B.C. aid worker dies in Cambodia [after violent mugging attack]

Jiri Zivny, an aid worker in Cambodia, died from his injuries on Thursday after he was attacked and left for dead last week. (Courtesy of Monty Aldoff)

Thursday, January 15, 2009
CBC News (Canada)

A Canadian humanitarian worker from Kamloops, B.C., has died from injuries sustained when he was robbed in Cambodia last week.

Jiri Zivny died at 5:15 p.m. local time Thursday at Phnom Penh's Calmette hospital, where he was being treated for severe head wounds, a doctor told his friend Evelyn Picklyk in an email.

Zivny was attacked after withdrawing money from a bank machine on Friday and left for dead on the street, his friend Monty Aldoff told CBC News on Tuesday.

Dr. Reid Sheftall, who was not personally treating Zivny but was looking in on the case, said he noticed Zivny's heart rate had been low earlier Thursday.

Turned life around to work with orphans

Zivny's friend Monty Aldoff told CBC Radio he wanted Zivny to be remembered as someone who turned his life around.

"He was one that went through many struggles in his life, but turned his life around and started doing worthwhile things in his life," Aldoff said.

Zivny was a member of a humanitarian mission that travelled to southeast Asia in mid-November, delivering medical supplies to orphans on behalf of the International Humanitarian Hope Society.

Most of the group returned to B.C. over Christmas. Zivny and another worker stayed on in Cambodia to work with the orphans for another month, members of the team told CBC.

Zivny's medical insurance had expired before the attack. News of his death came as Picklyk and others were trying to raise funds to bring him back to Canada for treatment.

Friends vow to continue charity work

As they try to deal with the tragic news, the group is now raising money to bring Zivny's body back to Canada,

"We are just, we are beside ourselves right now," said Aldoff.

But despite the horrific attack, the group still plans to continue working in South East Asia, he said.

"We believe our mission there is a worthwhile mission. For anyone who doesn't think so, they have to see the faces of these little children — the joy they get when we go to bring them gifts, and bring them food and medical supplies," said Aldoff.

B.C. aid worker robbed, left for dead in Cambodia [-Canadian embassy couldn't help? What a shame!]

Jiri Zivny, an aid worker in Cambodia, was robbed, beaten, stripped of his clothes, and left for dead on Jan. 9. (Courtesy of Monty Aldoff)

Tuesday, January 13, 2009
CBC News (Canada)

A violent mugging in Cambodia has left a humanitarian worker from Kamloops, B.C., in a coma, fighting for his life.

Jiri Zivny had just withdrawn money from a bank machine in Phnom Penh on Friday shortly before he was assaulted, robbed, and left for dead on the street, his friend Monty Aldoff told CBC News on Tuesday.

The attack likely took place as Zivny was trying to drive off on his scooter.

"[He] went to the bank machine and was followed by bad people, attacked, beaten in the head, robbed and stripped of his clothes and left for dead in the ditch for hours," Aldoff said.

"The doctor said he was hit twice severely in the head so we suspect once while he was on the motorcycle and he crashed and then they jumped out and clubbed him again."

"We are trying to raise enough money to medevac him back to Canada."— Monty Aldoff

Zivny, now receiving treatment at a Phnom Penh hospital, was found by local police hours after the attack, Aldoff said.

Aldoff, Zivny and a few other aid workers began their humanitarian mission in southeast Asia in mid-November, delivering medical supplies to orphans on behalf of the International Humanitarian Hope Society.

Most of the group returned to B.C. over Christmas, except for Zivny and another worker who stayed on in Cambodia, Aldoff said.

Zivny was planning to work with the orphans for another month, Aldoff said, but his friends now want him home so he can receive better medical attention.

Serious head injuries

He suffered severe brain and head trauma injuries and is in serious condition, Aldoff said.

He said the Canadian Embassy in Cambodia has been contacted but an official said no help from the Canadian government was available at this point.

"We are trying to raise enough money to medevac him back to Canada," said Aldoff.

A trust fund has been set up in Zivny's name through the International Humanitarian Hope Society to raise money to pay for his return.

About $100,000 will be needed to bring him home once his condition improves.

B.C. aid worker left for dead after Cambodia attack

Aid worker Jiri Zivney was attacked in Cambodia on January 9, 2009

Tue Jan. 13 2009
Darcy Wintonyk ctvbc.ca (Canada)

A B.C. man is fighting for his life in Cambodia after a violent mugging.

Humanitarian worker Jiri Zivney was beaten, robbed and left for dead January 9 in Phnom Penh outside a bank machine.

"As he was riding away on his motorbike, they clubbed him in the head and he crashed his bike," family friend Monty Aldoff tells CTV News.

The 46-year-old was transferred by ambulance to a hospital in the capital city, where he is listed in critical condition. Doctors are working to stabilize him so he can be brought back to Canada for treatment.

According to the International Humanitarian Hope Society, the Kamloops resident was in the country delivering medical supplies to orphans on behalf of their agency.

