Soccer hits the streets of Battambang town

Thursday, 06 September 2012

Dan Riley

 

The jam-packed weekend of football action kicks off in Battambang town tomorrow afternoon as the 2012 SMART Street Football Tournament plays out over three days and six separate youth futsal seasons culminate in finals on a super Sunday of soccer supremacy. Competition organisers SALT Academy will set up two regulation futsal fields on the street near the riverside Naga Fountain to accommodate the contests.

Twenty-two adult teams have registered for the street football event, drawing players from Battambang, Pailin, Siem Reap and even as far as Phnom Penh. Pool games will start from tomorrow’s opening ceremony and continuing until Sunday morning. Quarterfinals and semifinals will bring the total of games to 60.

Sunday afternoon will feature a congested schedule of seven championship games. For the youth futsal competitions, the finals mark the end of a lengthy rainy season leagues.

Forty-one boys sides and 23 girls sides comprising players from 8 to 18 years old participated in weekly fixtures and practised twice a week with their coaches. Teams were bracketed into six age and gender divisions, with an U-11 Girls competition run for the first time.

The futsal season is a shorter version of SALT’s regular annual youth league campaign played on grass fields, which includes life skill lessons and positive community building activities. Last weekend saw exciting semifinal and third place playoff matches held at Battambang Airfield, with several games decided by penalty shootouts.

Organisers expressed their gratitude to main sponsors Smart Mobile for supporting the weekend’s festivities and providing awards for the winners.

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Sunday’s Youth Futsal Finals
U17 Boys
Jerusalem v CFI

U14 Boys
DCC v Salaa Hope

U11 Boys
Aden v Jerusalem

Big Girls
Chrey v Chher Teal School

U14 Girls
Chrey v CFI

U11 Girls
Rapha v Khasch Poy School

To contact the reporter on this story: Dan Riley at dan.riley@phnompenhpost.com

Sung Bonna: Investing in the future of Cambodia

Thursday, 06 September 2012

Rupert Winchester

 

Sung Bonna is a man with plans. Not content with being one of the most powerful players in Cambodia’s property market, he wants to take his company regional, covering all aspects of the property business.

Talking to Post Property in his bustling offices in BKK1, the genial Bonna is softly-spoken, but his steely-eyed ambition quickly becomes apperent.

Starting from a small office space in 1999 with only a desk and an old motorbike, Bonna is now the president of the National Valuers’ Association of Cambodia and vice president of Real Estate Developers Association of Cambodia.

“At the moment we have business as property investors, developers, management and real estate and property agents and property valuation, so anything related to the property business, we cover. We develop residential, we develop offices, we develop commercial. We do it all,” he says proudly.

Over the years, Bonna has seen ups and downs in Cambodia’s property market, which he blames on inconsistent investment from overseas, which is now changing. “In 2006 and 2007, the investors were mostly Korean and Chinese. The Koreans were the main players. At the moment now things are going in a different direction. The Koreans are very slightly here. Most are Chinese, Vietnamese and Malaysian. Singaporeans and also the Japanese are coming as well at the moment this is a good sign that the Japanese are coming to Cambodia. But foreign investors now make up about 30 per cent of the total transactions, and 70 per cent are Cambodians.”

Bonna says that local investors are starting to look around the country and not just at Phnom Penh. “The local market is divided into two: one is the Cambodians from overseas, the second is Cambodian Cambodians  - the majority being real locals. They are starting to look at the provinces, and the other major cities, like Siem Reap, Sihanoukville, Battambang, and some of the Special Economic Zones near the borders with Siem Reap and Battambang.”

However Bonna says that Phnom Penh is still the best place for serious property investment: “After the crisis of 2008 and 2009 property prices dropped, almost 50 or 60 per cent in some locations across the whole country. In Phnom Penh is just fell by 30 or 40 per cent.”

He says that Phnom Penh has weathered the storm well, and is continuing to prosper. “Phnom Penh reached the bottom early, in 2010, and flattened out and started to be stable until 2011, but in the provinces it still continued to slide down and down until 2011. Those values are still flat, and some provinces are still down a little bit because the demand and supply isn’t there. But in general Phnom Penh is the best, especially in the city centre and areas where the government is,” he says.

“Starting from 2011,” he continues, “the number of transactions increased almost 20-30 per cent, and it makes the prices stable and pick up a little bit: comparing 2011 and now, we’ve just finished the first half of 2012, and year-on-year the number of transactions has almost doubled. But the prices have also increased, about 10 per cent on average. Especially in BKK1 and Daun Penh and along the main commercial boulevards.”

However, Bonna thinks some of the more visible stalled projects that dot the Phnom Penh skyline need to dealt with. “If there is a huge project in the middle of the city which is stuck, it makes other investors feel concerned. Sometimes they don’t think it’s a company’s internal problems, they think maybe its the country that has problems, so they think maybe the economy is not too good.   Sometimes, if possible, the ministry needs to keep an eye of supply and demand, and take care of investors.”

He rejects the idea that Phnom Penh could be facing another property bubble. “I don’t think with residential there will be a bubble, the buyers at this stage are not like the buyers before. The buyers at this stage are more concerned with real demand and real investment, not like the investors in 2006 and 2007,” he says.

With commercial and office space, he is slightly less sanguine. “There is some concern that there could be some oversupply in the future but in terms of the reality, it will be a challenge to stimulate demand … the market will find a solution. In the next three years, it’s not a concern. This is good for the country, it’s good for customers and good for demand, because of the competition.”

Bonna’s plans include listing his company on the Cambodia

Securities Exchange, the country’s nascent stock market. “Now I’m preparing the company, moving it, because it was at first a family company for the first five years, then the next five years it was a local entity, and now we’re aiming to become international so we’re changing a lot of our corporate governance policy, systems and structure, we are changing, and also our accounting and tax and everything, and we hope we’ll be ready by the end of next year or early in 2014.”

I ask him why he thinks listing would be useful for him, and what the company would do with the funds raised. “We are planning to invest in Cambodia. My personal nationalism means I would prefer to develop my country, and I would prefer to invest in this country. We want to expand the brand to cover the whole country, that’s what I’m planning, to be in every province, everywhere there will be a retail office.”

His plans of rolling out the brand nationally are already well underway: “We’ve already started, in Siahanoukville, and in Siem Reap, which is opening this week, and we’ll be in Battambang by the end of this year. We want to expand to make it easy for customers and for investors, so they can just walk in, and it looks like a retail bank.”

