Divide to Conquer - the Communist Way

July 23, 2012
By Mu Sochua

The communist style strategy “divide to conquer” kills the spirit of our nation. All that for power of the current rulers. Our revered monks practice Buddhism and have a voice and role in defending human rights and freedom. Join us in giving Cambodia Movement for National Rescue the force that can and will restore our fundamental values and principles. The movement is our only choice and the right choice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9EeY67XvHGg

Supporters rally: Monks need help, rights groups told

Ven Sieng Sovannara (Photo: Suon Bora)

Thursday, 29 December 2011
Mom Kunthear
The Phnom Penh Post

Supporter yesterday urged human rights groups to help two Khmer Kampuchea Krom monks – one who was fired from his pagoda and another who was accused of inciting protesters – because they said they had done nothing wrong.

The Khmer Kampuchea Krom association wrote a letter to Licadho, Adhoc, the Cambodian Center for Human Rights and the UN Office of Higher Commissioner for Human Rights in Cambodia, calling on them to intervene to help the Buddhist monks.

In early November, Mok Kampoul district officials in Kandal province forced Khmer Kampuchea Krom Buddhist monk Chea Sovannaphum to leave the Keo Monyvorn pagoda without reason.

Last week, Khmer Kampuchea Krom Buddhist monk Sieng Sovannara, who lives in Samki Raingsey pagoda, was summonsed to Phnom Penh Municipal Court to face accusations of inciting protesters involved in a land dispute in Phnom Penh’s Meanchey district.

សេចក្តីអំពាវនាវរបស់សហព័ន្ធខ្មែរកម្ពុជាក្រោម - KKF call to help Khmer Krom monks in Bangkok

សហព័ន្ធខ្មែរកម្ពុជាក្រោម សូមធ្វើសេចក្តីអំពាវនាវ ដល់សន្តានចិត្តសប្បុរសជន របស់បងប្អូនរួមជាតិខ្មែរ ជាទូទៅ សូមមេត្តាផ្តល់ជាវិភាគទាន ដល់ជនរងគ្រោះ ដោយសារ ទឹកជំនន់នៅប្រទេសថៃ ដែលក្នុងនោះ មានព្រះសង្ឃជាសមណនិស្សិតខ្មែរកម្ពុជាក្រោម ព្រម ទាំងខ្មែរក្រោមភៀសខ្លួនទៅ នៅប្រទេសថៃ កំពុងជួប ប្រទះ នឹងសេចក្តីទុក្ខលំបាក យ៉ាងខ្លាំង។ សូមមេត្តា ទាក់ទង ឬផ្ញើវិភាគទានជាសែក ឬមូលប្បទានប័ណ្ណ មកទីចាត់ការព័ត៌មាន វិទ្យុសំឡេងកម្ពុជាក្រោម ដែលមានអាសយដ្ឋាន៖

សេចក្តីអំពាវនាវរបស់សហព័ន្ធខ្មែរកម្ពុជាក្រោម

KKF

P.O Box 51201

San Jose. CA 95151 (U.S.A)

Tel.408-550-5060

សូមបញ្ជាក់ថា៖ សហព័ន្ធខ្មែរកម្ពុជាក្រោម មានតំណាងព្រះសង្ឃ នៅទីក្រុងបាងកក ចាំទទួលយកវិភាគទាន ទៅប្រគេន និងចែកចាយដល់ ជនរងគ្រោះទាំងអស់ មិនឱ្យខកបំណងសទ្ធាឡើយ។

សូមអរព្រះគុណ និងអរគុណ

In Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, Monks Preserve Traditional Khmer Culture and Literature

At the center of all Khmer communities is the wat, both temple and monastery of Theravada Buddhism. By supporting the wat's monks, the laity contributes to the making and sharing of communal merit; the monastery in turn serves the community, in part by serving as a center of learning.

Op-Ed: http://leavefreedom.blogspot.com/2009/03/in-vietnams-mekong-delta-monks-preserve.html by Freedom
By Micheal Huff
15 March,2009

Once, very far away and very long ago, a powerful king from the West met a wise monk from the East. To test the monk's wisdom, the king posed many difficult questions: Why do good people sometimes suffer while evil people sometimes prosper? How can we know what truth is? How can there be rebirth without an eternal soul ? He asked many such questions. To each, the monk answered with brilliance and serenity. After their talk, the king left his throne and joined the monk in teaching the Middle Way.

This conversation of 2,000 years ago between the Bactrian King Menander and the Buddhist monk Nagasena was recorded in the Milindapanha, or The Questions of King Milinda. Today, this classic text of Theravada Buddhist literature is yearly brought to life in the ethnic Khmer villages of Vietnam's Mekong Delta. During the New Year celebration in April, one monk from a local temple will take the role of Menander, another that of Nagasena, and the two will recreate parts of the discourse for the Khmer community.

Within this traditional culture the monks are the spiritual leaders of their society, and as such they take on many roles. Storytelling is but one of the many responsibilities of these ochre-robed men. Others include teaching the Khmer writing system to the community's children and young adults, preserving manuscripts in their monasteries, and collecting Khmer language print materials. As scholars, the monks have been given cause to reflect on the state of intellectual freedom in the recent political milieu of Southeast Asia. And finally, the digital information revolution has excited the curiosity of some of the monks, who recognize its potential promise. Insofar as they act as the information providers for their community, Khmer monks share many of the same duties and concerns held by the library profession around the globe.

