August 2024 - Page 6 of 6 - Investigative Journalism Reportika

Cambodia’s Hun Dynasty stakes reputation on the Funan Techo Canal

Editor5 months ago014 mins

Ground will be broken on the Funan Techo Canal on August 5 – strongman Hun Sen’s 72nd birthday. The waterway will be carved through the eastern regions of the country, eventually connecting the capital Phnom Penh to new deep-water ports in Sihanoukville and Kampot, on the Gulf of Thailand. The Cambodian government believes the $1.7 billion waterway will reduce Cambodia’s dependency on Vietnam, through whose ports much of Cambodia’s imports and exports are transported. They expect an economic boon for the country, with cheaper transportation making Cambodian goods more competitive, fostering overall economic growth. But the megaproject has been controversial, to say the least. Initially, much of the controversy centered on Vietnam’s apparent fear that Cambodia might allow its “ironclad friend” China military access to the canal. The security dimension was played up. Villager Sok Rom looks at excavators being used on the construction of the Funan Techo canal along the Prek Takeo channel in Kandal province, July 9, 2024. (Tang Chhin Sothy/AFP) However, there are more significant concerns. The first is environmental. There are genuine concerns, especially if you’re a Vietnamese resident of the Mekong Delta, about the potential ecological impact. Carving out the canal could lead to further intrusion of salt water into the Mekong’s distributaries and create a massive levee between Cambodia and Vietnam’s floodplains. As Brian Eyler of the Stimson Center has put it: “the canal will disconnect the floodplain, creating a dry zone to its south and a wetter zone to the north.” Much remains unknown since Phnom Penh hasn’t yet publicly released any environmental impact assessment on the canal. The second concern is economic, and this is a bit more hazy. David Brown, an economic analyst, argued recently that “there is no plausible economic argument for digging a canal.” I disagree. Economic logic There is some economic logic to the project if it’s done properly. It will make domestic transport of goods cheaper, benefiting consumers and make Cambodian exports more competitive in international markets. Yes, Cambodia has new expressways and wants to re-do its aged railways, but moving goods by water is many times cheaper than by road or rail. It will mean more business for Cambodia’s new ports in Sihanoukville and Kampot, boosting these local economies. It should bring some investment to the rural areas where the canal passes through. And it does make Cambodia more economically self-sufficient—no one can say with 100% certainty that Vietnam won’t in the future deny access to its ports, which would effectively mean an economic blockade for Cambodia. Residential homes along the Prek Ta Hing channel, where the proposed second phase of the Funan Techo canal is set to be built, in Kandal province, July 9, 2024. (Tang Chhin Sothy/AFP) None of this is to say that Phnom Penh has gone about this the right way. The entire process has lacked transparency. The government was too hubristic at the beginning, thinking that China would fund everything, and has over-egged the patriotic angle of the canal, choosing not to have a decent dialogue with the public about the complexity of the scheme. Indeed, Prime Minister Hun Manet, who inherited the premiership from his father Hun Sen last year, has presented it as a nationalistic project. As Hun Manet put it, the canal will give Cambodia “a nose to breathe through.” Of course, this rhetoric comes slightly unstuck once you recall that the China Road and Bridge Corporation will have a lengthy build-operate-transfer contract on the project, so it will only pass into Cambodian ownership sometime in the second half of this century. Even so, Phnom Penh’s propaganda machines are in full swing: anyone who criticizes the scheme is unpatriotic or despises Cambodia, and those who support it are the true adherents of national sovereignty. Legacy building The inherent problem is that the whole thing is essentially a vanity project. That doesn’t mean it’s entirely illogical or uneconomical. But you have to remember that this isn’t a normal project. It’s far more symbolic than the Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville Expressway, the country’s first proper motorway, or your bog-standard hydro dam. It’s a way for Hun Sen, who is still the kingpin despite resigning last year after nearly four decades in power, to give himself a physical legacy. The Hun dynasty is physically cutting an artery through the country, a landmark to the power of the Hun family that they hope will last for centuries. “Our ancestors built the Angkor Temple and other great monuments, but unfortunately we used to be divided. Now, we are once again united and we are building new achievements,” Hun Manet said earlier this year. Construction will begin on August 5, Hun Sen’s birthday. Kavi Chongkittavorn, a veteran Thai journalist, has called the Funan Techo Canal a “litmus test for Hun Manet’s leadership.” Another analyst put it: the government has to “complete it by all means, at all costs.” Workers dig the Funan Techo canal at Prek Takeo in Kandal province, July 9, 2024. (Tang Chhin Sothy/AFP) Indeed, the Hun family has staked its reputation, though not its power, on the project. When trying to defend the canal during a speech in May, Hun Sen, referring to himself in the third person, tried to reassure Cambodians: “Hun Sen has never made a wrong decision in the past 47 years”. (He has; many.) For Hun Manet, it offers an opportunity for drums, flags and loyalty-parades. His first year in power has been somewhat dull. He isn’t as bombastic, as in-your-face, as his father. His speeches aren’t as wild and rambling; his rhetoric is more measured and consensus-based. His focus is policy, often of the boring sort. The ruling party framed his succession as a technocratic shift, the transition from a generation of rulers who literally fought to save the country from genocide to a generation that will make slow, incremental improvements to the progress they inherited. Take a moment to read more Cambodian canal project to kick off on Hun Sen’s birthday Vietnam urges Cambodia to cooperate…

