Cambodian court sentences 2 Japanese men in jail for drug smuggling

English.news.cn   2012-08-15 21:01:07

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- The Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Wednesday convicted two Japanese men of drug trafficking and sentenced them to seven and five years in jail respectively, according to a verdict read by presiding judge.
Yamada Yoshihito, 49, was sentenced to seven years in prison and fined 3,750 U.S. dollars, and Imura Takukan, 29, was jailed for five years and fined 2,500 U.S. dollars.
Also, a Cambodian accomplice Sam Nang, 30, was sentenced to six years in jail and fined 3,000 U.S. dollars.
They were all arrested on Nov. 8, 2011 in one case as they tried to send a package of 100-gram methamphetamines to Japan through a postal service.
Yamada Yoshihito and Sam Nang were charged with "import, export and international transport of drug," whilst Imura Takukan was accused of "getting commission in exchange of helping drug traffickers."
According to Cambodia's law, the convicts have one month to appeal against the verdict.

Cambodia's tax revenue in first seven months up 40 pct

English.news.cn   2012-08-14 17:57:59

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- The Cambodian government had collected 455 million U.S. dollars of tax in the first seven months of this year, a 40-percent increase from 325 million U.S. dollars over the same period last year, according to the figure received from the General Department of Taxation on Tuesday.
The revenues have been collected from tax on profit, withholding tax, tax on salary, VAT (Value Added Tax), special tax on certain merchandises and services, turnover tax, vehicle tax, patent tax, property tax, and so on.
Some critics claimed that the kingdom still has much room to grow in tax revenues if the laws has been firmly enforced because to date, some businesses have still avoided paying taxes.
Speaking in a monthly meeting last week, Sim Ieng, director general of the General Department of Taxation, urged his tax officials to enforce laws in order to collect more revenues for the state coffer.

Thai soldiers kill 38 Cambodian illegal loggers in 6 months: report

English.news.cn   2012-08-14 11:08:23

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- Thirty-eight Cambodian people had been shot dead by Thai armed forces during the first six months of this year when they crossed border to log in Thai territory, according to a report of Cambodia-Thailand Border Relation Office released to the media on Tuesday.
The report, signed by Brigadier General Pich Vanna, chief of Cambodia-Thailand Border Relation Office on Aug. 12, added that besides the dead, 10 others were wounded, 194 were imprisoned, and one is still missing.
It said that, during the January-June period this year, Thai authority had also arrested and deported 68,659 Cambodian illegal crossers back to Cambodia.
Cambodia shares more than 800-kilometer border with Thailand to the north and west.

Cambodia's Parliament passes deal to send laborers to Qatar

English.news.cn   2012-08-10 14:40:08

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian lawmakers on Friday unanimously adopted an agreement in order to make way for the country to send laborers to Qatar.
Ho Noun, Chairwoman of Commission on Labor and Vocational Training at the National Assembly, said that the manpower agreement between Cambodia and Qatar aimed at strengthening and expanding friendly relationship and cooperation between the two countries.
"The agreement is to study about the employment possibility in Qatar in order to send Cambodian workers there," she said. "It will provide mutual benefits for the two nations."
The passage was made after the ministers of Cambodia and Qatar signed a preliminary agreement to regulate the sending of laborers to the Middle Eastern emirate in May 2011.
Addressing the National Assembly session, Minister of Labor Vong Sauth said that the agreement is valid for 3 years and can be renewed every 3 years.
He said that currently, 124,889 Cambodian laborers have been working legally in Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea and Japan. Those migrant workers have sent home about 200 million U.S. dollars a year.
An Bunhak, president of the Association of Cambodian Recruitment Agencies for Overseas Employment, said Friday that initially, the country planned to send some 3,000 workers to Qatar in a 6-month period.
Employment opportunities in Qatar are in service sector, catering industries, construction as well as oil and gas industry, he said, adding that they can earn between 350 U.S. dollars and 1, 500 U.S. dollars a month.

Cambodia attracts 692 mln USD investment in 1st 6 months

English.news.cn   2012-08-10 15:02:28

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia had issued licenses to 72 domestic and foreign investment projects in equivalent to 692 million U.S. dollars in the first half of 2012, according to a report of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) on Friday.
During the January-June period this year, domestic investment topped the chart with a total venture of 148 million U.S. dollars in 12 projects, followed by China with 141 million U.S. dollars in 19 projects, and Thailand with 84 million U.S. dollars in 4 projects.
Local investors invested in the fields of fertilizer manufacturing, beverage manufacturing, rice milling, tapioca powder processing, garment factories, hotel and resort development, and information technology, said the report. Chinese investors put their ventures here in garment and textile industry and rice mills, whilst Thailand in the fields of rice milling, footwear factory and clothe manufacturing.
Besides these investors, during the period, the country saw investments from the United States, Canada, Vietnam, Singapore, the United Kingdom, South Korea, China's Taiwan, China's Hong Kong, India, Japan and Samoa.
In the whole year of 2011, the country attracted 164 domestic and foreign investment projects worth 7.01 billion U.S. dollars.

ASEAN states invest 178 mln USD in Cambodia in H1

English.news.cn   2012-08-10 17:39:12

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia has attracted the fixed asset investments of 178 million U.S. dollars from its ASEAN member states in the first six months of this year, according to a report of the Council for the Development of Cambodia on Friday.
From January to June this year, the country granted licenses to four projects from Thailand with the total investment of 84 million U.S. dollars, four projects from Vietnam with 82.5 million U.S. dollars, and one project worth 11.5 million U.S. dollars from Singapore, the report said.
During the period, Thailand invested in rice industry, footwear factory and clothes manufacturing in Cambodia, it said. Vietnam was in the field of beverage manufacturing and rubber plantation and processing, while Singapore was in garment and textile industry.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
According to the report, since 1994, the ASEAN countries investing in Cambodia are only Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore.
In 2011, the country received the fixed asset investments of 880 million U.S. dollars from its ASEAN member states, it said.

Cambodian Prince Ranariddh announces to quit politics for 2nd time

English.news.cn   2012-08-10 22:06:22

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prince Norodom Ranariddh, president of Norodom Ranariddh Party, announced on Friday that he decided to quit politics from now on in order to focus on humanitarian activities.
"I notice that the monarchy regime in Cambodia is stronger under the protection by the constitutional law and the government of Cambodia led by Prime Minister Hun Sen," the prince said in a statement from France.
"I'd like to declare that, from now on, I stop doing politics and will no longer be responsible for the tasks and decisions of the Norodom Ranariddh Party."
"I will start doing social and humanitarian affairs to contribute to the national development under the reign of the King Norodom Sihamoni," he said.
The prince's surprising announcement to quit politics came more than two months after his attempt to reunite the royalist parties-- the Norodom Ranariddh Party and the Funcinpec Party--failed.
Prince Narariddh is the son of the former King Norodom Sihanouk.
The prince declared to quit politics for the first time in October 2008 after he received a royal pardon for fraud charges, and he re-entered politics in December 2010.