Since October 1997, I have had the opportunity to explore a part of the world of international librarianship in the homeland of the ethnic Khmer. Working as an ALA Library Fellow at Can Tho University, in the heart of the Mekong Delta, I have been assisting my Vietnamese colleagues in designing and implementing a library automation system and network, tasks that are much the same as my responsibilities at the Central Rappahannock Regional Library in Fredericksburg, Virginia. What expertise I have had to offer to the Vietnamese librarians has been enthusiastically received, and in return I have come to know as friends some of the most gracious and courageous people I have ever met in my life. The experience has been nothing short of extraordinary.

The richness of this adventure grew even greater when I became acquainted with the Khmer monks of Wat Muniransyarama, the Temple of Light. Since I became their next-door neighbor in downtown Can Tho, I have since spent many evenings in their company, sipping tea and learning about the Khmer way of life. Some of the monks and many of the Khmer students who attend the university study and speak English. Given their eagerness to improve their listening and speaking skills, I am never without opportunity to engage them in conversation. Through my talks with the monks and the laity and through my observations of their roles, I have been given much to reflect on regarding service to one's community.

The ethnic Khmer are the indigenous people of the Mekong Delta and Cambodia. Estimates of their population in Vietnam vary from between 1 to 3 million(?). Though the Vietnamese did not begin settling in this region until the 17th century, there are some Khmer settlements that have been continuously occupied since at least the 11th.

An agricultural society, the Khmer are known for being skillful rice farmers.

At the center of all Khmer communities is the wat, both temple and monastery of Theravada Buddhism. By supporting the wat's monks, the laity contributes to the making and sharing of communal merit; the monastery in turn serves the community, in part by serving as a center of learning.

As religious practitioners and scholars, Khmer Buddhist monks have faced much persecution and suppression in recent history. During the brutal reign of Pol Pot in the late 1970s, Cambodian monasteries were destroyed or desecrated, and monks were murdered or forced to leave the order. Some of the greatest collections of Buddhist literature in the world were burnt or otherwise destroyed by the Khmer Rouge.

In Vietnam from 1975 until 1986, the government actively suppressed the practice of religion, and many leaders of all faiths were sent to re-education camps. However, since 1986 the Vietnamese government has eased its social restrictions, and once again the wat are openly acting as the vital centers of the Khmer communities throughout the Mekong Delta(?).

Before 1975, over 100 monks were associated with Wat Muniransyarama. Today there are only 10, most of whom have joined the order in the past decade. Their work begins at 5 a.m. when they rise for prayer and meditation. The majority of the rest of their day is devoted to study, teaching, and the performance of sacred rites within the Khmer community. A central part of all of these activities is the wat library.

To the side of the central shrine room, some simple wooden shelves with glass doors house just fewer than 100 volumes and manuscripts. Though small in size, the collection is vast in significant content. Its core is the Pali Canon, the complete scripture collection of Theravada Buddhism. Preserved in its original language, this collection is also known as the Tripitaka, or Three Baskets, referring to its three sections: Vinaya Pitaka, the Basket of Discipline, or rules of monastic conduct; Sutta Pitaka, the Basket of Discourse, or the dialogues and teachings of the Buddha; and Abhidharma Pitaka, the Basket of Higher Teachings, or Buddhist metaphysics.

Through the access provided by the monks, the teachings in these books, written in both Pali and in Khmer transliteration, have provided guidance to the Khmer community for many centuries. The collection also consists of a number of palm-leaf manuscripts. The format of these documents is unique to this region of the world. Using techniques developed in Burma, a monk will write a verse or teaching from Buddhist scripture on pieces of dried sugar-palm leaf that measure about a foot long and two inches wide. A metal stylus is used to inscribe the text on the leaf, breaking the layer of cutin. Dye is then wiped across the leaf, staining the incised letters. Not only is the work exacting manually, but the monk also uses an archaic script when transcribing the text in this manner. In a day's time, a monk may only be able to complete two leaves. Each leaf is pierced through the center, and the completed manuscript of 20 to 30 leaves is bound by a single loose loop of string. Often used in sacred rites or healing ceremonies, these handwritten texts help to preserve an ancient art and an enduring way of life.

Another concern of the monks is literacy among the Khmer people. Teaching the skills of reading and writing to Khmer children is recognized as essential to the preservation of their culture in Vietnam. According to statistics compiled by UNESCO in 1990, only 36% of the Khmer population in Cambodia was literate. While many Khmer in the Mekong Delta can read and write in Vietnamese, it is only through the efforts of the monks that literacy in their mother tongue is being promoted outside of the monastic community.

Proscribing Print

One obstacle to accomplishing this goal is the acquisition of new Khmer print materials. While the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture and Information publishes some materials in the Khmer language, it also requires a lengthy review process for any materials imported from Cambodia. According to the government, this effort is to prevent "cultural materials unsuitable to Vietnamese society" from entering the country. The bureaucracy involved in the review process effectively deters anyone from trying to import print materials legally, and the situation has left the monks vexed.

Though it would also involve some red tape, local publication of documents in Khmer script is a possible solution. Even so, the problem remains of where to find a Khmer typesetter. After the monks mentioned this dilemma to me, I e-mailed my colleague Chris Glover of the Central Rappahannock Regional Library in Virginia, and asked him to see what he could find in the way of freeware Khmer fonts on the Web.

