R 3517 E MB U N SSUE I FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2020 Intelligent . In-depth . Independent www.phnompenhpost.com 4000 RIEL PM SAYS CLIMATE TURNING UP THE COVID-19 COULD CHANGE A THORNY HEAt in kingdom’s PUSH 115M INTO PROBLEM TO SOLVE COOLING ECONOMY EXTREME POVERTY NATIONAL – page 3 SPECIAL REPORT – page 8&9 WORLD – page 11 Child marriage and pregnancy hotlines launched Long Kimmarita Sar Sineth, deputy director of the and then we provide mental and indigenous people] getting married who marry before 18 are more likely ministry’s Legal Protection Depart- legal counselling. Later, if they still at a young age. They have suffered to experience domestic violence and THE Ministry of Women’s Affairs ment, told The Post on Thursday the have problems, we will seek out ser- many impacts such as pregnancy. less likely to remain in school. and UNICEF set up two hotlines announcement of the hotlines is to vices near to them for help,” he said. They become mothers at a young age He said they have worse economic related to child marriage and youth help citizens report issues and re- Sineth said that with the support causing a risk to their children and and health outcomes than their un- pregnancy. ceive counselling. of UNICEF the ministry was able to health problems. They also experi- married peers, which are eventually According to the ministry, people “The announcement of these launch the campaign. ence domestic violence,” he said. passed down to their own children being forced into child marriage numbers is aimed at providing ser- He said the regions most affected UNICEF Cambodia’s communica- and straining a country’s capacity to face many crises and their parents vices to victims and help reduce are Mondulkiri and Ratanakkiri tions specialist Meas Bunly said child provide quality health and educa- should avoid it. The rate of child tensions and problems they feel provinces. marriage is a violation of human tion services. marriage is still high in the north- they cannot speak about. “We see many people in Ratanakkiri rights and threatens the lives, wellbe- eastern regions of Cambodia. “As a first step, we listen to them and Mondulkiri provinces [mostly ing and future of girls. Bunly said girls CONTINUED – page 2 Allegations and rubbish piling up as strike goes on Mom Kunthear for claiming he was behind the strike. HE Phnom Penh Munici- “It is very unfair that the minis- pal Hall on Thursday ex- try accuses me without any basis. I pressed frustration with have nothing to do with the strike. I workers who refused to just facilitate and try to get the two returnT to work, leaving district sides to reconcile with each other,” authorities throughout the capital Kosal said. the task of clearing rubbish from He demanded the ministry pres- the streets on their own. ent evidence that he had led and Meanwhile, Ministry of Labour incited Cintri workers. and Vocational Training officials The Phnom Penh Municipal Ad- Chained elephant warned Tourism Workers’ Union ministration also issued a letter on Envionment officials and journalists view an elephant statue made of chainsaws seized from timber traders and illegal loggers in Mondulkiri province on Monday. HENG CHIVOAN Federation (CTWUF) Touch Ko- Thursday expressing regret for the sal to stop inciting striking waste actions of some Cintri workers who workers. did not comply with a Wednesday The ministry’s Department of agreement to return to work. Labour Dispute Resolution direc- The municipal authorities have UN: Covid may increase stillbirth toll tor Chrun Theravong said: “Touch been using all means at their dispos- Kosal’s action at Cintri (Cambodia) al to collect rubbish in the capital. ALMOST two million babies are still- natal care could save hundreds of recent decades in the global rate of Ltd are illegal based on Article 65 of Cintri workers representative born every year – one every 16 sec- thousands of lives each year, accord- maternal and infant deaths, stillbirths the Law on Unions and Article 83 of Rorng Saray said on Thursday that onds – the UN said on Thursday, ing to a joint report by UNICEF, the remain stubbornly frequent, particu- the Labour Law,” Theravong said more than 2,000 workers were still warning that the Covid-19 pandemic World Health Organisation (WHO) larly throughout sub-Saharan Africa Theravong said if Kosal does not on strike in front of the company, could add another 200,000 deaths to and the World Bank Group. and southeast Asia. stop or violates the warning letter, demanding it comply with their the “devastating” toll. Most stillbirths occur due to poor qual- “Losing a child at birth or during preg- his organisation could be sued. conditions. The vast majority of stillbirths, 84 ity healthcare lacking investment in nancy is a devastating tragedy for Kosal denied the allegations, say- per cent, occur in low- and