But Bonna’s plans extend overseas as well: “We want to jump in to ASEAN as a network, so we’re planning to open branches in ASEAN countries, Next year we’re planning to have one branch somewhere, my thinking is Myanmar, and Laos, and in Vietnam, trying to bring in investors into Cambodia. We want to list to get funds to expand overseas and encourage more investors to Cambodia.”

Bonna feels that this is a good time to invest in the Kingdom. “Cambodia still has a lot of advantages, interesting things, there are only some negative things in terms of its reputation, but its culture and environment has more or less changed a lot, it has developed a lot in terms of the law, regulations. We know that it hasn’t reached the levels that everyone needs yet, but at least it’s changing and there are still positive signs.”

He still feels that more changes are needed before the country becomes truly competitive, however.

“We hope that the government changes more things, especially as we’re preparing to join the ASEAN Free Trade Area, so to be competitive we have to change ourselves more: the most important is the law: regulation and enforcement and culture, so this is important, so I think we still need to change, compared to most other ASEAN countries, we have more potential, and we can attract investors from around the world to Cambodia.”

Bonna says that the country’s recent history has made it harder for it to compete internationally. “Cambodia is very young, in terms of the government, in terms of the private sector, education, experience, business, human resources, things like that, it’s very young. So it’s very hard. We’re not complaining about the government but we are complaining, I suppose, about the history of our country, so everything is difficult and it’s not easy to compete with other ASEAN countries.”

Finally, I bring up the subject of the Bonna Tower, a long-mooted project to build a grand office building in Phnom Penh. “At the moment we don’t have the budget or the funds,” he tells me,  “but this is our dream. As businessmen, if you don’t have a dream you cannot move, we have to build a dream to make ourselves move faster and forward to what we are dreaming, but we hope it will be coming.”

Malaysian Ambassador expresses pride

Friday, 31 August 2012

Post Staff

 

In conjunction with the 55th Anniversary of the National Day of Malaysia, I wish to convey my greetings and best wishes to all Malaysians and to all our colleagues and friends in Cambodia.  The theme for this year’s National Day is “55 Years of Independence: Promises Fulfilled” (55 TahunMerdeka: JanjiDitepati).

On this very special day, I would like to ask all my fellow Malaysians to reflect back and remember our forefathers and those who had sacrificed so much to lay the foundation of our great nation.  The foresight of our leaders who had forged tolerance, understanding, and trust amongst the diverse racial and ethnic groupings, with its multitude of cultures and religious beliefs, has led to a united, harmonious and peaceful society that embraces moderation as a way of life.  The vision of our leaders who had introduced development and relevant economic strategies, has also ensured that Malaysian enjoy better prosperity, education and medical and health care, living in a peaceful, safe and secure environment.

Under the present government, led by  our Honourable Prime Minister, YAB Dato’Sri Najib Bin Tun Abdul Razak, the ‘I Malaysia’ concept was introduced, which is an ongoing nation building programme to emphasise ethnic harmony, national unity and efficient governance.  Various reforms and transformation programs were also introduced, amongst them, the Government Transformation Programme (GTP) which is to rejuvenate a smooth, efficient and clean government, and the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) that would contribute to the growth of Malaysia, and to achieve Malaysia’s vision to be a fully developed nation by 2020.

Since the introduction of the various transformation programs in 2010 Malaysia has increased its per capita income, from US$6,700 to $9,700 in 2011 which is on target to achieve its targetted per capita income of $15,000by the year 2020.  In terms of investment,  the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has increased by 12.3 per cent to RM 33 billion (slightly more than US$ 10 billion), whilst private investment increased by 19 per cent to RM 94 billion (about $30 billion) in 2011, compared to the previous year.

The reforms and transformation programmes have also contributed to Malaysia being recognized as one of the 21 most competitive countries globally in 2012 by the World Economic Forum Report.  The World Bank has also recognized and ranked Malaysia as the 18th country in terms of ease of starting and doing business, ahead of countries like Germany, Japan, Taiwan and France.

As Malaysians, are all very proud of our achievements since independence, with our country enjoying continued peace and stability and its multi ethnic population living harmoniously in unity, enjoying increasing prosperity, better health and education, whilst the country is now recognized as an important member of the global community.

Malaysia is also enjoying strong and friendly relations with Cambodia.  Malaysia has been one of the earliest investors in Cambodia and has invested more than $2.8 billion since the early 1990s and is now the 4th largest investor in Cambodia.  It is now represented very prominently in many sectors, including banking, hotel, telecom, utilities and manufacturing.  Our bilateral trade has grown to $324 million in 2011 compared to $229 million in 2010.  Significantly, Cambodia’s exports to Malaysia increased by 95.5 per cent in 2011, compared to 2010.  This trend is expected to continue to grow this year.  In terms of visitors, about 100,000 Malaysians visited Cambodia in 2011, compared to 84,000 in 2010.  Cambodians visiting Malaysia also increased from 48,000 in 2010 to about 50,000 to 2011.

The contribution of Malaysian businesses to the Cambodian economy has been well recognized by the Cambodian government.  The increase in bilateral trade, investment and people-to-people contact, between Malaysia and Cambodia, both members of ASEAN, augurs well for the success of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) which will come into being in 2015.  In this regard, we wish to congratulate Cambodia for its Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2012 and playing a very significant role in moving forward the realization of this grand vision.  Interestingly, Malaysia will take over the Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2015.  It is the hope of the Malaysian government that Malaysian investors and Malaysians working in Cambodia will continue to contribute to the development and economic progress of this dynamic country, and to assist in enhancing the excellent relations between Malaysia and Cambodia.

On this very auspicious occasion, I take this opportunity to thank the Royal Government of Cambodia, for the assistance and cooperation rendered to the Embassy of Malaysia, and to wish the Government and the people of the Kingdom of Cambodia Great Success, Peace and Prosperity.

Cheating blights our schools

Monday, 27 August 2012

You Sokunpanha

 

 High-school seniors in Cambodia are anxiously awaiting the results of the school-leaving examination they sat just over two weeks ago.

For many, the exam was the culmination of years of hard work and gruelling preparation. How they performed in it is crucial, because it will determine their chance of a place in university, which will, in turn, help or harm their future employment prospects.

Sadly, there was evidence of widespread bribery and cheating during the exam.

Stories have circulated of proctors who set a “quota” – the amount of money raised by those sitting the exam in each room – that had to be paid in return for a blind eye towards blatant acts of plagiarism including copying from “cheat sheets” that were allowed into test centres.