Within a few days I had the makings of a Khmer desktop publishing outfit on my laptop. Soon I was teaching basic word processing at the wat in the evening. Some of the monks had already learned basic computer skills at local schools, but everything had been done in Vietnamese. Not only have we worked on the design and editing of documents in Khmer, we have also begun to explore the creation of online hypertexts as a way of indexing the collection in the wat library.
In teaching the monks, I have also become their student. With their help, I am learning both the Khmer script and the fundamentals of conversation. That many of the monks can speak in Khmer, Pali, Vietnamese, English, and French has both humbled and inspired me. They are determined to teach not only their community, but like Nagasena with Menander they wish also to provide Westerners with information about Theravada Buddhism. They too understand the need for a global reach and that it can be attained through a local touch. It is all part of their commitment to service.

Even an ethnic minority community in one of the most economically disadvantaged regions of the world has the equivalent of the local library. The Khmer people support the wat, and part of what they get back is the assurance that the knowledge about their ways of life will be maintained and made available to them. Telling ancient stories, preserving manuscript archives, teaching literacy skills, discussing intellectual freedom, learning diverse languages, and exploring new information technologies are all some of the ways the of War Muniransyarama fulfill their obligation.

When Nagasena met Menander, every question had its answer. As Ranganathan invited our profession to remember, every book has its reader. Whether we work for municipalities or universities or law firms or hospitals or public schools, to bring our communities together with the information they seek is the responsibility we are called upon to fulfill.

Amidst all of the technological change and management issues and budget battles, this call to service is what unites our profession. As long as we never lose sight of this goal, I believe we need not worry about obsolescence; after all, service to their communities has sustained the Theravada order of Buddhist monks for 2,500 years.

http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-EPT/huff.htm

Vietnam: Human Rights Watch analysts denounce violations of Khmer Krom rights

Phnom Penh (Cambodia). 04/06/2003. Mr Thach Setha, member of the Sam Rainsy Party, at a ceremony funded by King Norodom Sihanouk to commemorate the loss of Kampuchea Krom to Vietnam. (Photo: John Vink/ Magnum)

22-01-2009
By Stéphanie Gée
Ka-set in English

The Khmer Krom, Cambodians born in the Mekong Delta in Kampuchea Krom, a region once fully part of the territory of Cambodia, are chased relentlessly by the Vietnamese authorities and mistreated, put in prison or placed under house arrest whenever they try to peacefully express their political opinions and religious beliefs. In a report released on January 21st 2009 entitled "On the Margins: Rights Abuses of Ethnic Khmer in Vietnam's Mekong Delta ", the organisation for the defence of Human rights Human Rights Watch (HRW) denounces the harsh suppression by the Vietnamese government, "wary about possible Khmer Krom nationalist aspirations", of protests organised by this large ethnic group.

Khmer Krom monks targeted first by the Vietnamese authorities

"First, the police interrogated me every day, then a couple of times a week. Sometimes they questioned me from morning until 10 pm at night - I wasn't allowed to go home. […] They slapped the back of my head with their palms and hit me with rolled-up paper. They asked many questions and tried to frighten me by showing me handcuffs. […] The confession letter was already written. They forced me to copy what they wrote. If not, they would not allow me to eat or go home. I am not against the Vietnamese government. I abide by Vietnamese law. But they said I was not loyal to the nation."

These are the words of a Khmer Krom monk, quoted by Human Rights Watch (HRW). He was defrocked and placed under house arrest after participating in a peaceful protest in the Soc Trang province in 2007. What did the protesters call for? “Greater religious freedom and more Khmer-language education”, the report says. The police then surrounded the pagodas of monks suspected of leading the protest, expelled at least 20 monks from monkhood and “sent [them] back to their home villages, put them under house arrest or police detention, without issuing arrest warrants or specifying the charges against them”. In May 2007, the Soc Trang provincial court convicted five of the monks on charges of “disrupting traffic” and sentenced them to two to four years of imprisonment.

A policy coming from the Communist Party

The New York-based organisation thus calls the Vietnamese government to “free Khmer Krom Buddhist monks and land rights activists in prison or under house arrest for the peaceful expression of their political and religious beliefs” and regrets that it tightly controls Theravada Buddhism, practised by the Khmer Krom, who see this form of Buddhism as “the foundation of their distinct culture and ethnic identity”.

“The government should be trying to engage in dialogue with the Khmer Krom, rather than throwing them in jail”, says Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. In researching this report, Human Rights Watch “came into possession of internal memos circulated by the Communist Party of Vietnam and Vietnamese government officials outlining their concerns about unrest among Khmer Krom in the Mekong Delta and strategies to monitor, infiltrate, and silence Khmer Krom activists”. According to Brad Adams, the documents, included in an appendix to the report, “lay bare the efforts by the Vietnamese government to silence critics”.

Abuses against Khmer Krom in Cambodia also

Investigators for Human Rights Watch documented in their 125-page report ongoing violations of the rights of the Khmer Krom in southern Vietnam but also abuses in Cambodia against Khmer Krom who have fled there for refuge. Indeed, although the Cambodian government has repeatedly stated that it considers the Khmer Krom to be Cambodian citizens, authorities “often react harshly when Khmer Krom become too critical of the Vietnamese government, a close ally of the Cambodian government”. The report stresses that in 2007, “Cambodian police forcefully dispersed a series of protests in Phnom Penh by Khmer Krom monks denouncing the rights abuses they had experienced in Vietnam”.

The report lists a few facts shedding light on the Cambodian government's position toward the ethnic group, eager to remain on good terms with its Vietnamese “ally”. In February 2007, a Khmer Krom monk, Eang Sok Thoeun, was killed in suspicious circumstances after he participated in a protest in Phnom Penh. In June 2007, Cambodian authorities arrested, defrocked, and deported to Vietnam a Khmer Krom activist monk, Tim Sakhorn, who was sentenced in Vietnam to a year in prison.

