Racy magazine lifted from newsstands [... a day after Bun Rany called for this type of publications to be stamped out, coincidence?]

Thursday, 19 February 2009
Written by MAY TITTHARA AND MOM KUNTHEAR
The Phnom Penh Post

A KHMER-language pop culture magazine was lifted Tuesday from newsstands in Phnom Penh, a day after Hun Sen's wife, Bun Rany, urged the government to stamp out the spread of racy images for their corrupting influence on youth.

Ek Sam At, editor-in-chief of the fortnightly Sameiy Thmei, or Modern Magazine, which includes lifted online images of nude women, said the street raid came without any notice.

"Officials from the Ministry of Information just went directly to collect my magazines from newsstands."

He said the ban was lifted the same day after he met with Information Minister Khieu Kanharith and agreed to clean his pages of any potentially offending images in the future.

Khieu Kanharith told the Post Tuesday that one magazine had continued to ignore his office's orders to reign in its "sexy" content, but made no reference at the time to the offending publication or an imminent move to ban it.

Bun Rany should teach social mores and good behavior to her household first?

A teenager reads a magazine at a news stand in Phnom Penh on Tuesday. The prime minister's wife, Bun Rany, has lashed out at magazines running ‘pornographic' photos of women in ‘sexy' clothes, saying it damages morality. (Photo by: TRACEY SHELTON)

First lady rails against rise of racy images and fashion

Wednesday, 18 February 2009
Written by Mom Kunthear
The Phnom Penh Post

Latest bout fits into Bun Rany's larger multi-front crusade against elements she says degrade country's social mores and popularise bad behaviour.

FIRST lady Bun Rany on Monday railed against the proliferation of racy images of women and blamed the Ministry of Information for failing to stamp them out.

"The Ministry of Information has to close magazines that have pornography in order to avoid letting them have a bad impact on readers," she said at the annual meeting of the National Committee on the Promotion of Morality, Women and Family Values in Phnom Penh.

"If we all cooperate, we can reduce problems in our country such as rape and banditry."

Bun Rany, who is head of the Red Cross in Cambodia, also said film stars and singers dressed in revealing clothing were encouraging youth to don inappropriate fashion.

In particular, the first lady blamed the Ministry of Information for not enforcing laws prohibiting the publication of pornographic images.

Information Minister Khieu Kanharith said his office has previously ordered certain publications to stop publishing "sexy" pictures, but one magazine had ignored the order.

He had shied away from a strong crackdown in the past, however, since it would unfairly stunt the magazine's business prospects, he said.

"We have not fined them because we understand they want to make good business, and using sexy pictures helps them do that," he said.

"But they are overdoing it, so now we have to take action."

According to Sy Define, a secretary of state at the Ministry of Women's Affairs, business interests should not come at the expense of moral standards.

"Some businesses only care about their profile and don't care about the social impact of what they do," she said. "So the Ministry of Information needs to control them and press them harder so they are afraid."

A determined fight

Bun Rany has long crusaded against images, lyrics, health programs, technology and individuals that, she says, compromise the social mores of the Kingdom.

In December of last year, she warned HIV/Aids campaigners that distributing free condoms may stimulate the nation's sexual appetite, claiming traditional moral practices, such as abstaining from sex until marriage, are more useful tools in the global fight against Aids.

She called for a ban in February 2008 on a song titled "Give Me a Portion of Your Heart", which referred to an adulterous relationship, on TV stations and urged Phnom Penh authorities to inspect nightclubs with reputations for violence and escort services.

In 2006, she spearheaded an effort among the wives of senior officials to ban video phones, citing concerns the video technology would be used to send pornography.

That year she also had a female presenter taken off the Cambodian Television Network for wearing a backless dress.

Final results for Bun Rany’s social mores squad [-Porno swapping over the phone is still under Bun Rany's ire]

17 Feb 2009
By Nhim Sophal
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Tola Ek
Click here to read the article in French

The final results for 2008 for the National committee to support social mores, women rights and Khmer family (aka Bun Rany’s social mores squad) was revealed to the public on Monday 16 February, at the Phnom Penh Hotel, under the presidency of Bun Rany, the honorary president of this committee.

In addition to welcoming women’s participation in politics and their implication in all aspects of government or administrative actions, the meeting noted 117 important issues compiled in an official report: 13 cases of human trafficking (16 arrests made), 13 cases of contraband (18 arrests), 39 pimping cases (74 arrests), 3 pedophile cases (3 arrests), 2 cases of sale of pornographic pictures and materials (2 arrests), and 7 cases of projection of pornographic films (8 arrests). Bun Rany, Hun Sen’s wife, welcomed this success, but she asked everyone to continue their effort: “I recognize that the exchange of pornographic pictures over the phones is a new negative point. We must redouble our vigilance because the technology development could facilitate the action of those who attack the Khmer culture and civilization.” She also indicated that the efforts provided by this social mores committee are not sufficient yet to prevent certain acts, and that the authority must be ready to provide justice to anyone.