Heng Pov Affair, suite and ... end ?

News From Cambodia N° 0663-E

HENG POV AFFAIR, SUITE AND…END ?

Khemara Jati
Montreal, Quebec
December 24th, 2006

We diffuse again, our article News of Cambodia N 0636 on September 4th, 2006 entitle « Heng Pov Affair, funeral in the silence ». The same article was published at the second time on December 4th, 2006. So our predictions confirmed regrettably the facts. Heng Pov is now condemned for the silence or punished into death in a prison of Cambodia. Khemara Jati made everything of its best so that Malaysia allows Heng Pov to leave the country and take refuge in Finland. But in vain. The interests of Major powers and the Malaysia decided according to our predictions.

For great powers the unlimited « Culture of the Impunity » continuation is only the « Sideshow » described by William Shawcross in his book of the same title published in 1979 in New York, at Simon and Schuster and in France, “La tragédie sans importance” at Balland ». So the massacres even recent of prisoners, ordered openly by Hok Lundi, a high official of the regime, at Battambang's prison; monk's murders as that of venerable Sam Bunthoeun; the murders of politicians as Om Radsady, union activists as Chea Vichea, of famous artists as Piseth Pilika and Touch Sunnich; innocents' arbitrary imprisonment for crimes which they have never committed, etc. Families and friends of victims are obliged to live hidden or in exiles. The real authors of these massacres and murders are never worried. All this is that a « Sideshow ». « The Culture of the Impunity » can even lasting infinitely.

Now everybody knows officially that Cambodia has enormous reserves in hydrocarbons: petroleum of a very good quality and gas. Nowadays hydrocarbons are subject of highly strategic importance. Dozens, even billion hundreds dollars are at stake.

Malaysia has many interests in Cambodia. On the other hand, there are enormous pressures of major powers. Hor Nam Hong's anger was intended to warn great powers and Malaysia on a possible Heng Pov's departure to Finland, country without any importance economic interests with Cambodia, thus out of reach possible reprisals of the Phnom Penh's regime.

It is necessary to remind that there are many secret agreements between Hun Sen and major powers as for example contracts between Hun Sen and the giant American Chevron Texaco oil company. It is also necessary to remind that the United States had engaged potential relation with Hun Sen since September 5th, 1990, that is a little more than a year before the Paris Agreements.

Our country is placed, geographically, in the center of the Southeast Asia. More everybody knows now that we have enormous reserves in hydrocarbon. In our previous articles we foresaw that, our maritime port of Kompong Som, our coasts with the charming landscapes, sensibly, leaned in a Channels of Cardamoms, more charming and our green islands, will become in few decades, the biggest high-level industrial, economic and tourist area, of the region. The question is to know if our port, our coast, our islands and our Chain of Cardamoms will remain Cambodian by the populating, by the culture, by the political power and by the managers, by the administrators, by the executives, by the engineers and by the technicians.

Cambodians in Cambodia are the first interested ones then the first ones of all fronts in the multiform struggles against the ignorance, the disease and the poverty, against the multiple exaggerated and inequitable monopolies, of the vietnamese company Sokimex and the vietnamese bank Canadia, for an economic development for all the sectors of society of the people, for the National Independence in the territorial and maritime integrity of the nation, for the Democracy, the Freedom and the Peace.

We Cambodian living abroad, what can we do to help them ? Such is the fundamental question requiring concrete answers, following by the concrete activities which can motivating all of us in a great and general national unity.

We wish to see realizing these concrete activities during the new year of 2007.

Note : Cet article est disponible aussi en français sur demande

NEWS FROM CAMBODIA N° 0655-E
HENG POV’S CASE
the Funeral in the silence ?
(Recapitulation)

Letter to the Malaysian Government

Montréal, le 10 décembre 2006

Mission diplomatique Haut-commissariat de Malaisie60, rue Boteler,
Ottawa, Ontario,
Canada, K1N 8Y7 Téléphone : (613) 241-5182/731-2955/265-4824 (24h) Fax : (613) 241-5214 http://home.istar.ca/~mwottawa - malottawa@kln.gov.my

Je vous prie de bien vouloir faire suivre cette lettre au Gouvernement de la Malaisie

Son Excellence, Monsieur l’ambassadeur,
L'équipe de Khemara Jati (Associations de presses cambodgiennes à l’étranger) et ses amis sont heureux d'apprendre que le gouvernement de Malaisie, de concert avec le gouvernement de la Finlande, vient de permettre à Heng Pov d'obtenir l'asile politique en Finlande.
En cette journée internationale des Droits de l'Homme, nous exprimons nos félicitations et nos remerciements au gouvernement de la Malaisie et au groupe de juristes agissant au nom de la morale et des Droits de l’Homme, pour cette importante décision d'humanité et de justice. Cette importance initiative du gouvernement de Malaisie répond aussi aux souhaits du peuple cambodgien.
Heng Pov est un témoin de première importance concernant de nombreux crimes et massacres commis au Cambodge depuis plus de dix ans. Pour cette raison Heng Pov a été poursuivi et condamné arbitrairement pour des raisons politiques. Sa vie est en danger. Le gouvernement de Malaisie a porté assistance à une personne en danger de mort, en refusant de remettre Heng Pov aux autorités de Phnom Penh. Le Gouvernement de Malaisie a fait preuve de justice et d’humanité en accueillant Heng Pov pendant un certain temps sur son territoire.
Nous tenons à exprimer de nouveau, notre profonde gratitude au Gouvernement de Malaisie, qui a permis la réussite du voyage de Heng Pov à Helsinki.