In Cambodia, as the authors of the report detail, Khmer Krom are subject to double discrimination, since they are “often perceived as ethnic Vietnamese by Cambodians”. As a result, many Khmer Krom in Cambodia face “social and economic discrimination and unnecessary hurdles to legalizing their status”.

Since the 2007-2008 peaceful protests conducted by Khmer Krom monks and farmers, tensions have become greater and suppression harsher in the Mekong Delta as Khmer Krom face serious restrictions on freedom of religion, “perceived as a privilege to be granted by the government rather than as an inalienable right”.

Announcing the Prey Nokor weekly webzine

Friday, December 28, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

The new Prey Nokor newspaper announced that it will start its web publication from 01 January 2008. According to the announcement made by this newspaper, it will be entirely web-based, and will be published once a week. It will report about human rights violations, the lack of freedom rights, and the threats imposed on Khmer Krom people by the Vietnamese regime, as well as information within the current Cambodian society. The newspaper is initiated by Khmer Krom monks and laypersons living overseas. The website of the weekly webzine is:

http://preynokor.blogspot.com

Khieu Kanharith, the minister of information, could not be reached over the phone to obtain his comments on this issue. However, Thieng Vann Darong, the under-secretary of state of the ministry of information, said that he does not know about this issue at all.
--------
KI-Media Note: Unlike the Kingdom of Cambodia, in the US, the freedom of speech allows anyone to freely express their opinions. No Cambodian minister of information can extend his reach or have a say on the publication of the Prey Nokor newspaper. We invite our readers to visit this newspaper website when it comes online in January, to read the plight of our Khmer Krom Brothers and Sisters under the oppression of the communist Hanoi regime.

The subservient Hun Sen's regime continues its oppression on Khmer Krom monks to serve the interest of its Hanoi master

4 Khmer Krom monks facing forced defrocking

17 November 2007
By Sok Serey
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

A source indicated that four Khmer Kampuchea Krom monks residing in Cambodia are currently facing forced defrocking and eviction from their pagoda in the near future. The four are accused of involvement and working for the US-based Khmer Kampuchea-Krom Federation in the world (KKF) movement.

The source claimed that the 4 Khmer Krom monks are currently residing in Wat O’Andoung pagoda, Banteay Neang commune, Mongkul Borey district, Banteay Meanchey province, in Cambodia’s northwest. The four monks were questioned by three cops in the evening of Saturday. The cops brought along a number of documents to accuse the 4 monks, and the cops were accompanied by a monk official.

32-year-old Monk Thach Kong Phuong, one of the 4 monks targeted by the authority, told RFA by phone from Wat O’Andoung pagoda on Saturday that the local police was questioning him and accusing him of involvement in working for the KKF movement. Venerable Thach Kong Phuong said: “Right now, I am being defrocked. A monk official came to defrock us.”

The other 3 monks facing this problem are: Ven. Phauk Phal Ang, Ven. Hor Phal Ang, and Cheng Chhay Eang. They all came to live in Cambodia since 2004.

Ang Chanrith, the director of the Khmer Kampuchea-Krom Human Rights Defense Organization (KKHRO) said in reaction to the police threat for defrocking: “The provincial cult department committee, the district governor, and the provincial governor have threatened Khmer Krom monks, telling them to quickly leave the Wat O’Andoung pagoda within 3-day. If they don’t leave the pagoda, or they still remain in Mongkul Borey district, they will be arrested and the charge brought on Ven. Tim Sakhorn will be applied to them.”

Regarding this problem, General Khieu Sopheak, spokesman of the ministry of interior, said that he didn’t receive a report yet on this issue. However, he stressed that the law in Cambodia does not allow monks to use the Cambodian territories as a base to distribute propaganda serving any organization or association with the aim of opposing the government.

It should be recalled that former Monk Tim Sakhorn, the abbot of the Phnom Den North pagoda, located in Kirivong district, Takeo province, was defrocked by force by the Phnom Penh regime, and he was handed over to the Hanoi regime which accused him of conducting activities to undermined the friendship and unity between Cambodia and Vietnam, because he (allegedly) served the KKF activities.

On 08 November, the communist Hanoi regime in An Giang sentenced former Monk Tim Sakhorn to one-year of jail time. Source claimed that the sentencing of Monk Tim Sakhorn was done without the presence of any defense lawyer.

Khmer Krom Monks plan Dhammayietra Walk for Peace

Kampuchea Krom Buddhist monks from southern Vietnam hold a Buddhist flag during a protest in front of the royal palace in Phnom Penh April 20, 2007. Around fifty monks protested outside the Vietnamese embassy on Friday, calling on the communist-run nation to allow greater freedom of religion. REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea

08 June 2007
By Mayarith Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Three Khmer Kampuchea Krom associations, including the Association of Khmer Krom Monks, said that they will gather about 1,000 laymen and Khmer Krom monks to organize a Dhammayietra Walk for Peace from Phnom Penh city to Oudong mountain, in order to pray and ask for peace for Khmer people and Khmer monks currently living on the former Kampuchea Krom territories.

Recently, the Vietnamese government defrocked several Khmer Krom monks and sentenced some of them to jail, following a demonstration against the Vietnamese authority. The action taken by the Vietnamese government caused outrage among Khmer Krom people all over the world.