Zivney was on his 24th day of a humanitarian trip to China, Vietnam, Thailand and Burma. Most of the other team members returned to Canada after the Bangkok airport shutdown in November, but Zivney and another team member wanted to carry on by land.

A trust fund has been set up in Zivney's name at Valley First in Kamloops, B.C., Account # 610071571 (transit # 27310-809).

How to survive a""robbery with a smile" in Siem Reap

How to avoid being mugged ... and flying Roman babies

Travel Blog
The Age (Australia)

WORKING for a tour company in Europe, we were always told to warn our passengers about the flying babies in Rome. Granted, I'd never actually met anyone it had happened to (and still haven't), but we were trying to cover our arses.

We'd been told, by those highly reliable powers that be in head office, about a fairly sinister ploy being used by Gypsies in the Italian capital to rob tourists.

Typically, an old woman would approach a suitably gullible-looking tourist, and throw what appeared to be a baby wrapped in a shawl at them. The obvious reaction, of course, is to catch said flying baby, at which point a few well-trained hands (often those of small kids) would slip into the tourist's pockets and relieve them of their valuables.

Sometimes, muggings are as simple as a flash of a knife. Sometimes, they're as elaborate as the flying Roman babies. But regardless of where you are in the world, there are usually people out to get you.

Fortunately I've never been mugged, or had a plastic baby thrown at me, but I could think of nothing worse than being robbed while travelling. You spend all those months (sometimes years) saving for your big trip, only to have plans thrown into disarray by, usually, being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I've written previously about the scams to cheat travellers out of a few bucks, but a few people have written in in the past few weeks asking for tips on personal safety, for avoiding the more sinister ways of losing your money. As one reader, Helen, put it: "In Asia, your biggest worry is someone scamming you on a rigged taxi meter ... European thieves and robbers are a whole different kettle of fish."

In my experience, there are two types of traveller-targeted robberies: the organised and usually deceitful crime you usually find in Europe's tourist hot-spots, and the more opportunist crime you're likely to encounter in poorer countries.

Rome is notorious for its pickpockets, and muggings in varying degrees of violence. If you're ever riding the subway or walking through crowded areas, it's a good idea to carry your bag in front of you, where you can keep an eye on it. I've met some pretty experienced travellers who've had their loads mysteriously lightened in Rome.

Also, women shouldn't carry a normal handbag. One of the scams I've heard of a few times is guys on scooters flying by and grabbing women's handbags as they go past. Don't wear one of those stupid bumbag things either - they practically scream "gullible tourist" ... and they look crap.

Although Rome's the worst, those tips are worth remembering for every European city. Another that's fairly obvious, but not always easy to achieve if you're travelling alone, is not to wander around by yourself at night, particularly if you're drunk. If you're going boozing till the wee hours, try to find someone from your hostel who's going back there at the same time as you. If you can't, grab a cab, even if it's only a short walk.

That's not to say you should lock yourself in your room every night if you're travelling solo. It's more a case of trusting your instincts. If a situation feels dodgy, it normally is. Get out of there as quickly as you can.

For general travel, always keep an eye on your bags. If you're catching buses, watch the bloke throw your pack in the luggage bin before you get on. Keep your day pack under your seat, rather than in the top racks where anyone can wander past and grab it.

I also like the little wire cables you can now get to secure your backpack. They're great when you want to, say, sleep on a train, or there are no lockers in hostel dorm rooms. Little things like that tend to discourage the opportunist robbers.

Despite all of those precautions, however, there's still a chance you could wind up in a dodgy situation faced with the prospect of getting mugged. If that happens, don't fight it. Is hanging onto your passport and a few traveller's cheques worth your life? I doubt it.

A friend of mine, whom I'll protect with anonymity, managed to get himself into a bit of a situation in Cambodia, but got away unscathed after handing over his cash. Taking up a local thug's offer of "smokey smokey" in Siem Reap, he'd jumped on the back of said thug's motorbike to go and collect the gear.

Oh, this was at about 3am.

In a great surprise to absolutely no one, he was then driven down a dark alley in the middle of nowhere and surrounded by about 20 people who demanded he hand over all the cash he had on him. He pulled out about $80 US, handed it over, and was promptly loaded back onto the motorbike and given a lift back to his hotel. Robbery with a smile!

A few people have asked me to list certain suburbs of big cities where muggings are more frequent, but I think that's a bit pointless - if it's just not your day, you're as likely to get mugged in Sydney or Melbourne as you are in, say, South Central LA.

So I'll leave you with the charming piece of advice an old tour leader once gave me in Rome: "Kick the kids, and drop the babies."

Have you ever been robbed or mugged? What's your advice for staying safe on the road?

Hope you're enjoying the Backpacker blog. There'll be a new one up on theage.com.au every Wednesday, for a bit of light relief to remind you of why you went to work in the first place: to save up enough money to get the hell out of here! If there are any good travel topics you think I've missed, drop me a line at bgroundwater@fairfax.com.au.