Ferry service between Kep and Vietnamese-occupied Koh Tral Island

New ferry service to link Phu Quoc Koh Tral Island with Kep City in Cambodia

Monday, Dec 12, 2011
Saigon Giai Phong (Vietcong communist party)

A new tourist ferry service will link Phu Quoc Koh Tral Island in Vietnam occupied Cambodia to Kep City in Cambodia by early next year, according to the Cambodian Association of Koh Tonsai Boat Owners.

The new ferry service will be run by a Vietnamese company and expected to carry about 40 passengers per voyage within 60-90 minutes.

The Ministry of Finance has already established a customs unit at Kep Port to monitor entry and exit procedures.

Do You Know…?

Do You Know…?  Series

A Breaking News

Dear Compatriots,

Are We Ready?

Based on our Long lasting Friendship [Mittpheap Moeun Chhnams] with Vietnam,

Tomorrow Yuons will hand over Kampuchea Krom, and  Koh Tral  back to us !!!

Koh Tral (Phu Quoc) Belongs to Cambodia! Vietnam Go Home!

(Idea suggested by W.K.)

Recasting The Map Of Cambodia

62ENG-Refonte MAP-18 JUN-2010

COMMUNIQUE

RECASTING THE MAP OF CAMBODIA

(Paris June 18, 2010)

Modern definition​​​​ of the Khmer Nation is quite similar to that of the Khmer people, in accordance with the traditional definition in the international law, within the context of the international relations and for the purpose and the principles of the United Nations. Cambodia must:

• Be a sovereign country (or a sovereign State) that has a defined territory and borders distinctive from it neighboring countries;
• Have a permanent population composed of a majority of people of Khmer origin;
• Have a Government that administers its own people.

The sovereignty of a State is defined by the competence, independence and legal equality of States. An important component of sovereignty has always been an adequate display of the authority of states to act over their territory to the exclusion of other states. In 1949 the International Court of Justice (ICJ) observed that "between independent States, respect for territorial sovereignty is an essential foundation of international relations."

As evidenced from history, the borders of individual country may have evolved, however these border changes must be completely subjected to the sovereignty of each concerned country.

The United Nations recognizes Cambodia as a legitimate member state. Therefore, Cambodia is a sovereign country like other nations members of the United Nations (UN). The Khmer Nation is covered by the provisions enshrined in the United Nations (UN) Charter which emphasize that all nations have legal equality status and the rights to self-determination. By virtue of that right, Khmer people can freely determine the fate of his own country. The concept is normally used to encompass all matters in which each state is permitted by international law to decide and act without intrusions from other sovereign states.

The Khmer Nation by this definition must have a genuine Khmer Government who serves the interest of its own Khmer people and must enjoy adequate rights to determine the borders of his own country with neighboring countries in a sovereign manner. The Khmer Government must be able to freely and independently decide the fate of Cambodia to ensure development and happiness for the Khmer People.

It is worth noted that Cambodia which descended from the Great Khmer Empire has seen its territory being gradually diminished due to three main events:

1. For the period up to 1863, the Khmer people controlled the destiny of his country in full sovereignty. Therefore the lost of Cambodia's territory due to wars should be entirely attributed to the responsibility of the Khmer people itself.
2. For the period between 1863 and 1953, the lost of Cambodia's territory were committed entirely to the responsibility of the French Protectorate.

After receiving independence from France in 1953, the Khmer Nation had suffered a great deal in the lost of a huge surface of its territory. The Khmer people has lost "Kampuchea Krom" (which is currently South Vietnam) and "Koh Trall Islands" which historically belong to and were part of the Khmer Nation before French Protectorate took control and colonized Cambodia and Vietnam. The State of Cambodia has never ever recognized or accepted the map determined by the French Colony on the border lines between Cambodia and Vietnam as accurate and correct. All Cambodian governments, after the Independence, have fiercely insisted on the facts that "Kampuchea Krom" and "Koh Trall Islands" have always exclusively been the property of the Khmer people. Cambodia has acknowledged the fact that France had returned to the Khmer Nation, only the remainder (leftover) of Cambodia's entire territory without "Kampuchea Krom" and "Koh Trall Islands", all of which was under French sole occupation. This violation of Cambodia's Territorial Integrity is the accountability and responsibility of France. The map of this remainder territory of Cambodia, drawn after Cambodia Independence, was produced on a unilateral decision by the French Protectorate using the scale of 1/100.000, and since then a copy of it is kept at the Office of the United Nations.