The Dhammayietra which will be participated by the Khmer Kampuchea Krom community, and the Alliance of Khmer Krom Student Monks, will depart on 10 June starting from Wat Phnom, in Phnom Penh city.

The group informed the Ministry of Interior (MoI) about the event and requested security along the Dhammayietra road, but as of Friday, there was no answer yet from the MoI.

Commemoration of the lost of Kampuchea Krom

Tuesday, May 28, 2007
By Ung Chansophea
Cambodge Soir
Unofficial translation from French by Luc Sâr

Click here to read Cambodge Soir’s original article in French

As it was done every year, the 12 Khmer Krom associations in Cambodia will commemorate of June 4, the loss of Kampuchea Krom in front of Wat Botum pagoda in Phnom Penh.

On June 4, 1949, the French colonial administration transferred the ownership of this province (Kampuchea Krom) to Vietnam. According to Ang Chanrith, the executive director of the KKHRO NGO, the municipality, the Ministry of Interior and the Royal Palace gave the green light to this demonstration. “The king even sent us $2,000 to prepare for this ceremony commemorating the memories of Cambodians who died during this painful period,” he stressed. Yoeung Sin, the leader of the Khmer Krom Monks Association, added that the king will send Princess Sisowath Monipong Pongneary to act as his representative (during the ceremony). The organizers expect to see 4,000 people participating in the event. Ang Chanrith said that this will also be an opportunity to renew the call for the release of five Khmer Krom monks jailed in Vietnam.

Political Cartoon: UNPFII & Khmer Krom

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

Vietnam requests the banning of Khmer Krom from UN Forum

Khmer Krom demonstration in front of the Vietnamese embassy in Washington DC on 20 April 2007 (Photo: RFA)

20 May 2007
By Mayarith Radio Free Asia (a station labeled insolent by Hun Sen)
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

Thach Ngoc Thach, KKF Executive Director: The accusations by the Cambodian government spokesman came out even before Hanoi has yet to bring up any such accusation against Khmer Krom monks. So far, the Khmer Krom monks have been accused by Hanoi of participation in demonstration which affects the order in society only (and not on separatism).

Hanoi officials have requested the UN to prevent Khmer Krom people and Montagnard representatives from outside of Vietnam, from participating in the UN forum in New York city.

The Sixth UN meeting which will focus on the issues of indigenous people, will last for 11 days, from 14 to 25 May, and will be participated by about 2,500 people from all over the world.

Nguyen Tan Than, the deputy representative of the Vietnamese mission at the UN, accuses the Khmer Kampuchea-Krom Federation (KKF) and the Montagnard Foundation of involvement in separatism in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese official made a declaration on 18 May, in front of the Sixth Session UN Permanent Forum II (UNPFII) on indigenous people, in which he accused the separatist action (allegedly taken by the KKF and the Montagnard Foundation) of publishing false information against the Vietnamese government.

The KKF group and the Montagnard Foundaton have yet to officially provide their reactions at the UN forum which is participated by about 2,500 people.

A KKF representative said that his turn to provide his declaration at the UN forum will take place on Monday 21 May.

Thach Ngoc Thach, the KKF representative, told RFA from New York City that Vietnam has no right whatsoever to prevent any organization as it wants to do.

Thach Ngoc Thach said: “The Vietnamese government has no authority and no right to request the UN and the conference committee to ban any representatives of indigenous people from the forum…”

The Sixth Session of UNPFII (UN Permanent Forum II) is taking place shortly after the defrocking of several Khmer Krom monks, and the recent jailing of 5 Khmer Krom monks who demonstrated against Hanoi’s authority.

Earlier this week, Khieu Kanharith, the Cambodian government spokesman, declared that there was pressure for the Cambodian government to help intervene in the Khmer Krom monks case, but he said that the Phnom Penh regime cannot help since the Khmer Krom monks are involved with a movement of Khmer Kampuchea Krom government in the US.

Khieu Kanharith said: “… It cannot be like this, this is tantamount to secessionism, therefore, these accusations (made by Khmer Krom organizations) we received documents that are opposite to them, and we believe that the documents we received are true…”

The KKF representative who plans to clarify the case at the UN forum declared that Khmer Krom monks are not involved in the accusation leveled against them (by the Phnom Penh regime). “We regret that he (Khieu Kanharith) did not conduct proper research, even though he is the Minister of Information himself…,” Thach Ngoc Thach said.

Thach Ngoc Thach added that the accusations by the Cambodian government spokesman came out even before Hanoi has yet to bring up any such accusation against Khmer Krom monks. So far, the Khmer Krom monks have been accused by Hanoi of participation in demonstration which affects the order in society only (and not on separatism).

Khmer Krom Monks and religious freedom in Vietnam

10 May 2007
By Hassan
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

In March of 2007, the US Department of State issued a yearly report on religious freedom in Vietnam. The report indicated that the Viet government tightened religious freedom in an alarming manner, in spite of the fact that the Viet constitution recognizes religious freedom.

All Cambodian regimes, from the Sangkum Reastr Niyum era (under then-Prince Sihanouk’s government), and up to the Democratic Kampuchea regime or Khmer Rouge regime, have considered Khmer Krom people as full right Cambodian citizens who have the same rights and freedoms as other Cambodian citizens living in the current Cambodia.

Chapter III, Article 32 of the constitution of the current Kingdom of Cambodia, stipulates that “Every Khmer citizen shall have the right to life, personal freedom and security,” and Article 33 states that “Khmer citizens shall not be deprived of their nationality.”

