Buth Reaksmey Kongkea
The Phnom Penh Post
AN adviser to the head of Prime Minister Hun Sen’s bodyguard unit faces a US$96 million lawsuit for allegedly defrauding a Chinese mining company in a joint venture project, a lawyer for the Chinese firm said.
Officials from China’s Hong Tung Resource plan to submit an official complaint to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court this week against owners of the Nim Meng Group Company Limited, said Kouy Thunna, lawyer for Hong Tung Resource head Cheng Tung Ko. Among the targets of the complaint is Nim Meng, a general in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces and adviser to Him Bun Heang, the head of Hun Sen’s bodyguard unit, Kouy Thunna said.
“I will file a complaint to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court against Nim Meng and his wife, Mrs Lay Sineang, who are members of the Board of Directors of Nim Meng Sinohope Group Company, and also Director of the Nim Meng Group, which has broke its agreement with my client’s company,” Kouy Thunna said. Hong Tung Resource plans to seek some $87 million in damages in relation to imported mining equipment seized by Nim Meng Group, $6 million in compensation, and $3 million in loans that were never repaid, he added.
The case highlights concerns over what rights groups say is the loosely regulated nature of extractive industries in the Kingdom, where well-connected political and military officials often control lucrative concessions.
“Over many years, we’ve documented how both political but also military elites have been involved in the exploitation of natural resources,” said George Boden, a campaigner with the watchdog group Global Witness.
“In an environment where there are other players who need to be brought into the process, as it were, and where there is a lack of clarity over contracts and terms or whatever, I think it’s fair to say that it can be a problematic business environment.”
Hong Tung and Nim Meng Group began working together in July last year and have since exported nearly 3,500 tonnes of copper though the Ream military port using Cambodian naval vessels, Kouy Thunna said. The firms formalised their joint venture partnership in January this year, he added, before Nim Meng Group abruptly cancelled the partnership on February 23.
Nim Meng could not be reached for comment, though Nim Meng Group general manager Nim Thy said yesterday that the partnership had in fact been cancelled because Hong Tung Resource and Cheng Tung Ko, a Taiwanese national, had not respected the agreement.
“We decided to cancel an agreement with this [firm] because the Taiwanese businessman has attempted to defraud us,” he said.
“This Chinese company has cheated us for the mining business in Cambodia. After they received a business license from Nim Meng Group, they tried to sell it to other Chinese business companies in China.”
Hong Tung Resource also failed to provide loans for the project that it had originally promised, Nim Thy added.
A draft copy of the complaint obtained by The Post alleges that following the cancellation of the joint venture partnership in February, the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy transferred the licence for the concession from Nim Meng Sinohope Company, the joint venture, to Nim Meng Group.
In addition to providing equipment for the project, Hong Tung Resource contributed a $10 million cash investment to develop the venture, Kouy Thunna added.
Officials from the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy could not be reached for comment.
The webpage for the ministry’s General Department of Mineral Resources lists Nim Meng Group Company as holder of a concession in Chi Kraeng district of Siem Reap province.
Boden said the widespread involvement of senior officials in the extractive industries would continue to pose a hurdle to the imposition of a clear legal framework within the sector.
“What we’ve seen is senior senators and senior government officials and senior military figures … appear to be getting concessions, and not in transparent ways,” he said.
“There is a very fragmented, unclear, and untransparent process.”
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JAMES O’TOOLE
7 comments:
Poor Chinese,
Hun Sen and team are just a band of thieves,
you cannot trust those bandits,
they cheat, they steal, they grab..
For better business in Cambodia, and better future future for all us Cambodian all military and politician must stay out of business. Military's job to protect the country, politician work to protect the business, the people and the country. We can be Singapore. We can be the center of the world business but we have to have a clean environment for all business that mean we have to have world business law standard where real contract are transparent and honor. No more behind closed door deal, no more General of police or military get involve with business. And must eliminate all these 99 years contracts. What in the world that we have 99 years contract? there are places such as Poy Yipon (Japaness Coast) in Koh Kong, close to Koh Sdach or King's Island, Khmer were moved to live in Jungle, where all the islands, about 12 of them in this proximation location, and gave to Chinese to develop for 99 years! No more of this crap. This is not a world international business standard law. And also, a good business can be done without remove our belove Khmer and we want business to benefit all Khmer, not to harm Khmer.
dO AM AH SAKEY!
These Hun Sen cronies are all having PhD graduated from Tuol Krasang. They are very talented in stealing others such as one in this forum naming himself as " KHMER IN SYDNEY CBD". This man is very obsessed with his phD and tried to tease me for not having one. What the hell, I need this PhD for? I don't anymore moneys, why I need these Phd for?
What I need for my life is good health and happiness !!!!!
You can have tons of moneys, but if you don't have these two elements of life " good health and happiness " your life is full of miseries.
Areak Prey
For Corrupt businemen (not for the honest and respectable ones).
It's a good LESSON for YOU for having " co-operated" with those Generals and their wives who are just vultures or Phkay Chor(Thief Star). Him Hun Heang, Nim Meng, Pol Saroeun has made big fortune by stealing National budget, illegal loggings, land grabbing and selling their influences.
You are the Peal Si Peal (the gangsters kill the gangsters).
NEXT election let Khmer people need get rid of this CCP and HUN SEN. it killing the country. SEN family wealth and all business need to give back to the people.
We need to ask Heng Pov Whos' killed Chea Vichea and the 1997 Grenad attack? Who;s order and did it?
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