For extra money, some proctors reportedly even offered to write papers on test-takers’ behalf.

That such practices occur at all is unfortunate, though not surprising.

Even the most stringent, well-thought-out proctoring system cannot eliminate cheating. But the most worrying aspect is that the practice of bribery, in exchange for cheating, is now so pervasive that it is accepted as a fact of life and ceases to “feel wrong” or to shock the consciences of those involved.

On one hand, some proctors treat exams as an opportunity to “earn” extra income. On the other, some students simply opt to pay to pass exams instead of studying and preparing for them.

In addition, parents are willing to give their children money to bribe proctors, and a small industry has sprung up to supply test-takers with cheat sheets, often with the claim that questions covered in these cheat sheets will also be on the real exams.

Not all engage in this corrupt practice, but the consequences of tolerating it can be grave.

Students are ill-served by a system that allows an easy pass. Presented with the option of paying for their degree, students have fewer incentives to apply themselves to their studies.

They may fail to gain through schooling the skills and knowledge needed to lead a fulfilling life and become productive, responsible citizens able to contribute to their country’s development.

Furthermore, in a more globalised society, they will find it difficult to compete with the knowledge workers of other countries in the region and the wider world.

I also cannot help but wonder how this experience shapes the moral character of 18-year-old examination candidates.

In addition to being a yardstick for university admission, a high-school degree is a symbol of intellectual accomplishment that is worthy of recognition and praise. That it can be bought and sold so readily may send the wrong signal to young Cambodians that money reigns supreme over honour and respect, and is an acceptable alternative to hard work and real effort.

Surely this is not a lesson we want to leave our children with.

Addressing this issue is not easy, but it is possible. The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport can begin by introducing a zero-tolerance policy towards cheating and bribery during exams.

Proctors who solicit, or accept, bribes should be barred from supervising future exams and be denied promotion.

Depending on the seriousness of their actions, students caught cheating should be required to sit for the examination again, have their grades reduced or given an automatic fail.

At the same time, the education system needs to be reformed to focus more on critical thinking and analytical skills and less on rote learning and exams.

Instead of using examination results as the sole admission criterion, for example, universities should introduce other requirements such as admission essays that challenge students to carefully think about, and articulate, their reasons for wanting a tertiary education.

And these measures should be complemented with longer-term policies aimed at recruiting, training and retaining capable teachers through both an appeal to their sense of public service and reasonable remuneration.

Most important, fixing the problem requires a concerted effort by all of society – students, parents, educators, policymakers – to refuse to take part in a fraudulent practice.

A good sign will be when bribery and cheating, instead of being widely accepted and unquestioned, once again becomes a taboo.

Conscription not for everyone

Friday, 07 September 2012

Stuart White and Phak Seangly

 

In less  than a week, 18-year-old Heng Tina, who has just finished his high-school exam, will take another test that determines whether he’ll get a scholarship to go to technical school, a development that would put him one step closer to his dream of becoming an engineer and designing skyscrapers.

But according to a law passed in 2006, though never meaningfully enforced, Tina should be taking exams of a different sort – such as marksmanship and physical fitness – as a newly minted conscript in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces.

Under the law, which many Cambodians – including Tina – have never heard of, every Cambodian man aged 18 to 23 is obliged to serve in the armed forces for 18 months.

It is something many say would do more harm than good, especially considering penal police director Lieutenant General Mok Chito’s announcement last week that more than 1,200 RCAF soldiers deserted their posts in the first eight months of 2012 alone.

According to the US Central Intelligence Agency’s world fact book, more than 150,000 Cambodian men reach “militarily significant age”, that is, 16 years old, every year, and conscripting every 18-year-old male in the Kingdom would cause a significant spike in the size of the military, despite years-long efforts to trim its size.

“Cambodia is overloaded with a number of soldiers,” said opposition Sam Rainsy lawmaker Son Chhay, who has seen troop counts as high as 200,000 – though he believes the actual number to be closer to 70,000.

Many of the soldiers that were “demobilised” in the past were simply ghost soldiers, he said, names on lists meant to swell a battalion’s payroll so that uncollected pay cheques could be taken by higher-ranking officers, of whom there are also too many.

“The government has to clean house . . . I’ve lost count of the generals.  There are more stars on the shoulders of Cambodian soldiers than there are in the sky,” Chhay said.

And, he added, the military’s already-low pay is responsible for the trend of soldiers moonlighting as security guards for private corporations.

Ho Chantrea, a 29-year-old soldier stationed in Phnom Penh, declined to discuss the particulars of his own pay, but said that many of his friends took outside security jobs to augment their income.

“The salary is not enough,” said Chantrea, adding that he wanted to follow his friends’ example. “I also want to get extra jobs, but not yet.”

The lowest-ranking soldiers, Chantrea said, make only about $50 a month.

Soam Chivoan, who, at age 20, is another would-be draftee, said that given his druthers, he’d stick with the mobile booth he now runs, adding that even if the army paid better, he’d rather stay put.
That low salary, said Chhay, often has adverse effects.

“That’s why you can see soldiers being used by a private company to intimidate people,” Chhay said.

“There are so many abuses being raised by so many soldiers already, so you need soldiers who are qualified … not drunken two- or three-star generals who will set a bad habit for our young soldiers,” he added.

On August 31, police official Mok Chito blamed deserters, who he said often sell their service weapons, for a spike in armed robberies. In May, the military came under fire from rights groups after a soldier fatally shot a 14-year-old in a forced land eviction in Kratie province’s Pro Ma village, and reports of soldiers’ involvement in land evictions are a near weekly occurrence.

Independent political analyst Lao Mong Hay warned that adding more soldiers without significant reforms wasn’t likely to make things any better.

“I think that it’s not good to have a number of young people familiar with using guns, that after a while you let loose without discipline,” he said.

According to Mong Hay, a military that provided conscripts with a set of skills, and options for the future, could be a positive development, but the current system would be unlikely to produce such results.
Furthermore, he said, Cambodia has neither the human nor financial resources for full implementation of  the 2006 law.

Nicolas Agostino, a technical assistant at the rights NGO Adhoc, also expressed concerns that the law would be unevenly enforced, and could have adverse political side effects.

“Those who are more well-off or well-connected would be able to evade conscription,” he said.

Multiple officials in various branches of the Ministry of National Defence, including the ministry’s policy arm, declined to comment on the conscription law.

