Originally posted at: http://www.myp1t.com/blog/view/id_424
Please find below the circulating petition to block Deputy Prime Minister Sok An's appearance at the 4th annual Cambodian New Year Parade in April. We are trying to collect it from everybody across the nation as it is a human right issues and it should apply whether or not you live in Long Beach and we will keep this petition as a precedent on how Cambodian-Americans feel about the Hun Sen government.
January 18, 2008
Mayor Bob Foster
333 W. Ocean Blvd 14th Floor
Long Beach, CA 90802
Dear Mayor Foster:
We are writing to protest the appearance of Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An at this year's annual Long Beach Cambodian New Year Parade, to be scheduled in April.
For over a decade, Cambodia has been under the administration of Prime Minister Hun Sen, a government that has violated an incalculable multitude of human rights with impunity since 1997, so much so that they have simply ceased to meet with the latest United Nations rights envoy this past December. Cambodia has one of the most corrupt governments in the world today, ranked 162nd out of 180 nations according to Transparency International (180 being most corrupt). Mr. Sok An is the head of the Cambodian Council of Ministers and is that government's second in command.
We the undersigned, Cambodians and non-Cambodians alike, are deeply shocked and saddened that the right hand man of such a government has been invited to parade himself in an event purported to celebrate diversity, community, and personal freedom. How does one celebrate these values by welcoming the very figure that is a perpetrator against them? What community and freedom are our brothers and sisters celebrating in Cambodia, where Mr. Sok An and colleagues rule the people with forced evictions and rampant land grabs, where simple freedom of expression is met with incarceration and death?
In their press release on January 9, 2008, the committee that invited Mr. Sok An stated that they "believe in open dialogs and making changes through peaceful means as taught by Dr. Martin Luther King." That may be well and good but a parade is simply not an appropriate venue for having such dialog. While Dr. Martin Luther King met with opposition figures to create open dialog and further understanding, we cannot imagine he would have invited members of the Ku Klux Klan to participate in a parade celebrating the African-American community as a means of opening this dialog.
We implore your understanding and compassion in this matter and fervently hope you will rescind Mr. Sok An's unfortunate invitation.
Sincerely,
The Undersigned
(Your Signature)
Download Petition in PDF Form
Please sign and mail petition to:
or email a scanned copy with signature(s) to:
Please find below the circulating petition to block Deputy Prime Minister Sok An's appearance at the 4th annual Cambodian New Year Parade in April. We are trying to collect it from everybody across the nation as it is a human right issues and it should apply whether or not you live in Long Beach and we will keep this petition as a precedent on how Cambodian-Americans feel about the Hun Sen government.
January 18, 2008
Mayor Bob Foster
333 W. Ocean Blvd 14th Floor
Long Beach, CA 90802
Dear Mayor Foster:
We are writing to protest the appearance of Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An at this year's annual Long Beach Cambodian New Year Parade, to be scheduled in April.
For over a decade, Cambodia has been under the administration of Prime Minister Hun Sen, a government that has violated an incalculable multitude of human rights with impunity since 1997, so much so that they have simply ceased to meet with the latest United Nations rights envoy this past December. Cambodia has one of the most corrupt governments in the world today, ranked 162nd out of 180 nations according to Transparency International (180 being most corrupt). Mr. Sok An is the head of the Cambodian Council of Ministers and is that government's second in command.
We the undersigned, Cambodians and non-Cambodians alike, are deeply shocked and saddened that the right hand man of such a government has been invited to parade himself in an event purported to celebrate diversity, community, and personal freedom. How does one celebrate these values by welcoming the very figure that is a perpetrator against them? What community and freedom are our brothers and sisters celebrating in Cambodia, where Mr. Sok An and colleagues rule the people with forced evictions and rampant land grabs, where simple freedom of expression is met with incarceration and death?
In their press release on January 9, 2008, the committee that invited Mr. Sok An stated that they "believe in open dialogs and making changes through peaceful means as taught by Dr. Martin Luther King." That may be well and good but a parade is simply not an appropriate venue for having such dialog. While Dr. Martin Luther King met with opposition figures to create open dialog and further understanding, we cannot imagine he would have invited members of the Ku Klux Klan to participate in a parade celebrating the African-American community as a means of opening this dialog.
We implore your understanding and compassion in this matter and fervently hope you will rescind Mr. Sok An's unfortunate invitation.
Sincerely,
The Undersigned
(Your Signature)
Download Petition in PDF Form
Please sign and mail petition to:
myP1T.com
PO Box 4129
Long Beach, CA 90804
PO Box 4129
Long Beach, CA 90804
or email a scanned copy with signature(s) to:
petition@myp1t.com
17 comments:
Khmers must be united!!!
Unity -> Courage
Justice -> Freedom
http://whoisdeaply.wordpress.com
If Khmer Americans in LB cannot win this battle in this free land, you can forget about what you try to do/change in lawless Cambodia.
This is just a small test of your ability.
You cannot win because you are so divided. You are divided because you do not know how to use your freefom to your advantage: i.e. unable organize, to work together. This is an example why we became refugees and foreigners in our own country, lost the land to the neighbors. You cannot win the battle by continuing to blame, insult each others or live with your ignorance.
Well said 9:20 P.M . !