Nevertheless, a large number of Khmer Krom monks are suffering from not being recognized, nor receiving any attention from the current Cambodian regime, especially when they flee Vietnam to come to Cambodia. These monks are jailed like any laymen [when they arrive in Cambodia], Monk Lam Yean is one of the monks who suffered such indignity.

Monk Yoeung Sin, the abbot of the Samaki Raingsey pagoda, informed with sadness for all Cambodians to know that: “This is what we mean by ‘the inside ghost (collaborators, i.e. the Phnom Penh regime) lending a hand to the outside ghost (foreign oppressors),’ they (Vietnamese) have no fear, we can see this problem very clearly. I am calling and begging to the consciousness of all Cambodians to wake up [to support Khmer Krom plight], whether we want it or not, we are all born as Cambodians, we have the same ancestry.”

Monk Ly Ron, the abbot of the Teak Prey pagoda, told RFA by phone that the Vietnamese have free rein in creating problems for Khmer Krom monks: “We have lived under hardship and we demonstrated for several decades already. For [example,] in the celebration of the Kathen festival, under the thousands years old Buddhist custom, it is celebrated for one full season, that is between 29 and 30 days, following the 3-month monk retreat season. But at the end, this convention was ordered scrubbed by the Vietnamese who ordered that the celebration be held on one day only. All Buddhist followers, be they monks or laymen, we suffer [from this oppression]. Our Khmer Krom monks have been fighting [these oppressions] for a long time already.”

Abbot Yoeung Sin who was jailed in Takeo for almost 10 years by the Vietnamese experts [during the occupation of Cambodia] in the 80s, told The Phnom Penh Post newspaper that if the current Cambodian government is truly an independent regime, it would not take such [barbaric] actions against Khmer Krom monks.

Arrested Khmer Krom Monks in Vietnam to be sentenced on 10 May

09 May 2007
By Kim Pov Sottan
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

According to the director of Khmer Krom monks in Cambodia, five Khmer Krom monks who were arrested by the Vietnamese authority, and who were jailed for almost 3 months now, will be sentenced on Thursday.

According to a phone call from Kampuchea Krom by Ly Phoeung – the older brother of Monk Ly Soeung who resided at Teuk Pray pagoda and who was arrested by the Vietnamese authority – he indicated that he plans on attending tomorrow’s hearing, and he said that his brother was accused of creating unrest.

Ly Phoeung said: “They (Viet) came to lecture our family on 27 April. They told us that we should not be involved in politics because it creates unrest in the community. Soeung, my younger brother, asked me to hire a lawyer to defend him.”

Ly Phoeung added with an emotional voice: “It’s too much, Buddhism in the world has never seen this. With this situation, I don’t know what else to do, even for monks, they dare defrock them. I am hopeless… I am asking all levels of authorities to resolve all these issues, that is for them to investigate and clearly explain this problem, and to provide justice.”

Five monks who resided in the Teuk Pray, Ta Meun, Peam Buon pagodas, in Khleang province (Soc Trang in Vietnamese), were among the many Khmer Krom monks who were successively defrocked by the Viet authority, and jailed for more than 3 months, following a demonstration held to demand the respect of religious freedom. The demonstration took place when the Viet authority prevented Khmer Krom monks from leaving their pagodas to beg for their daily alms.

Families of the victimized monks said that they were prevented from visiting their jailed relatives since the arrest, until the day of the hearing. A few monks were released recently after they were fined 1.5 million dong (~$100).

Monk Taing No, the director of superior Pali school in South Vietnam, labels this demonstration as an illegal act that must be judged by the Viet court first before any release can be made. “How could they release them for no reason, they (Khmer Krom monks) are fomenting a movement against security, against order.”

The sentence on the five monks arrested will be handed down by the Khleang province court.

Even if the Viet authority will not release the arrested monks, Monk Yoeung Sin, the director of Khmer Krom monks in Cambodia, commented that his group will continue to protest, without fear, the threats and killings perpetrated against Khmer Krom monks.

Right now, the Khmer Kampuchea-Krom Federation (KKF) in the world is also following the situation.

Fate of Khmer Krom Monks in Vietnam

Khmer Krom monks protest in Phnom Penh on 20 April 2007 against the defrocking of Khmer Krom monks by the Vietnamese authority (Photo: RFA)

02 May 2007
By Kim Pov Sottan
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata and Heng Soy

“…If Khmer people don’t have traditions left over for them by older Khmer people, we will not remain as Khmer, we will not be able to worship Buddhism, we will be annihilated and assimilated as Vietnamese…” There are the words of Monk Ly Ran, a forty-something monk from Kampuchea Krom (South Vietnam) who was the former abbot of the Teuk Pray pagoda, Andoung Teuk district, Khleang province (Soc Trang in Vietnamese). Monk Ly Ran recently arrived in Cambodia after fleeing Kampuchea Krom because of his fear of religious persecution from the part of the Vietnamese authority.

Monk Ly Ran spoke with an obvious hopelessness on the action taken by the Vietnamese authority – now ruling the territory of Kampuchea Krom, the current South Vietnam – to severely repress the Buddhism faith practiced by Khmer Krom people. Even for the celebration of religious ceremonies, [the Vietnamese authority forced Khmer Krom people] to shorten them, in contradiction to the normal Buddhist practice.