An Insightful Interview with Rushan Abbas: Championing Uyghur Rights

Editor5 months ago4 months ago042 mins

Interview with Rushan Abbas who is a Uyghur American activist and advocate from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China.

North Korea refused China’s rescue offer for Yalu River island residents

Editor5 months ago07 mins

North Korea declined China’s offer to rescue residents on islands in the Yalu River–some of whom later died in flooding–because Pyongyang was afraid that those rescued would try to escape to China permanently, officials in the country told Radio Free Asia. As heavy rains caused rising waters in the Yalu River, which divides the two countries, it became apparent that opening floodgates at hydropower dams would be necessary. But doing so would submerge inhabited islands near the northwestern city of Sinuiju, which lies across the river from China’s Dandong. “The heavy flood damage in Sinuiju, which occurred between the noon of the 27th and the early morning of the 28th, occurred when the floodgates of the Taepyongman Hydropower Station were opened,” an official from Sinuiju’s surrounding province of North Pyongan told RFA Korean on condition of anonymity to speak freely. “An evacuation order was issued to Sinuiju residents before opening the floodgates around 2 a.m. on the 28th.” China’s ambassador to North Korea Wang Yajun led a delegation of over 40 people to pay respects at the Unsan Chinese People’s Volunteer Army Martyrs’ Cemetery amid pouring rain, July 25, 2024, in Unsan county, North Korea. (The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea via Reuters) By then, the waters were so high that people didn’t dare try to escape on their own, he said, adding that many people on one of the islands died when the floodgates were opened. A South Korean government official told reporters that up to 1,500 residents have died or are missing as a result of the floods. That number hasn’t been verified by North Korea. North Korean state media, meanwhile, reported that 4,100 homes and 7,000 acres of land have been submerged. State media has also used the disaster to boost the profile of the country’s leader Kim Jong Un by featuring him in photos that apparently show him personally leading rescue operations. The deaths could have been prevented, as China had offered to save the residents before the waters got too high, another North Pyongan official told RFA on condition of anonymity for security reasons. “The police in Dandong conveyed their intent to rescue the island residents to the North Pyongan Province’s Social Security Bureau,” he said. “However, Kim Jong Un refused China’s offer and so many residents who were stranded on the island became victims.” China’s ambassador to North Korea Wang Yajun led a delegation of over 40 people to pay respects at the Unsan Chinese People’s Volunteer Army Martyrs’ Cemetery amid pouring rain, July 25, 2024, in Unsan county, North Korea. (The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea via Reuters) On July 27, when heavy rains showed no signs of stopping soon, representatives from both cities discussed opening the floodgates, the official said. “They only open if China agrees,” he said. “It was obvious that if the water gates of the power plant were opened while the Yalu River was very swollen, the islands in the estuary would be submerged.” It was then that the Dandong police said that they could safely move the island residents to China, but were rejected by Kim, the official said. China’s ambassador to North Korea Wang Yajun led a delegation of over 40 people to pay respects at the Unsan Chinese People’s Volunteer Army Martyrs’ Cemetery amid pouring rain, July 25, 2024, in Unsan county, North Korea. (The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea via Reuters) “Kim Jong Un did not allow the islanders to evacuate to China under the pretext that they could flee to South Korea. Meanwhile, it got dark and a helicopter deployment became impossible,” he said, adding that North Korean rescue teams couldn’t start evacuations until the next day and they were staying at a nearby hotel. After the rescue was completed, Kim Jong Un arrived on the scene to lead and direct the rescue. “Kim Jong Un arrived in Sinuiju around 8 a.m. on the 28th. The rain had already stopped and the water in the Yalu River was decreasing.” South Korean outlet Yonhap News reported that Kim Jong Un told North Korean media that there were no casualties and accused South Korean media of “fabricating” the scale of flood damages. Translated by Claire S. Lee. Edited by Eugene Whong.

