fight Against CPP party has done for the country, and land disputes, he claimed that the Corruption, said that corruption is occur- although good roads links now allow government loses over US$500 million ring “everywhere, all the time,” adding them to campaign in rural areas. each year through corruption, mak- that the problem is lowering the living Corruption is always on the tip of the ing it impossible to raise civil servants’ standards of ordinary Cambodians. cynical opposition’s tongue and, though no one can deny that corruption exists, PRIME MINISTER CRITICIZES such crimes are not government policy but the secret dealings of a handful of CANDIDATES WITH DUAL NATIONALITY dishonest officials. The perpetrators will be caught sooner or later. Prime Minister Hun Sen warned that them? When we have a problem, they all those standing for the 2008 general leave Cambodia,” reported Xinhua. One opposition party promises election, especially premiership candi- “They should dare to leave their oth- universal employment, free medical dates, should relinquish any dual nation- er citizenship. If they don’t, how can the treatment for the poor and higher sala- alities they hold, newspapers reported Cambodian public believe them? They ries for civil servants and public sec- November 28. live and do business in Cambodia, but tor workers using the funds it says are Speaking at a November 27 gradua- then take money to pay tax in France,” currently lost to corruption. tion ceremony in Phnom Penh, Hun Sen the premier added, reported Rasmei Such claims are based on murky questioned the commitment of candi- Kampuchea. statistics that opposition politicians use dates who hold dual nationality, claim- Hun Sen warned that the long-awaited to show that Cambodia loses millions ing that they are keeping an escape anti-corruption law would present such of dollars to corruption each year. route open and enjoying unclear tax people with difficulties, as under the law However, the ruling party would status, reported Rasmei Kampuchea. all assets and properties both in Cambo- like to make the same promises, albeit “How can Cambodian people trust dia and abroad must be declared. stressing the importance of foreign investment to expand the economy in PACT WARNS PARTNERS TO AVOID CORRUPTION addition to the corruption crackdown. Certainly, little will change while near- Pact Cambodia, an international Pact requires that all local NGO sub- ly half of Cambodia’s state budget NGO working collaboratively with local grantees organization partners sign an comes from foreign aid, US$500-600 organizations to build organizational anti-corruption clause in their contract, million annually, used to fund count- capacity, warned December 17 that it to promote transparent and accountable less projects throughout the country. would terminate its contracts with all management geared towards avoiding The government is making prog- organization partners when it found corruption. that corruption or mismanagement had In PACT’s view implementation with ress: many buildings and roads have been intentionally committed. transparency provides opportunities been built and over the last four years The warning was given after PACT for organizations to be publicly respon- Cambodia has seen a significant eco- had discovered that mismanagement and sible for their activities, and at the same nomic growth, a result of the govern- corruption had been committed by three time transparent. If small problems hap- ment’s rectangular strategy. local NGO partners over the last year. pen unexpectedly, NGO management- Those who now oppose this strat- In its letter sent to the director of the should make necessary corrections and egy used to be friends of the gov- VOD, [Pact] also stated that corruption give explanations of integrity issues to ernment and once declared their full exists at all levels in Cambodia, and that stakeholders, so those small problems support for the government’s develop- the issue affects the living standard of are prevented from becoming bigger. ment plan. Cambodian nationals, schools, hospi- In its letter to VOD, Pact did not As a Khmer proverb says: “A man tals, the fishery sector and other fields. mention the names of the three orga- is no better than his word”. At the same time, corruption has also nizations which had their sub-grants (Koh Santepheap, December 21) been seen in NGOs. terminated.