Monk Ly Ran added: “In particular, for the celebration of the Cambodian New Year, they [the Vietnamese authorities] do not allow us to extend the celebration beyond more than 3 days. They do not allow us to enjoy the occasion according to our tradition where such celebration lasts up to one week. For the Kathen festival celebration, according to Buddhist custom, this festival season lasts one month, but the Vietnamese authorities impose and order Khmer Krom leaders to hold the Kathen on one day only, and the festival is taking place in Khleang province only. Secondly, it is our Buddhist Khmer tradition that during the Pchum Ben season [most holy celebration for all Khmer people to honor the dead], we usually go to the pagoda, and celebrate the Kan Ben ceremony for up to 15 days, now the Vietnamese authority forces Khmer Krom leaders, in particular the provincial authority forces Khmer Krom monks and Khmer Krom Buddhists to celebrate this occasion for 3 days only.”

Monk Chao Sok from An Giang province (Vietnam) who was threatened with arrest by the Vietnamese authority, added that Khmer Krom people must become a monk in order to be able to pursue higher education, and even if they become monks, their studies are not always conducted in Khmer language. “The Vietnamese put a lot of pressure on Khmer Krom. When I was studying at the higher education Buddhist school, the teaching of our Khmer language is minimal, but for the teaching in their language (Vietnamese), there’s a lot. We were taught about their history, but when it comes to Khmer history, each week, we are taught only 2 to 3 hours per week. If we don’t become a monk, we cannot study (have higher education). I do not want to come here [to study further in Cambodia], but I want to develop Kampuchea Krom so that Khmer Krom people know Khmer literature, because I saw a lot of repression exerted by the Vietnamese authority.”

Monk Yoeung Sin, the director of the Khmer Krom Monks and one of the teacher himself, said that the Vietnamese authority distributes a 2-kong (2-are) rice field for each monk and turns them into farming, raising animals, not dressing up properly, leaving their hair long (as opposed to shaved head), and working just like any laymen. Monk Yoeung Sin said that this action is taken as a mean to diminish the influence of Khmer Krom Buddhist monks who are considered as the root, the upholders of the source of culture, literature, and tradition for Khmer Krom people. “They try to gradually remove the influence of religious freedom. Just as I told you earlier, for example they (Vietnamese) force the monks to work in the rice field, and prevent them from going out to beg for their daily alms. So the question is: what is the meaning of becoming a monk? All this led to protests and demonstrations. When we demonstrate, they say that we betray their [communist] party and their country, the monks then become scared and they flee.”

Monk Yoeung Sin added also: “Furthermore, for Khmer Kampuchea Krom, the pagodas are their roots, their religious foundations, the source of their civilization. If Khmer Krom people subsist up to now, it is because of Khmer Krom Buddhist leadership. For example, right now, Khmer Krom monks are allowed to attend the higher education Pali [Buddhism] school, but the Vietnamese authority orders them to learn about the history and patriotism of [communist] Ho Chi Minh, of the Vietnamese revolutionary army. When it comes to learn about Pali, [Khmer] history, Buddhism history, there is not much, only about 6 to 7 hours per week at most. Therefore, Khmer Krom people are not pleased with this situation, and a large number of them fled.”

The intensified oppression in Khleang province on monks, the majority of whom are students at the higher education Pali school, led to demonstrations against the Vietnamese authority to demand for religious freedom.

Demonstrations were held one after another since the beginning of the 2007, and 18 monks were defrocked by the Vietnamese, whereas 3 other monks were jailed and have not been released yet as of now.

A source in the Khmer Krom Monks Association indicated that 13 Khmer Krom monks recently fled Kampuchea Krom after the Vietnamese authority issued orders for their arrest. The 13 have recently arrived in Cambodia.

[Khmer Krom monks] protests were also held in Cambodia, but their demands were rejected by the Cambodian government leaders who claimed that the problems faced by Khmer Krom monks are merely Vietnamese internal affair.

The director of the Pali school in South Vietnam (Kampuchea Krom) rejected [all claims leveled by Khmer Krom monks] when interviewed on RFA.

Ny Chariya, an Adhoc human rights group official, commented that if all the complaints made by Khmer Krom monks are true, Vietnam is severely violating the religious freedom of Khmer Krom people. “In the universal declaration of human rights, it is stipulated that discriminations, in particular discriminations due to race or religion is strictly prohibited.”

Monk Yoeung Sin said currently, 700 Khmer Krom monks have fled their native lands to come to Cambodia. He also said that when they arrive in Cambodia, they still face discriminations: some pagodas do not allow them to stay, at some other pagodas, they are forced to change their [Khmer Krom] names before they are issued with identification paper. At other locations, the Buddhist laymen would avoid them during religious festivals and consider them as Vietnamese monks rather than Khmer Krom monks.

These problems are the many obstacles forcing Khmer Krom monks to leave their religious lives completely. Nevertheless, for those who remain, in spite of the number of problems they are facing with, they tirelessly continue to press for their demands.

Monks Brawl - A poem by Yim Guechse dedicated to Khmer Krom Monks

Please click on the image to zoom in

CCHR Ou Virak: all monks who took part in the violence [against Khmer Krom monks] should be defrocked

Monday, April 23, 2007

Brawl between rival monks provokes strong reaction from opposition, rights group

Cambodian Press Review

The opposition Sam Rainsy Party ( SRP) and rights groups have condemned a fistfight that erupted outside Phnom Penh’s Wat Ounalom on Friday between Khmer Krom monks demonstrating alleged rights infringement by the Vietnamese government and Cambodian monks aligned with Great Supreme Patriarch Tep Vong, reports newspapers.

Dozens of Khmer Krom monks and activists gathered in front of the Vietnamese Embassy at around 7.30 am on April 20 to demand the nation’s government halt rights violations on the indigenous minority and to urge for the reinstatement of 11 monks recently defrocked, reported Sralanh Khmer on April 21.