Press and Quick Reaction Unit spokesman Ek Tha directed questions to Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan, who said he was unfamiliar with the law.

តួនាទី​ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា​ក្នុង​ការ​អភិវឌ្ឍ​ប្រទេស​កម្ពុជា

ដោយ សួន សុផលមុន្នី

2012-09-07

ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ខ្មែរ​ដែល​ជា​អ្នក​កាន់​សាសនា​ព្រះពុទ្ធ​មាន​រហូត​ទៅ​ ៩៥% ប៉ុន្តែ​អ្នក​ដែល​បដិបត្តិ​តាម​ធម៌​វិន័យ​របស់​ព្រះសម្មាសម្ពុទ្ធ​ភាគ​ច្រើន មាន​តែ​ទៅ​លើ​មនុស្ស​ចាស់ ដែល​ជា​អ្នក​កាន់​សីល។ បញ្ហា​នេះ​បាន​ធ្វើ​ឲ្យ​គេ​មាន​ការ​ព្រួយបារម្ភ​ទៅ​លើ​ក្រុម​យុវជន​នៅ​ក្នុង ​ប្រទេស​កម្ពុជា។

ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា​កំពុង​ដើរ​តួនាទី​យ៉ាង​សំខាន់​នៅ​ក្នុង​ការ​អភិវឌ្ឍ​ ប្រទេស​កម្ពុជា។ នៅ​ពេល​បច្ចុប្បន្ន​នេះ គេ​សង្កេត​ឃើញ​មាន​ព្រះសង្ឃ​ជាច្រើន​អង្គ កំពុង​ចូល​រួម​ធ្វើ​សកម្មភាព​ជួយ​ដល់​ការ​អភិវឌ្ឍ​នៅ​ ក្នុង​សង្គម​កម្ពុជា តាម​រយៈ​ការ​ចុះ​អប់រំ​ផ្ទាល់​នៅ​តាម​សហគមន៍ និង​បាន​ទេសនា​អប់រំ​ធម៌​វិន័យ និង​សីលធម៌​តាម​ប្រព័ន្ធ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ មាន​ដូច​ជា វិទ្យុ ទូរទស្សន៍ ជាដើម។

ព្រះសង្ឃ​ព្រះនាម ទុយ លីណា គង់​នៅ​វត្ត​ពិភិទ្ធារាម មាន​ថេរ​ដីកា​ថា ក្រៅ​ពី​ព្រះអង្គ​បួស​ជា​សង្ឃ​គង់​នៅ​ក្នុង​វត្ត ព្រះអង្គ​បាន​ស្ម័គ្រចិត្ត​ចូល​រួម​ចំណែក​លើ​ការងារ​អភិវឌ្ឍន៍​សង្គម។ ក្នុង​នោះ​ព្រះអង្គ​បាន​ចូល​ប្រឡូក​ក្នុង​ការងារ​សហគមន៍ ទស្សនៈ​សីលធម៌​ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា និង​បាន​សម្ដែង​ធម្មទេសនា​តាម​វិទ្យុ។

ព្រះអង្គ​ស្ម័គ្រចិត្ត​ដោយ​បាន​បើក​វគ្គ​បណ្ដុះ​បណ្ដាល និង​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​ពី​ផល​ប៉ះពាល់​នៃ​ការ​ប្រើប្រាស់​គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង ហើយ​និង​ផល​ប៉ះពាល់​នៃ​ការ​ប្រើប្រាស់​អំពើ​ហិង្សា៖ «បើក​វគ្គ​បណ្ដុះ​ បណ្ដាល​លើក​ឡើង​អំពី​ផល​ប៉ះពាល់​នៃ​ការ​ប្រើប្រាស់​គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង ក៏​ដូច​ជា ដំណោះ​ស្រាយ ការ​ជំរុញ​លើក​ទឹក​ចិត្ត​ដល់​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ និង​យុវជន​ទាំង​អស់​រស់នៅ​ក្នុង​ឃុំ​គោល​ដៅ​ហ្នឹង ឲ្យ​គាត់​មាន​ការ​ភ្ញាក់​រលឹក​យល់​ដឹង​ពី​ផល​ប៉ះពាល់​នៃ​ការ​ប្រើប្រាស់​ គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង មាន​ការ​បើក​សិក្ខាសាលា អញ្ជើញ​វាគ្មិន​ចូល​រួម ដើម្បី​បកស្រាយ​អំពី​បញ្ហា​ហ្នឹង ហើយ​មាន​ការ​ចូល​រួម​ប្រជុំ​តាម​សហគមន៍ ប្រជុំ​ជាមួយ​ក្រុម​ប្រឹក្សា​ឃុំ​សង្កាត់»។

នៅ​ក្នុង​សកម្មភាព​នេះ ព្រះអង្គ​បាន​ជំរុញ​ឲ្យ​មេឃុំ ចៅសង្កាត់ សមាជិក​ក្រុម​ប្រឹក្សា​ឃុំ​សង្កាត់ មេភូមិ ឲ្យ​មាន​ការ​កោះ​អញ្ជើញ​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ឲ្យ​បាន​ច្រើន​ចូល​រួម ដើម្បី​ប្រជុំ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​ស្វែង​យល់​ពី​ការងារ​សង្គម ដែល​ជា​បញ្ហា​ប្រឈម​ជាច្រើន​ទៀត នៅ​ក្នុង​សង្គម​កម្ពុជា។ ព្រះអង្គ​បន្ត​ថា នៅ​ពេល​ព្រះអង្គ​និមន្ត​ពី​ខេត្ត​មួយ​ទៅ​ខេត្ត​មួយ តែង​តែ​ឃើញ​នូវ​ទិដ្ឋភាព​នៃ​ការ​ប្រើ​អំពើ​ហិង្សា ដែល​កើត​ចេញ​ដោយ​សារ​ការ​ប្រើប្រាស់​គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង។ នៅ​ក្នុង​ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា ព្រះអង្គ​បាន​សម្ដែង​ធម៌​ផ្ដោត​ទៅ​លើ​ការ​ដឹកនាំ​សត្វ ឲ្យ​រួច​ផុត​ពី​ទុក្ខ​ក៏​ពិត​មែន ប៉ុន្តែ​ទន្ទឹម​គ្នា​នោះ ព្រះអង្គ​បាន​បន្សល់​នូវ​ទ្រឹស្ដី​មួយ​ចំនួន​សម្រាប់​អ្នក​រស់នៅ​ក្នុង​ បច្ចុប្បន្នភាព។