Since the invasion of Cambodia by Vietnam from 07 January 1979 to the present time, Cambodia no longer has efficient sovereignty in mastering and self-determining the destiny of its own country. The deprivation of its sovereignty is due to Cambodia has been pressured to submit itself to Vietnam. Consequently, the borders between Cambodia and Vietnam have been arbitrarily determined by Vietnam. Moreover, these newly demarcated boundaries were imposed unilaterally by Vietnam without involvement of KHMER people or the consent of the real KHMER Nation, as defined in the United Nations (UN) Charter.

In this context, "Khmer M'Chas Srok" solemnly declares that "we will not recognize the borders or the maps made by any third country whatsoever, whatever procedure used, which was manipulated by Cambodian Government who does not represent the genuine choice of the KHMER People who supposed to be elected through a free and fair election in accordance with article 21-3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations of December 10, 1948". The determination of the Cambodia's borders with its neighboring countries is "the fundamental rights of the KHMER people" as defined within the context of the United Nations" which no one can deviate from nor manipulate it.

Paris, June 18, 2010
President of Khmer M'Chas Srok
Dr. Sakhonn CHAK

From Hue to Hanoi

Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Op-Ed by MP

SOMETIMES men commit treason deliberately for the advancement of their own narrow self-interests; while others commit treason unwittingly through lack of foresight.

Which of the above categories does this reported joint-administration of Kampuchea Krom proposal fall under?

Most Khmer people who follow news of their country today were probably born well after those portions of Khmer territory had been (for whatever reasons) handed over to Vietnamese authority or control. Regardless, as a nation Khmer people feel the burden and pain of the losses in their hearts as if these events occurred yesterday and indeed in context of their country's long history, the losses are certainly recent, smouldering phenomena.

What does the concept of "co-management" of these territories tell the world about their historical-legal status? Like the idea proposed by Bangkok over the Preah Vihear area one of the most feasible assumptions that can be derived out of it is that Cambodia has a de facto recognition that the losses were dictated by legitimate circumstances.

The other related implication is that Cambodians are resigned to relinquishing their claims -if any - on the said territories, and such despondent abandonment of will and determination in the face of adversity in like manner to how a python constricts, crushes and suffocates its prey until it breathes its last, is precisely the End Game of this historical, piece-meal Vietnamese expansionism.

If Hanoi accedes to such a proposal it will not be something out of its character either. After all, the Court of Hue and the Court of Hanoi have in succession pursued their grand imperial ambitions over weaker states through their fostered facades of mutually beneficial co-existence with those states for over three centuries, have they not? They applied tact and diplomacy when they needed to populate new territories, but as soon as Vietnamese influence and presence had been established over those lands they feigned amnesia over their own pledges and sacred vows.

We need not look far into the past to find instances of this co-management schemes being put into practice. Indeed, the idea itself is innate to the Vietnamese State (and I am at risk of repeating myself unnecessarily by pointing this out). It underpinned the Indochinese Workers' Party when critical international assistance was required, then the Communist Party of Laos and Kampuchea to win over patriotic fervour of these neighbouring states as well as to allay fear of outright Vietnamese domination and the loss of their respective politico-economic autonomy.

So yes, if Cambodia and Vietnam were to agree to exercise joint administration over the Mekong Delta and Koh Tral, do not expect the affair to be a drastic departure from anything the Khmer nation has had the misfortune to endure so far, from joint management of forestry and rubber plantations to border delineation and ‘national’ airline.

It would be more worthwhile to build up Cambodia’s case by gathering all the relevant historical treaties and documents and then establish how exactly or what were the circumstances under which the country was forced to cede its territories; how these territories were annexed, and why the Khmer people still feel strong emotional attachment to their losses – if they do. In fact, the Khmer people should be told how exactly Koh Tral, for instance, came to be under Vietnamese control, and if this portion of Khmer sovereignty was seized unjustly or illegally then there should not be justifiable reason for the Khmer people not to reclaim it by appropriate means.