Forced to disperse from the area by riot police, the monks marched onto the Royal Palace, hoping to deliver a petition to King Norodom Sihamoni; however, they were again met by police bristling with electric batons, adds the newspaper.

Whilst at the palace, the monks were warned by Long Kim Leang, deputy chief monk for Daun Penh district to stop. “If they do not obey the Buddhist rules, they will be arrested. If they do not listen, we will take some action,” he told reporters, according to The Cambodia Daily in its weekend edition.

Prevented from submitting their petition, the monks left for the US Embassy at around 9.30am, when passing Wat Ounaloum, the home of Tep Vong, more than ten monks streamed out and started to scuffle with the Khmer Krom monks, during which four monks from the minority suffered cuts and grazes, reported Sralanh Khmer.

At 10.00am the monks managed to reach the US Embassy, and officials from the embassy agreed to accept the petition. Thach Setha, president of the Khmer Krom Association, which represents the indigenous ethnic Khmer minority living in southern Vietnam, expressed regret over the violence and likened the event to something that would occur during Pol Pot’s time, adds the Khmer-language newspaper.

The brawl has been condemned by the SRP and local civil rights organizations.

The SRP criticized the crackdown on what was a peaceful demonstration, reasoning it violates freedom of expression and religion, reports Cambodge Soir. SRP Secretary-General Mu Sohua said that it was no coincidence that the local monks were from Wat Ounalom, which she claimed has links to the ruling CPP, reports The Cambodia Daily.

Chan Sovet, an official from Adhoc, appealed to the government to take action to stop the violence and against those who mistreated Khmer Krom monks, report Cambodge Soir.

Ou Virak, newly elected president of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR), claimed in a statement yesterday that local monks were ordered to block the Khmer Krom monks from demonstrating, and that all monks who took part in the violence should be defrocked, reports The Cambodia Daily.

“I am sorry for the violence happening to even one Khmer Krom monk, I am sorry that the authorities allowed the issue to happen,” said Thach Setha, reports Cambodge Soir.

Interior Ministry spokesman Lieutenant General Khieu Sopheak said that hundreds of police were at the protest were there to “safeguard security,” writes The Cambodia Daily.

Khmer Krom monks demonstration quelled by police

Phnom Penh's regime police forces defending the interest of the communist Hanoi's regime which oppresses Khmer Krom people. (Photo: Khmer Krom Network)

Khmer Krom Monks sit-in in front of the Royal Palace (Photo: Khmer Krom Network)

Injured Khmer Krom monk Lim Yuth (Photo: Khmer Krom Network)

20 April 2007
By Kim Pov Sottan
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

At least 6 monks were injured during a repression by the Phnom Penh police on Friday when about 60 [Khmer Krom] monks gathered to demand from the Vietnamese authority the release of three jailed [Khmer Krom] monks and to demand the respect of Khmer Krom people rights.

20-year-old Monk Chan Vanda who was injured and had his hand swollen, said that the police force used brutality against the monks who are blameless. “They are ruthless, come to think of it, [the country’s motto is:] Nation, Religion, King, and even the King respect the monks, but the police dare beat up the monks, they inflict pains on the monks, they are very brutal.”

According to Monk Yoeung Sin, the director of Khmer Krom monks, all the monks who participated in the demonstration came from all the pagodas in Phnom Penh city and from the provinces.

The monks who demonstrated sat in to recite prayers in front of the Vietnamese embassy in Cambodia, and they also sat and prayed in front of the Royal Palace and the US embassy in Phnom Penh. But no one seems to care much about the violence perpetrated by the police force against the Khmer Krom monks who were holding a banner reading: “Bravo! The united forces of Khmer Krom [people].”

30-year-old Monk Thach Sinem said: “I see that the Cambodian police are being pressured from their higher ups, that is why when I went to demand for the freedom rights in Kampuchea Krom, the police forces in the pagoda did not authorize me to go, they chased after me.”

Another anonymous monk added: “Khmer Krom people are hurt by the Vietnamese government oppression on Khmer Krom monks and Khmer Krom Buddhists. The Vietnamese government does not respect our human rights at all, they are trampling on the UN Charter.”

The sit-in of Khmer Krom monks lasted one entire morning.

Touch Naroth, the Phnom Penh police commissioner, declined to comment on the police brutality on Khmer Krom monks during this demonstration.

Chan Saveth, a representative of the Human Rights Committee, expressed his regret on the use of violence by the police against monks who just wanted to defend the rights of Khmer Krom people only.

Groups Condemn Monk Scuffle

Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
21/04/2007

The Khmer Kampuchea Krom Association and the Sam Rainsy Party Saturday condemned the violence that ensued between two groups of monks in protests Friday.

Separate press releases said the clashes between Kampuchea Krom monks and another group of Cambodian monks should be considered an abuse of religious freedom.

The two groups clashed outside Wat Ounalom Friday morning, the Cambodia Daily reported Saturday.

The Kampuchea Krom monks had been protesting the alleged rights abuses of fellow monks and others in Vietnam by authorities there.

"Using violence the wrong way against human rights and the expression of opinion is a violation on human rights," Sam Rainsy Party Secretary-General Mu Sochua said. "More seriously, using force to destroy what is culture, the religion of the Khmer people, Buddhism. SRP condemns this action."

Video of Khmer Krom Monks demonstration in Phnom Penh on 20 April 2007

Political Cartoon: A Punching Bag

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)