Never a dull moment in the ‘Kingdom of Wonder’… On the 6th day of their trial, all 23 workers, union leaders and activists, arrested during the violent military crackdown on striking workers on January 2nd and 3rd (see HERE) were found guilty but with suspended sentences.
Was it the pressure from the brands, threatening to pull investment and orders out of Cambodia for somewhere else which dicated the final outcome? Was it the relentless support of the sympathisers? Was it a sign of goodwill towards the CNRP? Was it pressure on the judges on behalf of the authorities? Was it sheer compassion or cynical pragmatism?
Whatever… They wil walk free in a few hours…
This is a follow-up post on my ebook ‘A Fine Thread’, available for your iPad on iTunes HERE.
Members and sympathisers of the Independent Monk Network for Social Justice (IMNSJ) held a protest against what they believe is the possible sale of the Buddhist Institute of Phnom Penh, or parts thereof, to the Naga Casino which happens to be just next door to the Institute.
Access to the Buddhist Institute was barred by an important police force deployed in front of Chaktomuk Theater.
Posted Thursday May 29, 2014, in
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Some 400 members of communities from 24 Cambodian provinces gathered in front of the Anti Corruption Unit to deliver a petition. A march through the blistering heat then brought them in front of a roadblock set up by the authorities to prevent them from reaching the National Assembly…
The areas in Phnom Penh which were evicted over the last decennium are mostly feeding a chimera of development, nurturing a gentrification which targets the Cambodian or Chinese 1%.
Lively cities are not made of a string of ghetto’s containing specific social groups. The presence and intertwinement of rich and poor within the same urban community allows for the preservation of a sense of reality, puts things in perspective, can help to develop feelings of solidarity.
If you want to know more about land issues in Cambodia, there is an app for that… ‘Quest for Land’, 10 years of land issues in Cambodia can be downloaded at THIS LINK.
About 200 villagers who were forcefully evicted from their land in Kratie are stuck at the Samaky Reangsey pagoda in Phnom Penh for over one month now. Threats to evict them from the pagoda are followed by promises of finding a solution. What else is there for them to do but resist, wait, sleep? They have nowhere to go anyhow, they have not much to expect. They are like thousands of other villagers in Cambodia who were pushed on the wrong side of a thin survival line. They are the discontented, frustrated citizens which could feed revolutions.
If you want to know more about land issues in Cambodia, there is an app for that… ‘Quest for Land’, 10 years of land issues in Cambodia can be downloaded at THIS LINK.
Garment factory workers staged a fashion event called ‘Beautifull Clothes, Ugly Reality’ at the Worker’s Information Center in Phnom Penh, denouncing the poor working conditions and the current oppression they currently face in Cambodia. The participants held a fashion show, attended by some 200 people, wearing clothes from brands like Adidas, H&M and others which are being manufactured here. They also threaded the catwalk on songs by ‘The Messengers’, a vocal group of former garment workers, while carrying signs saying ‘We need rice, not bullets’, ‘Drop the ban on public gathering now’ or ‘We need a decent condition and dignity.
Same people, same fences, slightly different itinerary of the march and a little more heat on day 5 of the trial for 23 workers, activists and union leaders who were arrested on January 2nd and 3rd during a violent military crackdown (see HERE) on striking workers demanding a 160$/month salary.
The trial can be followed, almost minute by minute, on the LICADHO feed at THIS LINK.
The same crowd of human rights activists and monks from the Independent Monk Network for Social Justice (IMNSJ) held a protest in front of the barriers sealing off the street where the Phnom Penh Municipal Court is located during the 4th trial day of 23 workers and union representatives who were arrested during the heavy crackdown of a strike on January 2nd and 3rd which resulted in at least 5 dead.
The protest was spiced by a surprise march around the Olympic Stadium and O’Russey Market which went on unhindered but under a blistering heat.
This is a follow-up post on my ebook ‘A Fine Thread’, available for your iPad on iTunes HERE.