middle- equipment and training of midwives. ing the ministry had no clear basis CONTINUED – page 3 income countries, where basic neo- And unlike notable reductions in CONTINUED – page 11 CONGRATULATIONS DON’T MISS OUR SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT TODAY ANNIVERSARY OF THE RE-ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NATIONAL BANK OF CAMBODIA 2 THE PHNOM PENH POST OCTOBER 9, 2020 WWW.phnompenhpost.COM National Child brides US’ Murphy meets on repatriation face many Niem Chheng rior minister] Sar Kheng, part of 70th anniversary focus on INISTER of the law enforcement cooperation. obstacles, Interior Sar [We] discussed efforts to com- Kheng met with bat trafficking of persons and US ambassador drugs, child protection, mutu- violence MPatrick Murphy on Wednes- al obligations for repatriation, day to discuss cooperating on freedom of speech and assem- Continued from page 1 repatriation after it had been bly, and Cambodian sovereign- postponed due to the Covid- ty,” Murphy said in a tweet. This imposes substantial 19 pandemic. Interior ministry spokesper- economic costs at the na- Murphy requested the two son Phat Sophanit told The tional level with major impli- countries find a possible way Post on Thursday that there cations for development and to continue carrying out this was no plan to move ahead prosperity. The sustainable work, according to a Face- with repatriation soon due to development goals call for book post by Sar Kheng. the pandemic. He said Mur- the elimination of all harm- In response, the interior phy requested in the meeting ful practices to advance the minister said the Kingdom that the interview with indi- rights of women and girls was committed to the prin- viduals to be repatriated from globally, according to Bunly. ciples and has a political will the US should be carried out “Child brides often be- to continue with what both via video conference, without come pregnant during ado- countries had agreed to in the having to perform direct in- lescence when the risk of past. He said although Covid- terviews like in the past. complications during preg- 19 delayed this work, the “The US ambassador re- nancy and childbirth in- principle and political will re- quested that we use technol- creases – for themselves and main unchanged. ogy via video conference or their infants. Cambodia and the US had whatever possible, instead of “The practice can also iso- a Memorandum of Under- interviewing them directly. US ambassador Patrick Murphy met with Interior Minister Sar Kheng on Wednesday to discuss better coop- late girls from family and standing in 2000 concerning Samdech [Sar Kheng] did not eration on repatriation. FACEBOOK friends and exclude them the repatriation of each oth- object to the request if that from participating in their er’s nationals should they fail could ensure clarity and accu- international law to accept Human rights activists have from families that had been communities, taking a heavy to obtain citizenship in the racy of the identity of the indi- the return of their nationals decried the deportation of uprooted by war and com- toll on their physical and other country. vidual to be repatriated. judged to be ineligible to re- Cambodians from the US, munism for which the US was psychological wellbeing,” he Early this year, 25 Cambo- “Samdech [Sar Kheng] said main in a foreign country. saying it violates their rights. partially responsible. said. dians were repatriated from the delay of the work was due “When asked, the US itself Chak Sopheap, the execu- He added that those individu- According to UNICEF, the US. Since 2002, nearly to technical aspects in ad- routinely cooperates with tive director of the Cambodi- als were nurtured by US society child marriage in Cambodia 800 Cambodians have been dition to Covid-19. But in its Cambodia and other foreign an Centre for Human Rights, and that the US was entirely has declined steadily over repatriated, according to the stance, Cambodia’s stance is governments to expeditiously told The Post that those de- responsible for their misbehav- the last 25 years. Khmer Vulnerability Aid Or- unchanged; we still imple- document and accept its own portees “were being doubly iour, not Cambodia. In 2014, the rate of women ganisation (KVAO), an NGO ment what both countries had citizens. punished by being sent to the “It is utterly unethical for under 18 getting married ac- that helps re-integrate them. agreed to,” Sophanit said. “We look forward to con- Kingdom”. mighty America to dump counted for 19 per cent. In The meeting also touched US embassy spokesperson tinued cooperation with the Political analyst Lao Mong those bad guys in tiny Cam- 1989, the number was 28 per on other issues related to law Chad Roedemeier said on Cambodian government to Hay agreed. He said those im- bodia and force it to look after cent.