ព្រះអង្គ​បាន​លើក​យក​ទ្រឹស្ដី​មួយ​ដែល​ព្រះសម្មាសម្ពុទ្ធ​សម្ដែង​ទាក់​ ទិន​ទៅ​សីល​ប្រាំ នៅ​ក្នុង​ចំណុច​សីល​ប្រាំ ព្រះអង្គ​ហាម​ការ​បៀតបៀន​អាយុ​ជីវិត​គ្នា ការ​កាប់​សម្លាប់​គ្នា នេះ​ជា​ទ្រឹស្ដី​មួយ​ដែល​ព្រះអង្គ​បាន​សម្ដែង​ទុក សម្រាប់​មនុស្ស​ទាំង​អស់​គ្នា​ដែល​រស់នៅ៖ «នេះ​ជា​ទ្រឹស្ដី​ដែល​ព្រះអង្គ ​សម្ដែង​ចូល​រួម​អភិវឌ្ឍន៍​យ៉ាង​ខ្លាំង នៅ​ក្នុង​សង្គម​ខ្មែរ​នា​ពេល​បច្ចុប្បន្ន​ហ្នឹង។ ពីព្រោះ បើ​សិន​ជា​មនុស្ស​ទាំង​អស់​អនុវត្តន៍ គោរព​តាម​ពាក្យពេចន៍​ទ្រឹស្ដី​របស់​ព្រះអង្គ ដែល​បាន​បន្សល់​ទុក​ហ្នឹង​មក អត់​មាន​ការ​ផឹក​ស្រា អំពើ​ហិង្សា​កើត​ឡើង​ដោយ​សារ​គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង​ទាំង​អស់»។

អ្នក​សម្រប​សម្រួល​របស់​មជ្ឈមណ្ឌល​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ដើម្បី​អភិវឌ្ឍន៍ និង​សន្តិភាព (ភីឌីភី) សាខា​ខេត្ត​បាត់ដំបង អ្នកស្រី កែវ ឈូក បាន​ថ្លែង​ថា វិស័យ​ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា​កំពុង​មាន​តួនាទី​យ៉ាង​សំខាន់​នៅ​ក្នុង​សង្គម​ កម្ពុជា។ នៅ​តាម​ទីអារាម​ជា​កន្លែង​បណ្ដុះ​ធនធាន​មនុស្ស និង​ជួយ​ដល់​សិស្ស និស្សិត ដើម្បី​ស្នាក់នៅ​រៀន​សូត្រ។ ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា​បាន​ជួយ​អភិវឌ្ឍន៍​ផ្នែក​ស្មារតី តាម​រយៈ​ព្រះសង្ឃ​ទេសនា ការ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​នៅ​តាម​វិទ្យុ និង​ទូរទស្សន៍ អំពី​ដំបូន្មាន​ល្អ ដែល​ធ្វើ​អោយ​មនុស្ស​កាត់​បន្ថយ​ហិង្សា ធ្វើ​ឲ្យ​មនុស្ស​ចេះ​ស្រឡាញ់​រាប់អាន​គ្នា៖ «ក្រៅ​ពី​ហ្នឹង ព្រះសង្ឃ​បាន​ចូល​រួម​ចំណែក​ក្នុង​ការ​បង្ហាត់​បង្រៀន​អក្សរសាស្ត្រ ជាក់ស្ដែង​ដូច​នៅ​បាត់ដំបង យើង​នេះ មាន​សកលវិទ្យាល័យ​ពុទ្ធិក​ព្រះសីហនុ មិន​ថា​ព្រះ​សង្ឃ​ទេ​ដែល​អាច​បន្ត​ការ​សិក្សា​បាន សូម្បីតែ​និស្សិត​ជា​គ្រហស្ថ​ក៏​អាច​បន្ត​ការ​សិក្សា​បាន ដូច​ថា សាលា​មាន​វិន័យ​បង្ហាត់​បង្រៀន​អក្សរសាស្ត្រ​ច្បាស់​លាស់»។

លោក គឹម ងួន ប្រធាន​ការិយាល័យ​នៃ​មន្ទីរ​ធម្មការ​ខេត្ត​បាត់ដំបង លោក​បាន​មាន​ប្រសាសន៍​ថា ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា​កំពុង​ធ្វើ​សកម្មភាព​យ៉ាង​សកម្ម ដើម្បី​ជួយ​ដល់​ការងារ​អភិវឌ្ឍន៍​សង្គម​កម្ពុជា។ ក្នុង​នោះ ព្រះសង្ឃ​បាន​រួម​ចំណែក​យ៉ាង​សំខាន់​ក្នុង​ការ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​ព្រះធម៌ អប់រំ​សីលធម៌​សង្គម តាម​វិទ្យុ ទូរទស្សន៍ និង​នៅ​តាម​សាលារៀន។ នៅ​ពេល​មាន​គ្រោះ​មហន្តរាយ​ដោយ​ទឹក​ជំនន់ ដោយ​ខ្យល់​ព្យុះ គឺ​វត្ត​អារាម​បាន​ជួយ​ជា​ថវិកា ជា​សម្ភារៈ និង​កម្លាំង​កាយ ដើម្បី​ស្ដារ​ហេដ្ឋារចនាសម្ព័ន្ធ​ឡើង​វិញ ក្រោយ​ពី​រង​ការ​ខូច​ខាត៖ «នៅ​ តាម​វត្ត​អារាម ព្រះសង្ឃ​បាន​ជួយ​ការងារ​សង្គម ពិសេស​ជួយ​ដល់​កូន​ចៅ​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ក្រីក្រ ដែល​អត់​មាន​កន្លែង​ស្នាក់នៅ​រៀន​សូត្រ។ វត្ត​អារាម​បាន​ក្លាយ​ជា​ទីតាំង​យ៉ាង​សំខាន់ សម្រាប់​ជួយ​អោយ​សិស្ស​ស្នាក់​នៅ ដើម្បី​សិក្សា​រៀន​សូត្រ អនាគត​ក្មេង​ក្លាយ​ជា​ធនធាន​មនុស្ស​សម្រាប់​ការ​អភិវឌ្ឍ​សង្គម​ជាតិ​យើង»។