If Mr. Sok An can penetrated Long Beach and break the back of Cambodian-Americans in Long Beach, CA, it would demonstrated that a portion of the Cambodian-American individuals are complicit in the current corrupted government. Specifically, these individuals Cambodian-Americans who advocated for Mr. Sok An presence at the parade in Long Beach owed debts of gratitude to the top officials of the Cambodian government. These officials, along with individual Cambodian American business people have been known to conduct business transactions which filled their individual pockets at the expense of the poorer Cambodians in Cambodia. Considerable amount of oversea money flowed into Cambodia.
If debt of gratitude is not an issue, then the Cambodian-Americans commitee members are attempting to garnish favor from these Cambodian officials in hope to gain favorable bread crumb when they landed on their old home town.
Simply put, any Cambodian-American committee created to invited an official of the Cambodian Government to participate in an American activities without the proper consensus of the participants, then such a committee is nothing more than a group of individual protecting or wishing to fill his own pocket.
But seriously, why Mr. sok An and not his royal highness, King Norodom Sihamoni...It would seem more appropriate. The king presence would be more of meritious in light of the event, which associated with the welcoming of the New Year.
You want to bet that this petition will be denied? In the U. S., with all its drawbacks, the principle of free speech and the right of assembly are guaranteed. If Sok An is issued a visa, as it will since he has an invitation from a civics group, there is no denying him the right to attend the New Year's Parade, whether you like it or not.
welcom Sok AAAANNNNNNNNNNNN
Why signing the petion? Is it going to stop Ah Sok An from coming? It's no going to work in my opinion. What we need to do is to deal with those who invited him to come, like Riche San. Why does Richer has so much power to screw up everyone? Yes he has money, maybe. But money cannot by the heads and souls of Khmer in Long Beach if we are united.
Should there be a decision by the Board of Directors, members, or represetative from member organizations that help to form this Cambodia Town? We need to deal with the heart of the issue not the outskirt of it.
Chheam Khmer
Why signing the petion? Is it going to stop Ah Sok An from coming? It's no going to work in my opinion. What we need to do is to deal with those who invited him to come, like Riche San. Why does Richer has so much power to screw up everyone? Yes he has money, maybe. But money cannot by the heads and souls of Khmer in Long Beach if we are united.
Should there be a decision by the Board of Directors, members, or represetative from member organizations that help to form this Cambodia Town? We need to deal with the heart of the issue not the outskirt of it.
Chheam Khmer
There is nothing wrong in inviting Mr. Sok An or any member of his government to participate in an American activities. Just make sure that Mr. San and his associates wet our beaks a little with all the nectar he has managed to gather in his association with officials of the Cambodian government.
Mr. San and his Cambodian-Americans associates know that sharing is good for business...right Mr. San?
Who ever let's Sok An Come to Long Beach For Khmer New Year I think that people is "Ah Chhkut Chhruck".
Khmer People in Long Beach Ca should invited Eoun Sreymom and Phanavy instead of "Ah Svar Sok An" come to Cambodian New Year Parade."Both of them is in my Big Dream".Hahahahahahaha Lol.
all khmer are fool.
words are too loud, but with no action.
it's good to push somebody to die for your cause.
if you want war, why not lead the way, but you're are scared too
you're nothing, yet you're full of shit
khmer never learned any shit
when shit comes to your way; you and everyone will run fast as hell
so don't tell people what to do
you're weak like others.
this is the nature of being khmer
khmer weak
you're jelous when you see other have more than you
you're jealous when you see others are educated than you
this is the nature of khmer
don't deny it, yest this is khmer
accept that we do a lot and say a lot of crazy shit when others are better than you
let's once again fuck each other until we have no one on khmer soil
all khmer are fucking chicken
all khmer are fucking the same
just let hun sen rule while you are bunch of fucking weak cannot do a damn thing
yes, go ahead and say what you want but you cannot do any shit.
fuck all of you
where the fuck are you when we needed you
again, fuck all of you.
if you're khmer, you should be very, very ashame of yourself for bieng khmer
The real war between The Long Beach and the Phnom Penh just about to begin:-)
Long Beach are The Opposition Parties which stand for Freedom and Justice of the free world's principal.
Phnom Penh stand alone for dictatorship, oppressive, depressive and repressive ruler!
Be prepared for the ground war when Sok An present.
CheatKhmer Chea nich!
LB.
What I see here are bunch of losers and full of rage and jealousy of those who are better than them.
We will never get along with one another if we chose to behave like a bunch of savage beasts; yes, that's what we are "savage beasts."
Let he come to face his destiny!!!
2:06 am, I felt bad reading your comment. I don't know what you think, but I will tell you what I have learned; To get along means one must have the same interest and similarity. The world is trying to stop this people from abusing and killing his own people, I mean Sok An, You think he is a right person for us. Get him out from coming to Long Beach, it does not mean that we cannot do good together for our community. We are better Bro. and we do it because we do not support the ignorance...Mafiaism. I said wrong correct me, OK.
7:07a.m. a word you said seem to be that you are not Khmer, let me tell you non-khmer, without Cambodian American here or elsewhere in the third world, Cambodia become Youn already...You think about it so stop using that language of yours toward Khmer and keep them for your parent and siblings.
Kon Khmer
3:55PM, I agree with you, Kon Khmer, that guy mostly cursed with F-word sounded like a white guy in LB, I think I heard he was cursing once near small library during the protest of new year parade long a go. Who is that guy? I heard that he involves with CPP. I think he loves to see Sok An coming here to LB.
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