That choice will, of course, be theirs to make, rather than individuals like Mr Soubert or anyone else, this insignificant writer included. Cambodia deserves no more and no less of what is rightfully hers.

MP

Request for King-Father to raise the Kampuchea Krom problem

Son Soubert (L), son of the late Son Sann, the founder of KPNLF (Photo: The Phnom Penh Post)

21 June 2010
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

The Khmer People’s National Liberation Front (KPNLF), the former resistance movement against communism which signed the 1991 Peace Agreements on Cambodia, issued a statement on Sunday, calling on King-Father Norodom Sihanouk to raise the longstanding Khmer historical problems – Kampuchea Krom and Koh Tral Island – with Vietnam during the latter’s visit to Hanoi between 22 and 25 June. Son Soubert, KPNLF vice-president, wrote in a statement that “this is a special historical opportunity to end the longstanding suspicions between the two neighboring countries.” He declared that Cambodia never agreed with Colonial France which transferred the Kampuchea Krom territories to Vietnam. Nevertheless, CPP MP Cheam Yeap said that the CPP does not object to the KPNLF’s statement because it is the latter’s freedom of expression rights. Cheam Yeap said: “We are working hard on the planting of border posts with neighboring countries based on maps deposed at the UN. As for other problems raised by the opposition, they cannot be considered as useful.”

"Koh Tral et Ligne Brévié" Op-Ed by Angkor Borei News

Two commercial air routes between Vietnam and Cambodia to open

10/30/2009
VOV News (Hanoi)

The Cambodia State Secretariat of Civil Aviation (SSCA) is coordinating with Vietnam’s flag carrier Vietnam Airlines to open two new air routes between the two countries, connecting Cambodia’s Sihanoukville City to Vietnam’s Phu Quoc Cambodia's occupied Koh Tral Island and Can Tho City.

Each route will have a scheduled flight everyday.

The selected areas are attractive to tourists from both countries. According to Ho Vandy, President of the Cambodian Association of Travel Agents, Phu Quoc Island and Can Tho City are both big tourism centres.

After the two new routes are put into operation, Phu Quoc and Can Tho are expected to supply a lot of tourists to Cambodia’s tourism industry.

Mr. Hun Sen’s politics of fears

22nd January, 2009
Opinion by Khmerization

“Mr. Hun Sen, please stop the politics of fears and invite all your critics to help solve our national and territorial problems before it is too late.”

Political violence and political threats have become Mr. Hun Sen’s famous political trademarks. And fears seem to be his political dictum. In the past, he has successfully reached his political goals and advanced his political agenda by creating and invoking fears throughout the political circles of his critics. Mr. Hun Sen’s un-statesmanlike behaviours never seem to have left his inner self. They are imbedded in his violent mind and his unfortunate upbringing, an upbringing that see him as one of the most lowly-educated and brutal Khmer leaders in the history of Cambodian politics.

During his speech at the inauguration of a governor’s office in Oddor Meanchey province recently, Mr. Hun Sen again has invoked fears by threatening to destroy the opposition’s newly-created alliance if they continue to criticise his policies. Forgetting that the oppositions are parts and parcels of the political and democratic process, Mr. Hun Sen has lashed out at them by mauling them in a vindictive and an uncompromising tone. He said and I quote: “it is not normal that the losers in the election give recommendations to the winner.”

The Sam Rainsy Party and the Human Right Party received more than 2 million votes and to that effect, they represent more than 2 million voices. In a democratic system, their advices and recommendations must be heeded. To maul them in an un-statesmanlike manner, employed by Mr. Hun Sen, is a betrayal of the democratic principle.

Mr. Hun Sen’s irritation resulted from the criticism of his policies toward border disputes with Thailand by the opposition parties and Mr. Sean Pengse, chairman of Cambodia‘s Border Committee based in France. They accused him of neglecting the borders and being lethargic in trying to resolve the border conflict with Thailand.