Continued from page 1 Thomas Mraz has now resigned from gations be carried out to ensure that funds September 2007 for the contracted com- the project. are used efficiently and transparently. panies,” he said, adding he did not see The officials who disclosed the scan- Rural Development Minister Lu Lay- laborers engaged in work or any evi- dal said that embezzlement of the gov- sreng could not be contacted for com- dence of newly completed work such as ernment’s counterpart budget has taken ment as his phone was turned off. equipment or gravel piles. place in all provinces, requesting investi- Rasmei Kampuchea, December 6, 2007

3 No.2 • January 2008 Corruption Monitor

UPDATE SURVEY ON CORRUPTION-RELATED STORIES TRmg;fμIénkarsÞg;mtisþIBIGtßbTEdlTak;TgnwgGMeBIBukrlYy

300 283 200 182 180 250 243 160 200 140 161 120 109 150 135 124 100 100 80 60 50 40 20 20 10 0 0 Corruption-related stories per Corruption-related stories per Radio Newspaper Nov - Dec 2007 News Program Nov - Dec 2007

Koh Santepheap AM 918 Rasmei Kampuchea Kampuchea Thmey FM 1 0 2 Moneaksekar Khmer VOD on FM 105 Sralanh Khmer RFA on FM 105

Phnom Penh Corruption Locations of Stories Top 10 Keywords Battambang Collusion 13% 4% Kampong Cham 15% Land Grabbing 4% 2% Southeast 23% 3% Bribery 2% Southwest 4% Transparency 33% 11% Northeast 5% Anti-corruption Northwest 5% Extortion 6% 18% Cambodia 6% Forest Crime 10% Region 7% Tax evasion 15% 14% International Other (11 kw)

Between November 2007 and October 2008 all stories of five main Cambodian newspapers cenøaHBIExvicäika nigExtula qñaM2007 RKb;erOgTaMgGs; EdlRbmUl)anBI and four main radio news broadcasts are daily kaEstCaPasaExμrcMnYn 5 nigviTüúcMnYn 4 sMxan;²RtUv)anRtYtBinitüCaRbcaMéf¶ monitored on twenty keywords related to cor- elIBaküsMxan;cMnYn 20 EdlTak;TgnwgGMeBIBYkrlYy. ruption. The survey assesses all stories on both karsÞg;mtienH vaytémøelIerOgTaMgGs; TaMgKuNPaB nigbrimaN. quantitative and qualitative parameters. Above the second update with quantitative findings for xagelIenHCaB½t’manfμITI 2 CamYyniglT§plénbrimaNerOgBIExvicäika éf¶TI1 November 1 – December 31. dl;ExFñÚ éf¶TI31. News programs on VOD and RFA last exactly ry³eBlénkmμviFIB½t’mantamviTüúsMelgRbCaFibetyü nigviTüúGasuI one hour, and run seven days a week, while those on AM 918 and FM 102 rarely exceed 10 minutes. esrI KWmanry³eBlmYyem:agKt;kñúgR)aMBIréf¶kñúgmYys)aþh_ b:uEnþry³eBlkmviFIμ This explains partly the enormous difference in B½t’mantamviTüú AM918 nigFM102 kRmelIsBI 10 naTINas;. RbkarenH the number of stories covering corruption. )anbgðajmYyEpñkBIPaBxusKñad¾FMGMBIcMnYnerOgEdlpSayGMBIGMeBIBukrlYy. It’s remarkable that Kampuchea Thmey, seen as a government supportive newspaper, has vaKYr[kt;smÁal;Nas;EdlfakaEstkm<úCafμIEdlCakaEstKaMRTrdæaPi)al even more stories on corruption than opposition )ancuHpSayerOgsIþBIGMeBIBukrlYyeRcInCagkaEstmnsikarExμr nigkaEst newspapers Moneaksekar Khmer and Sralanh RsLaj;Exμr EdlCakaEstKaMRTKNbkSRbqaMg . Khmer. Attention for the topic clearly focuses on cMNab;GarmμN_rbs;RbFanbTenH epþatsMxan;y:agc,as;elIRbeTskm<úCa Cambodia itself, regional (Southeast Asia) and pÞal; elItMbn;GasIuGaeKñy_ ehIyerOgGnþrCatiEdlTak;TgnwgBukrlYykRmman international corruption-related stories are rare. Nas;.