India pledges $300m loan to boost Vietnam’s maritime security

Editor5 months ago05 mins

India has offered to provide Vietnam with US$300 million to strengthen its maritime security amid rising tensions in the Asia-Pacific region and increasing wariness in both countries about China’s growing military might and assertiveness. India’s pledge was made during a visit to India this week by Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, during which he and his host, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, virtually inaugurated a military software hub in the city of Nha Trang in central Vietnam. The Army Software Park is being developed with India’s assistance and is expected to produce software solutions as well as provide information technology services. Modi said at a welcome ceremony for Chinh at Hyderabad House on Thursday that Vietnam was an important partner in India’s Act East Policy and Indo-Pacific vision. The Act East Policy is a diplomatic initiative to promote economic, strategic and cultural relations with the vast Asia-Pacific region at different levels. Both countries would “continue cooperation for a free, open, rules-based and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Modi said. This visit from July 30 to Aug. 1 was Chinh’s first trip to India as head of government. RELATED STORIES Vietnam’s PM visits India to reaffirm strategic partnership Vietnam mulls law that may open market to foreign arms firms Vietnam hosts its first international defense expo The leaders said in a joint communique at the end of the visit that Vietnam and India “agreed to strengthen further their defense cooperation based on common priorities and interests, and to contribute to the stability in the Indo-Pacific region.” A package of preferential loans worth US$300 million would be offered for two projects to improve Vietnam’s maritime security, they said. They did not specify details but Indian media said the money would be spent on procuring two types of patrol boats for the Vietnamese navy. In June 2023, India donated to Vietnam a missile corvette, the INS Kirpan, and also sold it 12 high-speed guard boats. Rule-based South China Sea Maritime security is seen as one of the most important elements of Vietnam-India bilateral relations and they have held regular maritime security dialogues since 2019. The joint communique emphasized the importance of “maintaining peace, stability, security and freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea.” Both countries are committed to finding peaceful solutions to maritime disputes in accordance with international law, in particular the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, or UNCLOS, they said. They stressed that UNCLOS is the legal framework for all maritime activities in the region and the basis for all claims over jurisdiction. Vietnam, together with other ASEAN countries, and China are negotiating a code of conduct for parties in the South China Sea. India and the United States are not involved in those talks but the two leaders called in their communique for a rule-based and effective code of conduct that “does not affect rights and jurisdictions of other countries, including those not taking part in the negotiation process.” China has warned against what it sees as the “intervention” of outside countries in South China Sea disputes. Edited by Taejun Kang.

State media shows North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un leading flood rescue