The oppositions, Mr. Sam Rainsy in particular, and Mr. Sean Pengse, are the thorns in Mr. Hun Sen’s eyes. Their raising of the border issues seem to have touched Mr. Hun Sen’s nerve. Instead of berating them publicly, Mr. Hun Sen should embrace their ideas and recommendations by inviting them to help solve the border problems. Border issues are national issues that affect Cambodians from all political persuasions, not just those who support Mr. Hun Sen‘s Cambodian People‘s Party.

Before I opine on Mr. Hun Sen any further, I would like to make some comments regarding his policies toward border conflict with Thailand. I believe that Mr. Hun Sen’s lethargic, and sometimes lazy, response to Thai invasion of Cambodian border areas will cost Cambodian territorial integrity dearly. Mr. Hun Sen’s flip-flops and back-flips on Preah Vihear issue has given Thailand the ammunitions to play games with him. Many times, he said he will raise the Preah Vihear issue at the Asean Summit. One day later, he said he won’t raise it. Last week, Mr. Khieu Kanharith, the government spokesman, told the press that Cambodia will raise the Preah Vihear issue at the Asean Summit. One day later, the Cambodian government said that it will not raise the issue. Now, Mr. Hun Sen said that he will raise the Preah Vihear issue with the Thai PM, Mr. Abhisit Vejjajiva, at the sidelines of the Asean Summit. These flip-flops have weakened the Cambodian positions and have given Thailand an ammunition in which to play games with Cambodia, as has been seen in many unsuccessful border meetings in the past because Thailand was not serious in withdrawing their troops from Cambodian territories.

Mr. Hun Sen has also lashed out at his critics for suggesting that he take Thailand to task at the UN Security Council (UNSC). He lectured his critics by saying that Cambodia can only complain to the UNSC if Thailand had invaded Cambodian territories. While many Cambodians saw Thailand’s forced entry to Preah Vhihear as an invasion, Mr. Hun Sen’s reason seem to suggest that Thailand’s invasion of Preah Vihear is not an invasion, but a territorial dispute. To suggest that the invasion of Preah Vihear by Thai troops is a territorial dispute and not an invasion, Mr. Hun Sen’s has amply given Thailand an ammunition to win a diplomatic war with Cambodia on this issue.

Mr. Hun Sen commented that, for over a hundred years and even during the Sangkum Reastr Niyum of Prince Sihanouk, Cambodia has never had any diplomatic relations with Thailand. This is the chance, he asserted, for Cambodia to engage Thailand diplomatically.

One must remember that Sihanouk’s Sangkum Reastr Niyum regime had successfully reclaimed Preah Vihear back from Thailand’s control. In one’s own conscious mind, one would rather lose a diplomatic relation with a neighbour than losing our national territorial integrity to our neighbour. To sum up Hun Sen’s words, he will trade our territories for a good relationship with a neighbour for his own political continuity. The Cambodian islands and territories lost to Vietnam through the 1979, 1982, 1983 and in particular 1985 treaties, are testaments to his policies of appeasements or self-political survival.

Mr. Hun Sen has launched a scathing attack on Mr. Sean Pengse for not protesting the loss of Koh Wai (Koh Poulo Wai island) to Vietnam when his was the Minister of Minerals and Energy in the 1960s and 1970s. According to a historical note, on June 07, 1957, Norodom Sihanouk, President of the Council of Ministers, requested in a letter to Lon Nol, then National Defence Minister, to ensure the protection of all islands located along the Gulf of Siam (thus also including Koh Tral), and in particular, the group of islands of Poulo-Pangjang (Khmer name: Koh Krachak Ses; Vietnamese name: Tho Chu), Koh Poulo Wai (Khmer name: Koh Ach Ses) and Koh Tang.

The subsequent Cambodian governments, including the Khmer Rouge regime, never gave up the claims of ownership of these islands. These islands have always appeared in Cambodian maps. But on July 07, 1982, after Hun Sen signed a territorial treaty with Vietnam, Koh Tral (Phu Quoc) and Poulo-Pangjang or Koh Wai (Tho Chu in Vietnamese) appear in the Vietnamese territory, on a map attached to the “Treaty on the Historical Water Zone between the Popular Republic of Kampuchea and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Therefore, on a self-conclusion, one can say that many Cambodian islands, including Koh Wai that Mr. Hun Sen accused Mr. Pengse of ceding to Vietnam, have been lost to Vietnam through the 1979, 1982, 1983 and 1985 treaties signed by Mr. Hun Sen himself with the Vietnam authority.