មនុស្ស​ចាស់​ជរា ស្ត្រី​មេម៉ាយ​ក្រីក្រ ព្រះសង្ឃ​បាន​ជួយ​ផ្ដល់​ជា​ម្ហូប​អាហារ ជា​សំលៀកបំពាក់។ ក្រៅពី​នេះ ព្រះសង្ឃ​ជួយ​ដល់​មជ្ឈមណ្ឌល​ផ្ដាច់​គ្រឿង​ញៀន ផ្ដល់​ជា​សម្ភារៈ ម្ហូប​អាហារ និង​ឱវាទ​សម្រាប់​ឲ្យ​អ្នក​ញៀន​ថ្នាំ​ញៀន មាន​ការ​កែប្រែ​តាម​រយៈ​ការ​អប់រំ។ ទន្ទឹម​គ្នា​នេះ ព្រះសង្ឃ​បាន​ចូល​ទៅ​អប់រំ​ទណ្ឌិត​នៅ​តាម​ពន្ធនាគារ។ ទាំង​នេះ សុទ្ធ​តែ​ជា​សកម្មភាព​របស់​ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា ដើម្បី​ចូល​រួម​ក្នុង​ការ​អភិវឌ្ឍ​សង្គម។

លោក គឹម ងួន៖ «នៅ​កន្លែង​យើង​នេះ យើង​មាន​មណ្ឌល​វិបស្សនា​នៅ​ទូទាំង​ខេត្ត​បាត់ដំបង មាន​៧​ទីតាំង ជាពិសេស​សកម្មភាព​ខ្លាំង គឺ​នៅ​ខាង​ស្រុក​បាណន់ ទ្រុង​មាន់ ទ្រុង​ទា អា​ហ្នឹង​គឺ​ពុទ្ធបរិស័ទ​ដែល​មាន​វិបត្តិ​ផ្លូវ​ចិត្ត​ចូល​ទៅ​ក្នុង​ហ្នឹង។ យើង​មាន​ឲ្យ​ធ្វើ​វិបស្សនា​កម្មដ្ឋាន​ទៅ​តាម​កម្រិត មាន​កម្រិត​បឋម មធ្យម និង​ឧត្ដម យើង​សិក្សា​រយៈពេល​១០វគ្គ មួយ​វគ្គ​១០​ថ្ងៃ មួយ​វគ្គ​មាន​តាំង​ពី​កុមារ​អី​ក៏​មាន​ដែរ​នៅ​ក្នុង​ហ្នឹង។ យើង​មាន​មណ្ឌល​វិបស្សនា​ដែល​ជា​សកម្មភាព​ជួយ​ខាង​ផ្នែក​ផ្លូវ​ចិត្ត គេ​ហៅ​ថា មណ្ឌល​វិបស្សនា​លទ្ធិកា»។

ក្រៅ​ពី​នេះ ព្រះសង្ឃ​បាន​បើក​អង្គការ​សម្រាប់​ជួយ​កុមារ​កំព្រា។ ព្រះសង្ឃ​បាន​យក​ក្មេងៗ​ទាំង​នោះ ទៅ​ចិញ្ចឹម ដោយ​បាន​បណ្ដុះ​បណ្ដាល​ពួក​គេ​ឲ្យ​រៀន រៀន​អក្សរសាស្ត្រ​ខ្មែរ រៀន​ជំនាញ​កាត់​ដេរ។
ព្រះសង្ឃ​ព្រះនាម ទុយ លីណា គង់​នៅ​វត្ត​ពិភិទ្ធារាម បាន​ថេរ​ដីកា​ថា នៅ​ប្រទេស​កម្ពុជា មាន​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ខ្មែរ​៩៤​ទៅ​៩៥% ជា​អ្នក​កាន់​ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា ប៉ុន្តែ​មាន​អ្នក​បដិបត្តិ​តាម​ធម៌​ព្រះពុទ្ធ​មាន​តិចតួច​ណាស់។ ក្រុម​យុវជន​នៅ​កម្ពុជា ពុំ​បាន​ខិតខំ​ប្រឹងប្រែង​រៀន​សូត្រ​ទេ បញ្ហា​នេះ​គឺ​ជា​ការងារ​រួម​ទាំង​អស់​គ្នា ទាំង​វិស័យ​ព្រះពុទ្ធសាសនា និង​អាណាចក្រ ដែល​ចូល​រួម​អប់រំ​ទប់ស្កាត់៖ «នៅ​ក្នុង​សង្គម​ខ្មែរ​យើង​ នា​ពេល​បច្ចុប្បន្ន យុវជន​អត់​សូវ​ចំណាប់​អារម្មណ៍​ទៅ​លើ​ការ​សិក្សា​រៀន​សូត្រ​អី​ប៉ុន្មាន​ទេ គ្រាន់​សប្បាយ​ច្រើន គាត់​មិន​ទាន់​មាន​វ័យ​អី​គ្រប់គ្រាន់​ផង គាត់​មាន​ស្នេហា​អ៊ីចឹង​ទៅ ជា​បញ្ហា​មួយ​ដែល​ធ្វើ​ឲ្យ​បាត់​បង់​នូវ​ធនធាន​មនុស្ស។ បញ្ហា​ដ៏​សំខាន់​មួយ​ទៀត គឺ​យុវជន​តែង​តែ​ផឹក​នូវ​គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង​ដែល​បញ្ហា​ហ្នឹង​កើត​ឡើង​ដោយ​សារ​ការ ​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​ពាណិជ្ជកម្ម​នៃ​គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង ហើយ​ជំរុញ​ឲ្យ​យុវជន​ហ្នឹង​អ្ហែង ផឹក​នូវ​គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង ហើយ​ជាពិសេស​នៅ​ក្នុង​ស្រុក​ខ្មែរ ស្នើ​គ្រប់​ទីកន្លែង​ទាំង​អស់ គ្រប់​ផ្ទាំង​ប៉ាណូ​ទាក់​ទង​ទៅ​នឹង​ផ្លាក​យីហោ​គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង​មាន​គ្រប់​ ទីកន្លែង​ទាំង​អស់»។

