Social development
Human rights
Call for ban on Mekong dams
A group of 50 youth, community and civil society representatives from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand gathered to celebrate the International Day of Action for Rivers in Kratie province on March 14. They used the event in Sambo district to urge the government and the ...
Big team to defend human rights policies at UN
Thailand has 46 officials in Geneva, more than any other country, for its second review at UN rights body. After years of international criticism over its human rights policies, a 46-member delegation is strong enough to defend Thailand’s position before the Human Rights Committee on ...
Approach to disability questioned
Well-intentioned donor organisations working to assist the disabled often adopt an approach that is ineffectual in Cambodia, according to the doctoral research of Cambodian scholar Monyrath Nuth. Based at RMIT University in Australia, Nuth authored an extensive case study examining whether the “rights-based” approach to ...
Lat Phrao Canal project faces delay as residents refuse to budge
The bright new face of Lat Phrao Canal is likely to be unveiled later than planned because many homeowners have refused to move from the area, even after the National Council for Peace and Order used special powers to expedite the project to create a beauty ...
Villagers affected by dam meet with government officials
Villagers from Stung Treng whose homes stand to be flooded by the Lower Sesan II dam met with representatives of the Ministry of Mines and Energy at an NGO Forum-sponsored meeting in Phnom Penh on March 9, in hopes of establishing a dialogue towards a ...
Floating villages to be grounded
A government minister has sounded the death knell for Tonle Sap picturesque floating villages after outlining a long-term plan to rehome all those living on the lake. Agriculture Minister Veng Sakhon on March 9 told Khmer Times he wants to relocate thousands of families living on ...
Thai province provides training for Lao journalists
The Radio and Television Professional Association in Phetchabun province, Thailand, in cooperation with the Institute of Physical Education Phetchabun Campus Stadium, is extending its assistance to Lao National Radio and Lao National Television for personnel training. A tripartite Memorandum of Understanding on the initiative was ...
MoE not responsible for religious content in textbooks
The Ministry of Education has responded to criticisms on social media that new civic education textbooks have included the four great religions – Buddhism, Islam, Christianity and Hinduism – by denying it is responsible for the curriculum. “The texts books are not from our departments. ...
Thailand ‘unaffected by US report’
Foreign minister Don Pramudwinai on March 5 said the US 2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices will not effect Thailand even though the annual report criticised the ruling junta for curbing rights and freedoms in the Kingdom. “The report does criticise the current limited freedom of ...
Agreement to conserve Mekong River fish
Cambodia and Laos have formed a joint committee aimed at preserving and increasing the population of freshwater fish in the Mekong River. The committee was formed because of declining fish stocks in part due to illegal fishing and the construction of hydropower dams. In a ...