With the ways Mr. Hun Sen deals with border issues with Thailand, Cambodian territories around Preah Vihear, the Veal Entry pass, the Phnom Trop mountain top, Ta Moan Thom and Ta Krabey temples, which are currently occupied by Thai troops, will be lost to Thailand in the future.

So, Mr. Hun Sen, please stop the politics of fears and invite all your critics to help solve our national and territorial problems before it is too late.

Airport construction on Cambodian Koh Tral Island, illegally occupied by Vietnam with Hun Sen's approval

Vietnam approves US$943m airport in Phu Quoc

Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Bloomberg

Vietnam approved a 16 trillion dong (HK$7.45 billion) plan to build an international airport capable of serving 2.5 million passengers by 2020 on Phu Quoc island.

Construction will start November 23 in an area of 905 hectares, the government said.

The airport will be able to handle planes as large as Boeing. 747s and 777s.

The Vietnamese government wants to open up Phu Quoc island, in the south of the country, near Cambodia, for tourism and attract about 3 million visitors a year by 2020, the Saigon Times Daily reported earlier.

The government approved the building of a casino-resort on the island the same month, according to the newspaper.

"Very cold" metal pieces retrieved after UFO explosion over Koh Tral Island

‘UFO’ incident in southern Vietnam reported to gov’t

Sunday, June 1, 2008
Reported by Tien Trinh
Thanh Nien News (Hanoi)

Kien Giang Province authorities have reported the discovery of metal debris, believed to be fragments from the explosion of an unidentified flying object (UFO), to the central government, an official said Friday.

Lam Quang Chanh, the provincial People’s Committee’s spokesman, told Thanh Nien metal pieces had rained down in Ganh Dau and Cua Can communes on the island of Phu Quoc at about 10:20 a.m. on May 27.

The Military Command of Phu Quoc District said militias and residents had recovered 14 metal pieces allegedly deposited on the island from the explosion.

Rumors in Phu Quoc also suggest that some individuals have retrieved “dollars” or “very cold” metal pieces following the UFO’s explosion.

Nguyen Thanh Banh, Kien Giang police deputy chief, told Thanh Nien anyone found guilty of spreading rumors from the incident that would negatively affect security on the island would be dealt with according to law.

Banh also said the security on Phu Quoc Island has been stable thus far.

When residents found the metal debris on Tuesday, district authorities said they contacted airlines in Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand but did not receive immediate news of any missing aircraft.

Political Cartoon: RFA & Bui Tin

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

Fishermen recover plane debris

Recovered debris from the exploded UFO (Photo: Koh Santepheap)

Thursday, May 29, 2008
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Following an explosion noise suspected to be a plane crash on Tuesday, and after the police couldn’t find this plane, a report from Kampot indicated that a group of sea fishermen from the Trapaing Ropov village, Prek Thnot commune, Kampot district, discovered metal debris weighing about 20 kilos which they hauled from the sea, about 8 kilometers from the shore. Tum Sothy, Kampot province police inspector, presumed that if the explosion sound did take place on Tuesday, he suspects that it was a spy plane which lost all its fuel, and it was remotely programmed to explode in an area not affecting houses or near a densely populated zone. Nevertheless, Tum Sothy is not sure is these strange debris came from a spy plane or from something else. The surprise did not happen just along the Cambodian seashore, but it also happened in Koh Tral Island (Phu Quoc Island in Vietnamese) as well. Vietnamese news agencies reported that several gray looking metal debris were found, some measuring up to 1.5-meter long. A source indicated that the explosion could take place about 8 kilometers above ground, and that the object may have been a plane, however, the authority is not yet able to provide any information on this mysterious event.

Vietnam probes mystery ‘UFO’ incident

Thursday, May 29, 2008
Thanh Nien News (Hanoi)

It’s a mystery puzzling islanders in southern Vietnam: they heard an explosion, saw something burning in the sky, and found shards of metal debris – but quite what it was, nobody knows.

A plane? Possibly.

