US FBI chief says Cambodia's fast-growing economy makes it important in anti-terror fight

2008-01-31

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) - Cambodia's recent fast-paced economic boom makes it crucial to cooperate with the country in fighting terrorism and global crime, the chief of the U.S. FBI said Thursday.

«It's an important country to us because of the potential for persons transiting Cambodia or utilizing Cambodia as a spot for terrorism,» Robert Mueller said at a news conference in the capital, Phnom Penh.

He spoke after inaugurating an FBI office at the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh. The office is headed by Laro Tan, a Cambodian-American.

As the Southeast Asian nation expands financially and is drawn deeper into the growing global mesh of the Internet, Mueller said it was important to see how it was affected by the growth of international financial fraud.

Mueller was also visiting the country for talks with Prime Minister Hun Sen and other officials to strengthen cooperation in fighting terrorism and transnational crime, to which Cambodia is seen as vulnerable because of weak and allegedly corrupt law enforcement.

Hambali, an Indonesian said to be a key leader of the regional Jemaah Islamiyah terror network, reportedly spent several months in Cambodia in 2002 and allegedly tried to use it as a base from which to launch attacks.

Hambali, whose real name is Riduan Isamuddin, was captured in neighboring Thailand in 2003 and later transferred to the prison at the U.S. Navy base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Mueller praised the cooperation Washington has received from the Cambodian police.

«I might say in particular that our relationship as it addresses terrorism and the threat of terrorism has been exemplary and the exchange of information between our services has been the second to none,» he said.

The Cambodian national police force is headed by Gen. Hok Lundy, whom New York-based Human Rights Watch has accused of ordering an extrajudicial killing, as well as involvement in drug smuggling and human trafficking. The government has dismissed the allegations as nonsense.

Hok Lundy was denied a U.S. visa in 2006 for reasons never made public. Last year, however, the U.S. State Department granted him a visa to attend counterterrorism meetings hosted by the FBI.

Hok Lundy: There remains no terrorist threat in Cambodia ... except for the CPP terrorizing poor people to rob their lands

FBI Has Helped Police Understand Terrorism, Chief Says

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original report from Washington
09 January 2008

Since cooperation with a new FBI office began last year, Cambodian police have learned more about the strategies and tactics of terrorism, the chief of national police said in a recent interview.

Cambodian police have updated their expertise in the fight against terrorism, thanks to a series of meetings and exchanges of information with FBI agents, Gen. Hok Lundy said in a rare interview last week.

There remains no terrorist threat in Cambodia, he said.

"How those tactics and strategies of terrorists have so far developed is included in the meetings and exchange of information with the US FBI representatives in Cambodia, so that we can be updated on the development of the terrorists," he said.

The FBI opened a legislative attaché office in the US Embassy in March 2007, drawing criticism from human rights groups for its close work with Hok Lundy, who has denied accusations of involvement in drug or human trafficking.

FBI officials in Washington said cooperation with Hok Lundy was necessary to better work in the region, assessing terrorist threats and conducting other law enforcement.

"We think that there has been significant knowledge gained from the cooperation in order to strengthen the security of the country," Hok Lundy said.

Heng Pov claims that his arrest stems from a dispute with Hok Lundy

Friday, July 20, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

Heng Pov, the former Phnom Penh police chief, said in the court on Wednesday, during his sentencing for possession of fake money that the problem leading to his arrest stems from his dispute with Hok Lundy, the national police chief. Heng Pov said that the dispute took place when he refused to listen to Hok Lundy’s order to issue a Cambodian family book to a Vietnamese official so the latter has the right to live easily in Phnom Penh. The Cambodia Daily quoted Heng Pov as saying: “I was forced by someone else to sign on the family book for Toeur, a Vietnamese colonel. However, I refused to do it that was why this created all these problems.” The Cambodia Daily said that it cannot contact Hok Lundy on Wednesday and Thursday, but Khieu Sopheak, Ministry of Interior spokesman, claimed that Heng Pov’s declaration was fabricated. Khieu Sopheak told The Cambodia Daily that: “When the fish is caught in the net, it tries to break away free. However, in reality, he cannot get out of it.”