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Courts Freeze Nearly $1B of Prince Group Assets
Courts have frozen nearly a billion dollars worth of Prince Group assets, including more than $300 million in bank account cash, as investigators continue their cybercrime case against the conglomerate. In addition to the cash freeze, the order also includes several buildings, casinos, and thousands of properties connected to 198 companies. Founder Chen Zhi was already extradited to China in January, and five other alleged ringleaders have already been sent to court. INTERPOL Red Notices are being sought for at least 29 others.
Read more: Phnom Penh Post (asset freeze), Khmer Times (FBI role), Inside Asian Gaming (China's role)
Phnom Penh Protests Thai Army Road Work
Thai troops are apparently building a road between boundary pillars 9 and 11 in Oddar Meanchey (with trees marked for more work), forcing a formal protest from Phnom Penh. The foreign ministry says the construction is in contravention of a 2000 border agreement and other deals that were intended to reduce tensions. The joint border commission is still stalled while Phnom Penh is also protesting the presence of Thai troops at Ta Moan Thom, Ta Krabey and Khnar temples.
Read more: Cambodianess (border agreements), Khmer Times (Ta Tum), Khmer Times (government response), Khmer Times (border shells)
Minister Calls Talk of 'Lost' Border “Land Treason”
Minister Delegate So Naro says that any Cambodian who says that land has been "lost" to Thailand is a traitor. His combative warning follows Prime Minister Hun Manet's demand that critics stop claiming the government ceded territory between border markers 52 and 59. Hun Manet says he is denying a handover through border surveys, not occupation by force, an inconvenient distinction when set beside Hun Sen's previous admission that "we lost land in different areas." More than 30 activists, journalists and others have already been prosecuted because of their comments about the border and military.
Read more: Phnom Penh Post (Hun Manet's warning), CamboJA News (treason claim)
Cabinet Forecasts 4% Growth, IMF Sees 3%
The cabinet is expecting 4 percent growth for FY 2026 and a little bump up to 4.8 percent for next year in a forecast that’s a little rosier than those of international lenders. The IMF is expecting 3 percent this year and 4 percent next year, and the Asian Development Bank thinks that tourism will stay tepid (international arrivals are down 11% this year) and the nation will only muster 3.9 percent and 4.7 percent. Inflation continues to put pressure on households; the government's expecting GDP per person to come in at just $3,277 next year, up from about $3,098 for this year.
Read more: Khmer Times (government forecast), Khmer Times (IMF outlook), Cambodia Daily (airport traffic)
Drought, Floods Batter Rice Crop
Drought damaged nearly 290,000 hectares of rice in eight provinces. Battambang suffering the worst damage. Floods also damaged another 156,000 hectares in ten provinces, about one in twenty hectares of the wet season crop. The water ministry expects El Nino conditions to continue into February and is trying to get everyone to conserve water before the dry season begins (usually the rainy season ends about this time of year).
Read more: CamboJA News
2010 Goal Met: Rice Exports Pass 1 Tonnes
Milled rice exports have passed a million tonnes this year, finally reaching a target the government set in 2010. The planted area has more than doubled since the early 1990s to more than 4 million hectares today. China, the European Union and the Philippines are the biggest buyers.
Read more: Khmer Times
OOCL Direct South China Service to Sihanoukville
OOCL is adding Sihanoukville (and Thailand's Songkhla) to a direct container route serving southern China. The CCT4 service will run through Nansha, Shekou, Sihanoukville and Songkhla before going back to Nansha. The shipping line hasn’t published vessel sizes or sailing frequency, but the new route should allow for faster/ cheaper goods transport through the area.
Read more: Logistics Manager
Peace Accords Commemoration Banned (Again)
Phnom Penh City Hall has once again said “non” to a public commemoration of the Paris Peace Agreements, this one planned for more than 500 people. Officials used the magic words "public security and order" to justify their decision as they suggested that groups would be better off meeting in offices or private venues instead of in public. The 1991 agreements committed the country to multiparty democracy and human rights. In the end, organizers of the event settled for a news conference.
Read more: CamboJA News (earlier bans), CamboJA News (latest refusal)
That's all for this week, thanks for reading. Your voice matters to us. Feel we're missing something? Have additional sources to suggest? Don't hold back- hit reply and tell us what you think.
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