An official in nearby Cambodia reported Tuesday that a small plane had crashed in its southern Kampot province, only to retract his comments later.

But Cambodia’s civil aviation authority said that airlines denied missing any planes and there was no trace of any crash.

Still, the reports from Phu Quoc Island – situated in the southern Vietnamese province of Kien Giang and within sight of Kampot – do point to something, according to military and provincial officials.

The island district’s military chief Colonel Nguyen Van Qui was quoted as saying yesterday that “an unidentified flying object exploded at about 10 a.m. on May 27 over the northern part of Phu Quoc Island.”

When residents found metal debris, district authorities said they contacted airlines in Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand but did not receive immediate news of any missing aircraft by late Tuesday.

“We have informed the Ministry of Defense,” Dinh Khoa Toan, deputy chairman of the island’s People’s Committee, said.

“We expect the ministry will send some experts to clarify whether the metal came from a crashed plane.

“We have collected several metal pieces in various parts of the island.”

Huynh Tan Hung, an official of the People’s Committee of the island’s Ganh Dau Commune, said local people had heard a series of noises, including a loud bang, just after 10 a.m. on Tuesday.

“We all saw something burning in the sky, north of Phu Quoc Island. The fire was in the sky near Cambodian territory. In our commune, we collected one piece of metal, measuring one meter by about 60 centimeters.”

A soldier on duty at the Military Command of Phu Quoc Island, identifying himself as Tuan, said they had received seven metal pieces that were over one meter long from local people.

“We have contacted responsible agencies and we are sure that no Vietnamese planes, civil or military, were flying there at that time,” he said.

“We don’t have sufficient facilities or experts here, so we cannot tell now whether these metal parts came from a plane.”

In Cambodia, Kampot’s deputy police chief In China said villagers reported hearing a “loud explosion,” but that all authorities had been able to find was a “small piece of metal” in the jungle near the coast.

Keo Sivorn, chief of flight operations at Cambodia’s civil aviation body, said no plane had crashed.

UFO explodes over island

Wednesday, May 28, 2008
By STAFF REPORTER The Sun (UK)

A UFO has EXPLODED in mid-air over a southern Vietnamese island, according to reports.

Villagers say they heard a loud blast yesterday and later found shards of metal near the island's coastline.

The sensational revelations come one day after neighbouring Cambodia's air force retracted a report of a mysterious plane crash.

The Vietnam News Agency said residents of Phu Quoc island, six miles off the coast of the Cambodian province of Kampot, found shards of grey metal, including one 1.5 metres long.

Wreckage

"The explosion happened at about five miles above the ground, and perhaps it was a plane, but authorities could not identify whether it was a civil or military aircraft," the VNA claimed.

The official state news agency added that soldiers were sent out to look for the wreckage and survivors, and local authorities contacted airlines in Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand, but received no reports of missing aircraft.

Villagers in Kampot also said they heard a loud explosion yesterday and today found small chunks of metal near their coast.

Kung Mony, deputy commander of Cambodia's Air Force, yesterday said he had been told of a foreign plane crashing in Kampot province, but later backed off his claims of an aircraft accident.

Unidentified flying object explodes over southern Vietnam [on Koh Tral Island, not too far from Kampot]

Wed, 28 May 2008
DPA

Hanoi - A large unidentified flying object exploded over an island off southern Vietnam, and local officials said Wednesday they suspected it had been a military or civilian aircraft. The explosion occurred Tuesday morning above Cua Can commune on Phu Quoc, a large island belonging to Vietnam just off the coast of Cambodia, according to Ngang Van Truyen, chairman of the commune.

"It was a huge explosion, and we thought at first that it was thunder," Truyen said. "But then we saw a 100-metre-long smoke trail in the sky and knew that it was the explosion of a flying object."

Truyen said people in the commune found six pieces of aluminum-like metal painted yellow-green on one side. The largest piece is more than 1 metre long and 50 centimetres wide. However, no markings or letters are found on the pieces.

"One of the pieces pierced the metal roof sheet of a house in the commune, but no one was injured," Truyen said. "We are searching the area to see if there are other pieces, or even bodies."

According to a military official of the district, who requested anonymity, there were no military planes operating in the area at the time of the explosion.

