US Financier Robert F. White, founder of Thomas F. White & Co., is accused of child sex tourism during his travels to Mexico and Thailand. (Photo: AP)Thursday, August 24, 2006
By Erik Wasson and Prak Chan Thul
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
Information about Thomas Frank White, a millionaire US national accused of child sex abuse who has apparently been granted Cambodian citizenship, has been forwarded to the Ministry of Interior for investigation, officials said Wednesday.
Government spokesman and Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith, who said Monday he would investigate the matter, said Wednesday that the Ministry of Interior would look into the case instead.
"Now that the article has come out it is better that the relevant ministries, the Ministry of Interior or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, investigate," he said.
Prime Minster Hun Sen's adviser Om Yentieng also said that he had no authority to investigate the case and that he has reported it to the Ministry of Interior.
Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak said he had received information about White but declined comment on the investigation. Foreign Ministry officials could not be contacted.
On May 8, a Thomas Frank White became Cambodian, according to a copy of a royal decree.
A man with the same name, same appearance, same date of birth and same US-based lawyers is currently in a Mexican prison facing accusations of sexually abusing 14 minors, according to media reports, photographs and interviews with a lawyer representing some of his alleged victims in the US. US federal prosecutors are currently negotiating to have White extradited to the US to face charges of sex tourism in Mexico and Thailand.
Additional discrepancies in White's citizenship file, including an address in Phnom Penh that turned out to be a rundown motorcycle repair shop where the owners have never heard of him and a medical test for which there are no records, have raised questions about the care with which Cambodia is processing citizenship requests.
Beatrice Magnier, director of the anti-pedophile NGO Action Pour Les Enfants, said she wanted more information about how White, if he is the same man who is in a Mexican jail, was able to get citizenship. "It is difficult to say if it is just this case or it is a problem with the system," she said.
Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Son Chhay said Cambodia needs to strengthen its citizenship application process. "People want to become Americans or Australians, but who is it that wants to be Cambodian?" Son Chhay asked. "It is likely that there is something wrong with this person and their background should be really checked. We should not just look at the US dollars they have," he said.
"Money can buy everything here," he added. "In the past, we had a Taiwanese Mafia member get citizenship and the title of oknha."
Additional information about this case in the US, can be found at:
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/06/19/WHITE.TMP
Government spokesman and Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith, who said Monday he would investigate the matter, said Wednesday that the Ministry of Interior would look into the case instead.
"Now that the article has come out it is better that the relevant ministries, the Ministry of Interior or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, investigate," he said.
Prime Minster Hun Sen's adviser Om Yentieng also said that he had no authority to investigate the case and that he has reported it to the Ministry of Interior.
Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak said he had received information about White but declined comment on the investigation. Foreign Ministry officials could not be contacted.
On May 8, a Thomas Frank White became Cambodian, according to a copy of a royal decree.
A man with the same name, same appearance, same date of birth and same US-based lawyers is currently in a Mexican prison facing accusations of sexually abusing 14 minors, according to media reports, photographs and interviews with a lawyer representing some of his alleged victims in the US. US federal prosecutors are currently negotiating to have White extradited to the US to face charges of sex tourism in Mexico and Thailand.
Additional discrepancies in White's citizenship file, including an address in Phnom Penh that turned out to be a rundown motorcycle repair shop where the owners have never heard of him and a medical test for which there are no records, have raised questions about the care with which Cambodia is processing citizenship requests.
Beatrice Magnier, director of the anti-pedophile NGO Action Pour Les Enfants, said she wanted more information about how White, if he is the same man who is in a Mexican jail, was able to get citizenship. "It is difficult to say if it is just this case or it is a problem with the system," she said.
Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Son Chhay said Cambodia needs to strengthen its citizenship application process. "People want to become Americans or Australians, but who is it that wants to be Cambodian?" Son Chhay asked. "It is likely that there is something wrong with this person and their background should be really checked. We should not just look at the US dollars they have," he said.
"Money can buy everything here," he added. "In the past, we had a Taiwanese Mafia member get citizenship and the title of oknha."
Additional information about this case in the US, can be found at:
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/06/19/WHITE.TMP
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