ព្រះអង្គ​បន្ត​ថា កម្ពុជា​មាន​យុវជន​៣០% ក្នុង​ចំណោម​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ប្រហែល​១៥​លាន​នាក់។ កម្ពុជា ជា​ប្រទេស​មួយ​ដែល​សម្បូរ​ទៅ​ដោយ​កម្លាំង​ពលកម្ម ដែល​ពួក​អ្នក​វិនិយោគទុន​ក្រៅ​ប្រទេស​សម្លឹង​ឃើញ​ថា អាច​ដាក់​ទុន​ទៅ​បាន ព្រោះ​មាន​កម្លាំង​ពលកម្ម ប៉ុន្តែ​ផ្ទុយ​ទៅ​វិញ គេ​មាន​ការ​បារម្ភ​ពី​ប្រទេស​កម្ពុជា ដោយ​គេ​យល់​ថា កម្ពុជា​ទៅ​អនាគត​ពុំ​មាន​ធនធាន​មនុស្ស ដោយ​សារ​យុវជន​ខ្មែរ​ពុល​ទៅ​នឹង​គ្រឿង​ស្រវឹង៕

អ្នក​វិភាគ៖ វិស័យ​ការទូត​កម្ពុជា​កំពុង​ធ្លាក់​ចុះ​យ៉ាង​ខ្លាំង

ដោយ តាំង សារ៉ាដា

2012-09-08

ក្រុម​អ្នក​វិភាគ​ឲ្យ​ដឹង​ថា ក្នុង​រយៈពេល​ចុង​ក្រោយ​នេះ វិស័យ​ការទូត​របស់​កម្ពុជា កំពុង​ធ្លាក់​ចុះ​យ៉ាង​ខ្លាំង ដោយ​ការ​ប្រើ​ពាក្យ​សម្ដី​មិន​សូវ​សមរម្យ​ក្នុង​កិច្ចការ​តស៊ូ​ផ្នែក​ការទូត ជាមួយ​បណ្ដា​ប្រទេស​ផ្សេងៗ។

លោក​បណ្ឌិត ឡៅ ម៉ុងហៃ អ្នក​វិភាគ​ឯករាជ្យ​បាន​វាយ​តម្លៃ​ថា មន្ត្រី​ការទូត​របស់​ខ្មែរ​ភាគ​ច្រើន មិន​សូវ​មាន​វិជ្ជាជីវៈ​ខ្ពស់​សម្រាប់​ការ​តស៊ូ​ផ្នែក​កិច្ចការ​បរទេស​ទេ។ លោក​ថា ប្រសិន​បើ​កម្ពុជា​មិន​មាន​ភាព​ចាស់​ទុំ​ក្នុង​ការ​ធ្វើ​នយោបាយ​ការ​បរទេស​ ជាមួយ​បណ្ដា​ប្រទេស​ផ្សេងៗ​ទេ នោះ​កម្ពុជា​អាច​ខាត​បង់​ការ​គាំទ្រ​ដ៏​សម្បើម​ពី​ឆាក​អន្តរជាតិ។

កាល​ពី​ដើម​ខែ​សីហា កន្លង​ទៅ ឯកអគ្គ​រាជទូត​ខ្មែរ​ប្រចាំ​ប្រទេស​ហ្វីលីពីន លោក ហើស សេរីធន បាន​ប្រើ​ពាក្យ​ថា ប្រទេស​ហ្វីលីពីន និង​វៀតណាម បាន​ប្រើ​នយោបាយ​កខ្វក់​ក្នុង​ការ​ជំរុញ​ឲ្យ​កម្ពុជា​ប្រឈម​មុខ​ក្នុង​ ជម្លោះ​សមុទ្រ​ចិន​ខាង​ត្បូង។

ការ​ចេញ​លិខិត​ការទូត​របស់​តំណាង​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​កម្ពុជា នៅ​ក្រៅ​ប្រទេស តិះ​ដៀល​ក្រុម​អ្នក​រិះគន់ ឬ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​នៃ​ប្រទេស​ផ្សេងៗ​នេះ មិន​មែន​ជា​លើក​ទីមួយ​នោះ​ទេ។ កាល​ពី​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​៣០ ខែ​មេសា កន្លង​ទៅ លោក ហោ ណាំបូរ៉ា ឯកអគ្គ​រាជទូត​ខ្មែរ​ប្រចាំ​ប្រទេស​អង់គ្លេស បាន​ប្រតិកម្ម​ទៅ​នឹង​អង្គការ​ឃ្លាំ​មើល​ពិភពលោក (Global Witness) ថា ប្រើ​ល្បិច​អន់​ថយ​បែប​វិកលចរិត ក្នុង​ការ​សរសេរ​របាយការណ៍​ថោកទាប​ដូច​សំរាម ចោទ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​កម្ពុជា ថា​បាន​ទទួល​សំណូក​ចំនួន​២៨​លាន​ដុល្លារ​សហរដ្ឋអាមេរិក ពី​ក្រុមហ៊ុន​ប្រេង​របស់​បារាំង​មួយ​ឈ្មោះ​តូតាល់ (Total) ជា​ថ្នូរ​ទៅ​នឹង​ការ​ទទួល​បាន​អាជ្ញាប័ណ្ណ​រុករក​ប្រេង​នៅ​កម្ពុជា។

លោក​បណ្ឌិត ឡៅ ម៉ុងហៃ បាន​អំពាវនាវ​ឲ្យ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​កម្ពុជា បើក​វគ្គ​បណ្ដុះ​បណ្ដាល​វិជ្ជាជីវៈ​កិច្ចការ​បរទេស​បន្ថែម​ដល់​គ្រប់​ឯកអគ្គ ​រាជទូត ដើម្បី​ឲ្យ​ពួក​គេ​មាន​លទ្ធភាព​ធ្វើ​កិច្ចការ​ទំនាក់​ទំនង​កាន់​តែ​ប្រសើរ​ សម្រាប់​កម្ពុជា។

ជាមួយ​គ្នា​នេះ​ផង​ដែរ លោក​បណ្ឌិត ឡៅ ម៉ុងហៃ ក៏​បាន​កោត​សរសើរ​ដល់​កិច្ចការ​ការទូត​របស់​ខ្មែរ​ប្រចាំ​ក្រុង​វ៉ាស៊ីនតោន (Washington) និង​ក្រុង​ប៉ារីស (Paris) ថា​មាន​ភាព​ចាស់​ទុំ​ច្រើន និង​មាន​ប្រជាប្រិយភាព​ក្នុង​សហគមន៍​ខ្មែរ។