"We haven't identified what it is, but we suspect that it is a plane," the official said. "It could be either a military plane or a civilian plane, but I don't think it's a flying saucer."

According to Ngang Van Truyen, the metal pieces are curved, and no noise had been heard before the explosion.

Several of Vietnam's government-controlled newspapers Wednesday reported the incident, but none had any further information on the object, which suggests that it was not a Vietnamese military aircraft.

Recent accidents involving Vietnamese military aircraft, including the crash of a light transport plane in April that killed five pilots, have been openly reported in the Vietnamese press.

US investor lobbies for a $2 billion resort-casino on occupied Khmer Koh Tral Island

09/10/2007
Keeping cautious with casinos

VietNamNet Bridge – Local authorities have received a lot of proposals from investors to develop casinos on their several-billion-dollar resorts. However, the government of Vietnam maintains its consistent standpoint that it does not encourage casino business.

All big projects want casinos

Earlier this year, the HCM City People’s Committee, at a conference discussing issues to develop the city’s tourism, mentioned a plan to call for investment into an entertainment-tourism complex on Binh Quoi-Thanh Da peninsula in Binh Thanh district, which was designed to consist of a hotel, restaurant, water-based entertainment areas, and casino.

In Dong Thap province, the Thai Binh Hotel and Housing Development Company Ltd is also planning to invest in a hotel-casino complex at the Dinh Ba international border gate.

Binh Thuan provincial authorities have received a proposal from Cascadia Home Products Asia Ltd on building and developing a high-grade resort, which consists of a casino in Cu Lao Cau, Tuy Phong district.

Meanwhile, investment brokers say that many foreign investors have sent word, expressing their desire to make investment in big tourism-entertainment complexes, which include casinos. Big entertainment service groups in the world always consider casinos as a main investment item in their projects, in order to attract rich clients, develop luxury services and maximise profit.

An investor from the US is trying to lobby for a project on a $2bil resort with a casino on Phu Quoc Island. Another investor, through an investment promotion company, is planning to develop a high-grade tourism project at the Lao Bao-Quang Tri border gate, which is expected to cost $3bil, including the expenses for a casino.

The Cai Gia-Cat Ba urban area, which has called for investment recently, is also catching the eyes of several investors, who are seeking to develop tourism projects with casinos.

To all these proposals, the government has given only one answer: the building and development of casinos must be implemented in accordance with Notice No 96 dated May 4, 2007 by the Government Office. The notice says that Vietnam will consider granting licences to build casinos in tourism-entertainment complexes which have the investment capital of $4bil and higher.

Casino jackpot and gambling are currently listed as ‘sensitive projects’ which are not encouraged in Vietnam. Casino development has been carried out on a trial basis so far, and casinos all are located in isolated areas and reserved for foreigners only.

Keeping cautious with building up policies

In fact, Vietnam does not have any legal documents on casino operations. The licencing of casino projects has been implemented in individual cases and decided upon by the Prime Minister. Currently, gambling business management is being carried out in accordance with Decision No 32/2003 dated February 27, 2003. However, the decision is being amended and stricter regulations will be set up.

There are now four operational casinos in Vietnam, one in Hai Phong, two in Quang Ninh (Loi Lai and Hoang Gia), and one in Lao Cai. The four all are small scale and are open to foreigners only. Licences on gambling business have been granted to several hotels, while licences on horse and dog betting have been given to projects in HCM City and Vung Tau.

As requested by the government, the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) is compiling a project on casino development and management and amending Decision No 32/2003 dated February 27, 2003. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) has been assigned to compile the project on betting business development and management.

The first draft of casino project has been submitted to the government for consideration. The completed version of the draft will be submitted again to the government, which will then be submitted to the Communist Party’s Politburo.

MPI and MOF both said that the government kept a skeptical viewpoint on the issue, which is considered very sensitive. Casino development will only be allowed when casinos are located in isolated areas, and open only for foreigners for easier control.

Regarding the project on betting games, MOF plans to submit it to the government in the fourth quarter of the year. The ministry said that it had to thoroughly consider the possible impact of the project, especially the social impacts. In all cases, the government will maintain very tight control over gambling activities.