Editor5 months ago010 mins

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been spotted in state media leading flood relief efforts after heavy rains caused the Yalu River to swell, inundating sections of nearby towns, residents in North Korea and China told Radio Free Asia. More than 5,000 people who were stranded by the floodwaters were saved by on-site instructions relayed by Kim, the state-run Korea Central News Agency reported, complete with photos showing him leading the rescue effort. The South Korean government said that there was a high possibility of casualties given that North Korea was reporting about the rescue effort in such detail. Some of the residents were trapped when they did not heed warnings to evacuate and stayed in their homes, residents said. Meanwhile, North Koreans who have been dispatched to work in China are being forced to donate to a flood relief fund from their pay. A resident who requested for security reasons only to be identified as living near the Yalu, told RFA Korean that residents in and around Hyesan, in the northern province of Ryanggang, were facing “life threatening” moments since the river’s waters began to overflow. A view of a flooded area near the country’s border with China, which has been hit by heavy rainfall from Tropical Storm Gaemi, in North Pyongan Province, North Korea, July 28, 2024. (KCNA via Reuters) “The water level of the Yalu River fluctuated by up to two meters (more than 6 feet) within an hour,” he said, adding that a vehicle equipped with a loudspeaker went from village to village along the river, instructing people to urgently move to higher ground. “Despite this, the residents just stood on the levee of the Yalu River, unsure of what to do, and did not evacuate,” the resident said. Most did not want to evacuate because they did not want to leave their belongings behind for opportunistic thieves, he said. “The area around the Yalu River has high property prices, and people with a higher standard of living in Hyesan City reside there,” he said. “Because they could not suddenly move their expensive belongings, such as refrigerators, televisions, and sewing machines, they were unable to evacuate despite knowing the danger.” He said that most North Koreans cannot afford things like televisions and sewing machines even after working hard for decades. “If the house was left empty, thieves would rush in and steal all the property in an instant, so the people felt they could not evacuate even when the water rose.” The Yalu floods have also affected Dandong, China, which lies across the river from North Korea’s Sinuiju, a resident in Dandong told RFA, on condition of anonymity for personal safety. “The Yalu River overflowed, causing water to rise up to sidewalks in Dandong,” she said. “On the other side of the river in Sinuiju, North Korean soldiers were stacking sandbags all day.” An island in the river located 2 kms (1.24 miles) upstream from Sinuiju was submerged according to reports. Relief payments When the flooding began, the North Korean government began asking workers it dispatched to China to donate to relief efforts. But just one day later, the government stopped asking and ordered them to donate, residents in China said. According to a report by the UN Expert Group on North Korea Sanctions published early this year, there are about 100,000 North Korean workers in over 40 countries, but mostly in China and Russia. Their presence is a violation of UN sanctions that required all dispatched workers to return to North Korea by the end of 2019 with no new worker visas issued. North Korea has been known to get around sanctions by sending the workers on student or tourist visas. “An order to raise funds for flood recovery was issued today at the Dandong Branch of the Consulate General in Shenyang,” a resident of Dandong told RFA on condition of anonymity for personal safety. He said that news reports showing Kim Jong Un leading rescue efforts kept coming in to companies in Dandong, so they convened an emergency meeting for each work unit and ordered them to contribute to the relief effort personally. “However, most of the workers dispatched to China were passive about providing financial support, even though they were saddened by the reality of their country suffering from heavy flood damage,” he said. “Through the meeting, some workers decided to donate 10 yuan (US$1.30) from their monthly salary, while others decided to donate up to 30 yuan ($4.15).” The purpose of their being overseas is to raise foreign currency for the cash-strapped government, so they are already forced to donate the lion’s share, and are paid only a fraction. To have to donate even more increases their hardship, the Dandong resident said. “The reason North Korean workers are reluctant to participate in support projects is because it is difficult to live on only 300 yuan ($41.50) each month,” he said. “They’re out here saying that flood recovery should be something that the government should take care of.” North Korean leader Kim Jong Un walks up an embankment towards a train during a visit to a flood-affected area near the border with China, in North Pyongan Province, North Korea, in this undated photo released July 31, 2024. (KCNA via Reuters) A Chinese citizen of Korean descent in Dandong said that the North Korean consulate in Shenyang later required that each worker donate 200 yuan ($27). “Workers were initially expected to contribute 10 yuan ($1.38) each, with officials donating 50 yuan ($6.92),” he said. “When this failed to raise the necessary amount, they upped it to 200 yuan.” He said the workers are angered that they are being made to donate so much. “It is unfortunate that three days of heavy rain led to flood damage, but the people are complaining, wondering if they will lose all of their already tiny salary.” Translated by Leejin J. Chung and Claire S. Lee. Edited by Eugene Whong.

Vietnamese activist on trial from prison cell in Thailand

Editor5 months ago05 mins

A court in Bangkok on Thursday began hearing a Vietnamese request for the extradition of a Montagnard activist who Vietnam accuses of terrorism but who rights groups say will be tortured if sent back. Y Quynh Bdap, 32, a campaigner for ethnic minority people, is wanted in Vietnam where he was sentenced in absentia in January to 10 years in prison after being convicted of involvement in 2023 attacks on public agencies in Dak Lak province in which nine people were killed. The co-founder of the Montagnards Stand for Justice indigenous rights group has been in Thailand since 2018 and denies involvement in the 2023 violence. He was not allowed to attend Wednesday’s hearing and had to take part by teleconference from remand detention after Vietnamese officials cited security concerns. “It’s hard to inquire and translate on teleconference,” defending lawyer Nadthasiri Bergman told Radio Free Asia. “It is also a disadvantage being unable to meet a lawyer in the courtroom.” The case has shone a spotlight on Vietnam’s stand on dissent and also on what rights groups say is growing cooperation between states in the region to crack down on each other’s dissidents. “The hearing must be transparent,” said Pornpen Khongkachonkiet, director of the Bangkok-based rights group Cross Cultural Foundation, describing Bdap as a rights defender at risk of deportation. Bdap is from the Ede minority, one of about 30 groups known as Montagnards, the French term for hill people, in Vietnam’s Central Highlands. The mainly Christian groups have suffered years of persecution from authorities over religion and land rights. ‘Swap mart’ On June 11, Thai authorities arrested Bdap for “overstaying” his visa following an extradition request from Vietnam. Thailand does not recognize refugee status but the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees has recognized him as a refugee and he is awaiting resettlement to a third country. Bdap met Canadian authorities on June 10 to discuss resettlement there. U.S. embassy officials and representatives of international organizations observed Thursday’s hearing, as did Vietnamese security officials. As well as the hearing on Vietnam’s extradition request, Bdap will also stand trial for the immigration offense on Aug. 5. It is unclear when the court will hand down its ruling, Bergman said, adding that Bdap would fight the two-tier proceedings. She said she was hopeful that if a recently enacted Thai law on forced disappearances was taken into account, he “would not be sent back into harm’s way.”Thailand and Vietnam do not have an extradition treaty but have cooperated on a reciprocal cross-border basis in recent years when dealing with dissidents, right groups said. New York-based Human Rights Watch accused Thailand of acting like a “swap mart” to exchange dissidents, and disregarding international norms. Independent experts have called on Thailand to respect the obligation of non-refoulement, which prohibits returning a person to a country where they would face a risk of persecution or torture, the U.N. rights office said last month More than 160 people are incarcerated in Vietnamese prisons for criticizing the government, among them environmental activists and campaigners for press freedom, according to Human Rights Watch. Edited by Mike Firn.

