Minister delays letter to end strikes

Workers employed by the Tai Yang Enterprises Co clash with police during a protest in Kandal province last month. Photograph: Meng Kimlong/Phnom Penh Post

Wednesday, 15 August 2012
Shane Worrell and Mom Kunthear
The Phnom Penh Post

It's been marked by violence, fervent protests and a stream of recriminations, but now bureaucracy is hampering efforts to resolve the seven-week-long strike at the Tai Yang and Camwell factories, which supply Levi’s and Gap, a trade-union advocate said yesterday.

Dave Welsh, country director of the American Center for International Labor Solidarity, told the Post yesterday that Social Affairs Minister Ith Sam Heng was delaying penning a letter to of the factory owners that would likely end the dispute.

“It’s incredibly frustrating,” Welsh said yesterday after a meeting with the remaining 40 strikers. “It could have been resolved two Fridays ago.”

Welsh met with Sam Heng on August 3 to discuss the letter, which would order the company to reinstate strikers it claims to have sacked.

Premier Hun Sen 'Will Not Dare To Clash With Cham Prasit' [-Nepotism in full swing among the CPP ministers in P.Penh]

Cham Prasidh and his wife, the powerful Lok Chumteav Tep Bopha Prasidh

09 Feb 09
Moneaksekar Khmer
Translated from Khmer by Anonymous

Minister of Public Works and Transport Tram Iv-tek has appointed his daughter as office chief. Tek Leakhena was appointed office chief while her husband was made deputy director general of a department in this ministry. At the Ministry of Environment there is also competition among Minister Mok Maret's relatives. Such an example has been adopted by officials of the Cambodian People's Party (CPP) as seen with Trade Minister Cham Prasit and Social Affairs Minister It Sam Heng.

Sources have reported that Public Works Ministry personnel were greatly surprised when Tram Iv-tek appointed his daughter Tek Leakhena as office chief, along with Tek Leakhena's husband as deputy director general of a department. The ministry staff said that it is a bit too soon to make Tek Leakhena's husband a deputy director of a department and Tek Leakhena office chief.

At Mok Maret's Ministry of Environment competition is still ongoing for the posts of director general of administration and office chief between Mok Maret's brother-in-law (younger brother of Maret's wife) and Mok Maret's nephew. There has been no decision yet on this matter as Mok Maret has difficulty deciding who to give the position to: one is brother-in-law, the other is nephew. In any case the position of director general of administration will not escape from Mok Maret's brother-in-law or nephew. The incumbent director general has been reported trying hard to find a backer; it would be very hard, however, for the incumbent director to keep his position once the circular on retiring officials is out.

It Sam Heng at the Social Affairs Ministry is the most well known for appointing relatives and his own children to high positions at the ministry's office or cabinet. With so many relatives and offspring working at the ministry, and in order to avoid criticism from various circles, It Sam Heng ordered his relatives to change their family names and hide their biographies. Some of these are It Sam Heng's nephews but some officials at the ministry did not realize this when looking at the names before these people were accepted.

Trade Minister Cham Prasit is the one renowned for considering relatives first for jobs at the ministry: offspring, nephew, and wife all work at the ministry. Daughter Cham Nimol is chief of the minister's office. Son Cham Borit is deputy director general at Camcontrol department. Most special of all is Cham Prasit's wife: Tep Bopha; she is head of the archives department and in charge of Cham Prasit's secret documents. The trade ministry is the most famous in appointing offspring, nephew, and wife to high positions to facilitate corruption and to hide documents.

At the Trade Ministry Chm Prasit's wife is the one at the helm. In Cham Prasit's absence it is not any one of the many officially appointed state secretaries who will be acting minister; instead it is Tep Bopha Prasit even though she has not been officially appointed. Tep Bopha Prasit's power is very strong. Some of the state secretaries have nothing to do while Tep Bopha Prasit has plenty of work to do with no time to rest.

Apart from the Trade Ministry and the above other ministries, there is also the Ministry of Urbanization of Im Chhun Lim who made his son office chief. This appointment drew a lot of attention from some leading officials at the ministry as it was made in this fourth term.

And it is the same work structure based on family ties at other institutions. This culture is increasingly expanding now with ministers holding the same portfolios for the past three or four terms. Some appointments have been seen as appropriate looking at the officials' competence. Some others are not competent work wise and are not suitable for their positions; they are there due to the leadership positions of their fathers or uncles. Some of these officials only carry the minister's documents and oversee the budget; this is part of corruption.

Apart from the various ministries, in some provinces and cities relatives have been appointed office chiefs. Phnom Penh City Governor Kep Chutema appointed his daughter as his personal assistant. This personal assistant's influence has been affirmed to be even stronger than that of the office chief. Everyone is fearful of the influence of Kep Chutema's daughter.

No action by the prime minister to deal with this issue has been seen. And this has led to the inefficiency of circulars putting officials into retirement as seen currently spreading at various ministries and offices. Each ministry is the sole property of the minister in charge and his family. There are some subordinate officials who could not work with and who have left those ministries.

Such a culture has not been dealt with because it is believed that if it is to be dealt with, the trade ministry should be the first. It is said that in any event Prime Minister Hun Sen will not dare to clash with Cham Prasit. If it is going to be dealt with, it has to be done with everyone. If not, let it spread all over.

Ministry of Un-Social Affairs: Pro-CPP newspapers go right in, all others keep out!

Ith Sam Heng, Minister of Un-Social Affairs

Ministry of Social Affairs bans reporters

By Kang Chan Amrak
Phnom Penh Post, Issue 16 / 22, November 2 - 15, 2007

If you have noticed less news about the Ministry of Social Affairs lately, it could be because the ministry has banned all but three Cambodian newspapers from entering its premises.

According to a sign posted on the window of the guard house a month ago, the only newspapers permitted to enter are three large daily papers that the ministry has deemed "more ethical."

"Allowed in: Journalists from Rasmei Kampuchea, Koh Santepheap, Kampuchea Thmey. Journalists from all other newspapers are strictly banned," the sign says.

A security guard working in the guard house said the order came from a vice minister.

"I am just doing my duty. It is not written by me, but by the administrator," he said.

Minister of Social Affairs Ith Sam Heng, reached by phone, said he was too busy to talk about the ban.

Information Minister Khieu Kanharith said the notice is aimed at unethical journalists who solicit bribes.

"Some journalists who I don't want to name asked money from the officials. If they do not get the money, they write untrue articles to defame the officials," Kanharith told the Post.

Kanarith said officials complain, leaving him stuck in the middle. He said although the press law doesn't allow bans on particular newspapers, he thought the ban was understandable.

"We have a specific department to deal with the press," said Nim Thoth, secretary of state of the Ministry of Social Affairs. "It is not directly under my control so I did not order this announcement. I don't think that any departments or person have the right to make this kind of order," Thoth said.

No journalists, except a Post reporter who went to the ministry to get information about labor issues and was denied access, reported being directly affected by the rule. But Phan Sophat, a journalist from Radio Free Asia, said his colleagues experienced similar bans. He said the restrictions are a political ploy used by officials to avoid talking to newspapers that do not support the interest of the ministry.

"If it is truly a policy from the ministry, it is total discrimination. It does hurt the free press and the freedom to access information of all journalists," Sophat said.

Om Chan Dara, the president of the Khmer Journalist Friendship Association, called the order "a way to restrict the journalist's right to gather the information. It is incorrect."