ក្រុម​អ្នក​ឃ្លាំ​មើល​ខ្លះ​បាន​ប្រៀបធៀប​សីលធម៌ ក្នុង​ការ​និយាយ​ស្តី​របស់​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ទៅ​នឹង​សីលធម៌​នៃ​សង្គម​គ្រួសារ​តូច​ មួយ។ ជា​ធម្មតា កាល​ណា​អាណាព្យាបាល​តែង​ប្រើ​ពាក្យ​មិន​គប្បី​ទៅ​លើ​កូន​ចៅ ឬ​ឲ្យ​ពួក​គេ​ឮ​ពាក្យ​ទាំង​នោះ វា​អាច​នាំ​ឲ្យ​ពួក​គេ​ចេះ​ប្រើ​ពាក្យ​មិន​គប្បី​ដូច​គ្នា ពេល​គេ​ធំ​ដឹង​ក្តី។ យ៉ាង​ណា​វិញ រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ក៏​ដូច​គ្នា​អ៊ីចឹង​ដែរ។ ក្រុម​អ្នក​រិះគន់​និយាយ​ថា ប្រសិន​បើ​ប្រមុខ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ចូល​ចិត្ត​ប្រើ​ពាក្យ​មិន​ល្អ​នោះ ក្រុម​មន្ត្រី​ថ្នាក់​តូច ក៏​ចូល​ចិត្ត​ប្រើ​ពាក្យ​ទាំង​នោះ​ដែរ។

ចំណែក​លោក កែម ឡី អ្នក​វិភាគ​អំពី​ស្ថានការណ៍​សង្គម​វិញ បាន​វាយ​តម្លៃ​ថា ក្រុម​អ្នក​ការទូត អ្នក​បច្ចេកទេស និង​អ្នក​នយោបាយ​ខ្លះ ហាក់​ប្រើ​ពាក្យពេចន៍​តែ​មួយ ឲ្យ​តែ​ចំណេញ​នយោបាយ​ក្នុង​ប្រទេស ជា​ជាង​នយោបាយ​ក្រៅ​ប្រទេស។ លោក​បញ្ជាក់​ថា មន្ត្រី​ការទូត​ខ្មែរ​ភាគ​ច្រើន ខ្វះ​ការ​វិភាគ​លើ​ពាក្យពេចន៍​ដែល​ត្រូវ​ប្រើ ឬ​មិន​ត្រូវ​ប្រើ។

លោក កែម ឡី សង្កេត​ឃើញ​ថា ប្រទេស​ថៃ​កន្លង​មក​បាន​ប្រើ​ភាសា​ការទូត​ប្រកប​ដោយ​វិជ្ជាជីវៈ​ច្រើន​ជាង​ កម្ពុជា បើ​ទោះ​បី​ថៃ​ស្ថិត​ក្នុង​កាលៈទេសៈ​សង្គ្រាម​ជាមួយ​កម្ពុជា​ក៏ដោយ។ រហូត​មក​ទល់​ពេល​នេះ គេ​នៅ​មិន​ទាន់​ឃើញ​មាន​មន្ត្រី​ការទូត​ខ្មែរ​ណា​មួយ អាច​ឆ្លើយ​តប​ទៅ​នឹង​ការ​រិះគន់​របស់​ក្រុម​អ្នក​វិភាគ​ទាំង​នេះ​នៅ​ឡើយ។

ប៉ុន្តែ លោក ផៃ ស៊ីផាន អ្នក​នាំ​ពាក្យ​នៃ​ទីស្ដីការ​គណៈរដ្ឋមន្ត្រី បាន​ទទួល​ស្គាល់​ថា ពាក្យ​ការទូត​របស់​ខ្មែរ​ពិត​ជា​មាន​លក្ខណៈ​គ្រោតគ្រាត​បន្តិច​មែន ប៉ុន្តែ​កម្ពុជា​ក៏​បាន​ទទួល​រង​ការ​ប្រមាថ និង​វាយ​ប្រហារ​យ៉ាង​ខ្លាំង​ខុស​ពី​ការ​ពិត។ លោក​បន្ត​ថា ប្រធានាធិបតី​សហរដ្ឋអាមេរិក​កន្លង​មក ធ្លាប់​ប្រើ​ពាក្យ​មិន​គប្បី​ជាង​កម្ពុជា​ទៅ​ទៀត។

លោក គុជ ចាន់លី អ្នក​តាម​ដាន​នយោបាយ​របស់​ខ្មែរ​ប្រចាំ​រដ្ឋ​ម៉ារីឡេន (Maryland) សហរដ្ឋអាមេរិក និយាយ​ថា ភាសា​របស់​អ្នក​ការទូត ត្រូវ​មាន​លក្ខណៈ​ខុស​គ្នា​ពី​ភាសា​អ្នក​នយោបាយ​ក្នុង​ស្រុក។ ភាសា​របស់​អ្នក​ការទូត គឺ​ជា​ភាសា​ដែល​តំណាង​ឲ្យ​មុខ​មាត់​របស់​ប្រជាជាតិ​ទាំង​មូល រីឯ​ភាសា​អ្នក​នយោបាយ​ក្នុង​ស្រុក គឺ​ជា​ភាសា​ដែល​និយាយ ដើម្បី​កេង​យក​ប្រជាប្រិយភាព​របស់​ខ្លួន​ប៉ុណ្ណោះ៕

Party over for Cambodia's daytime discos

Thursday, 06 September 2012

Mom Kunthear

 

 

The Ministry of Tourism has issued a nationwide directive to stop clubs and discos from operating in daylight hours because of the huge number of social problems associated with irregular partying hours.

During a Phnom Penh Municipal Hall meeting on Monday, Governor Kep Chuktema issued his own enforcement directive that any clubs or discos opening during the day will be immediately shut down by City Hall.

Phnom Penh Municipal Hall spokesman Long Dymang said that Chuktema was responding to the Ministry of Tourism directive on Monday when he ordered police, military police and other officials in all districts to ensure that clubs and discos open no earlier than 6pm.

“Most people who go to nightclubs or discos in the daytime are secondary and high school students, and some also are university students,” Dymang pointed out.

The venues’ practice of opening during the day caused students to cut class and encouraged general social disorder, he said.

“I don’t know which district has the most discos, but Daun Penh has many discos open during the day,” he added.

Tourism industry department director Prak Chandara confirmed yesterday that his ministry had recently issued a directive calling for the daytime closure of clubs and discos across the country.

“The directive is in the process of nationwide implementation. There are a lot of problems involved with this case,” he said, declining to comment further.

Ministry of Tourism officials told the Post in June that there were 376 karaoke parlours, 79 discos, 187 massage parlours and 97 beer gardens in the country.