China sanctions US lawmaker for criticizing Beijing’s human rights record

Editor5 months ago07 mins

China on Wednesday sanctioned U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, accusing him of “interfering in China’s internal affairs,” though the congressman said it would not deter him from continuing to speak out against the Chinese government’s poor human rights record in Tibet. The sanctions against McGovern, a Massachusetts Democrat, prohibit him from engaging in any transactions or other activities with organizations and individuals in China. They also bar him and his family from entering the country, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. The sanctions took effect on Wednesday as a “countermeasure” against McGovern’s actions and statements that “interfere in China’s internal affairs and undermine China’s sovereignty, security and development interests,” the ministry said. McGovern told Radio Free Asia that the sanctions’ timing suggests they are a reaction to a U.S. bill on Tibet that President Joe Biden signed into law earlier this month and to McGovern’s meeting with the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, at his home in Dharamsala, India, in June. “If PRC [People’s Republic of China] leaders don’t like it when people speak out against their horrific human rights record, maybe they should improve their horrific human rights record,” he said. “They can start by ending their oppression of Tibetans, ending their genocide in Xinjiang, and ending their crackdown on democracy in Hong Kong.” RELATED STORIES Biden signs bill urging China to resume talks over Tibet Defying China, US lawmakers meet with Dalai Lama Two Americans sanctioned by China say they don’t care US Congress passes bill on reciprocal travel to Tibet McGovern introduced and was among the key sponsors of the Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act, also known as the Resolve Tibet Act, that supports Tibetan self-determination and urges China to resume dialogue with the Dalai Lama or his representatives to reach a peaceful resolution to the dispute between Tibet and China. It also empowers the U.S. State Department to counter China’s disinformation about Tibet and encourages the Chinese government to “address the aspirations of the Tibetan people regarding their distinct historical, cultural, religious and linguistic identity.” A vocal critic McGovern has been a vocal critic of China’s human rights record and a firm Tibet supporter, having spoken out openly in the past on several humanitarian issues, particularly on China’s human rights violations in Tibet and Xinjiang and the impact of Beijing’s assimilation policies on Tibetan cultural, religious and linguistic identity. Asked whether Beijing’s latest move will result in any change in his stance on Tibet, McGovern responded, “Absolutely not.” The Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, sips tea at the Tsuglakhang temple in Dharamsala, India, Feb. 28, 2023. (Ashwini Bhatia/AP) McGovern was also the author of the Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act which former U.S. President Donald Trump signed into law in December 2018. The law denies Chinese government officials access to the United States if they are responsible for creating or implementing restrictions on American government officials, journalists, independent observers and tourists seeking access to Tibet. China has also imposed sanctions and other restrictions on prominent U.S. citizens. In 2022, Beijing sanctioned U.S. historian Miles Yu and Todd Stein, a deputy staff director of the U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China who previously worked as a lobbyist for the International Campaign for Tibet. They were banned from traveling to China or contacting anyone there. Last year, China also imposed sanctions against Rep. Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican, one of the key sponsors of the Resolve Tibet Act who led a U.S. bipartisan congressional delegation to Dharamasala to meet with the Dalai Lama in June. Prior to the visit, China warned the delegation against making the trip. Later, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian criticized the trip and said the U.S. must not sign the bill into law. At the time, Lin said China would take steps to “firmly defend its sovereignty, security and development interests.” Edited by Tenzin Pema for RFA Tibetan and by Roseanne Gerin and Matt Reed.

Month: August 2024