(Signé)
Prasit Kuoch
Pour Khemara Jati
khemarajati@sympatico.ca
Téléphone : 514-596-0896
Fax : 514-596-1423

Heng Pov's deportation shocks the Malaysian public and upsets the Malaysian Federal court
22 Dec 2006
Court upset by speedy deportation
Rita Jong and Alang Bendahara
New Straits Times (Malaysia)
PUTRAJAYA: Former Cambodian police chief Heng Peo is now in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.He was sent back yesterday, an hour after the Court of Appeal dismissed the High Court's decision on Dec 16 to send him to Singapore, his last point of embarkation. The Court of Appeal also refused counsel N. Sivanathan's oral application for a stay of execution.Sivanathan immediately appealed to the Federal Court, which was prepared to hear it right away, but before it could do so, Heng Peo was escorted into a van and rushed to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport. Heng Peo was deported in a private plane at 12.30pm. The Federal Court convened at 1.20pm.His deportation not only shocked the public , Sivanathan and co-counsel Abdul Shukor Ahmad but also took the panel of three judges, who sat to hear his appeal, by surprise. The panel, led by Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Datuk Richard Malanjum, even asked the prosecution at least twice to confirm this."Are you sure he is no longer in Malaysia?" he asked deputy public prosecutor, Mohamad Hanafiah Zakaria. Mohamad Hanafiah said yes, but he denied that he knew that counsel was going to appeal and that the Immigration Department was going to deport Heng Peo to Cambodia so soon .Irked by the reply, Malanjum said: "Why did they do that? We are now here to hear his appeal. There is still a court higher than the Court of Appeal."Didn't the counsel ask for a stay of execution? That is common sense (that they will be appealing), isn't it?" he asked.He told Mohamad Hanafiah that the minute Sivanathan filed the appeal, the panel of judges was constituted — in less than five minutes. "Why didn't you advise the Immigration Department to hold him first?" he asked.Mohamad Hanafiah did not reply.Sivanathan then stood up and expressed his disappointment with the Attorney-General's Chambers and the Immigration Department."When the decision was delivered at 11.30am, I asked the director-general of Immigration and he confirmed that a decision was not made as to whether to deport him to Singapore or to his home country. But now this has happened," he said. "I made an oral application for a stay but was refused by the court, after Hanafiah objected."We have also told the prosecution that Heng Peo, whose Cambodian passport was cancelled, had a travel document to Finland. "But, still, the A-G's Chambers had allowed this to happen."Mohamad Hanafiah, who was assisted by DPP Ishak Mohd Yusof, replied that the A-G's Chambers had nothing to do with the fact that Heng Peo was sent back. "If I knew earlier, I would have alerted the Immigration Department."I was only informed through an SMS at 1.15pm," he said.Malanjum then rapped Mohamad Hanafiah."Hanafiah, if it is urgent, you should wait until the court decides. "When the High Court made the order, you appealed. Of course, they would do the same now, won't they?" he asked."Now, nothing much can be done. So, the court will not make any order," Malanjum, who sat with Datuk Hashim Yusoff and Datuk Azmel Maamor, added. Earlier, the Court of Appeal unanimously allowed the prosecution's appeal and set aside the High Court's decision to deport him to the last port of embarkation, which was Singapore.Court of Appeal judges Datuk Zukefli Ahmad Makinudin, Datuk Raus Sharif and Datuk Zainun Ali ruled that the application made by Heng Peo was wrong and in violation of the law. Meanwhile, Heng Peo's wife, Ngin Sotheaby, is appealing to an international human rights body to help her husband.She said she was not given a chance to talk to her husband after yesterday's decision.She said the Immigration Department officers rushed Heng Peo into the van and handed him to the Cambodian government.Ngin Sotheaby said this at the Dang Wangi police headquarters where she lodged a report against the Immigration Department and the A-G's Chambers at 5pm. "I haven't spoken to him for three months. How can they do such things?"On Dec 15, High Court judge Datuk Abdul Kadir Musa allowed Heng Peo's application to be sent to Singapore on the condition that he was able to bear all the expenses incurred during his stay in Malaysia. Since Heng Peo's arrest on Oct 3 for overstaying, Ngin Sotheaby had, on his behalf, sought asylum in many countries.Heng Peo fled Cambodia after a Phnom Penh court started proceedings against him and several others for the murder of a judge and other crimes. Following his arrest, Ngin Sotheaby applied for a writ of habeas corpus on Oct 5 to prevent the Immigration Department from deporting him to Cambodia on the grounds that she feared for her husband's safety because he would be tortured if sent home. Following the High Court's order, Sivanathan and Abdul Shukor withdrew their client's habeas corpus application.

Khemara Jati
khemarajati@sympatico.ca

[1] Cambodge Soir of 29 August 2006 : Ron Abney : J'ai retiré ma plainte pour aider Kem Sokha et Sam Rainsy
[2] The Cambodia Daily of 10 August 2006.
[3] Cambodge Soir of 29 August 2006 : Sam Rainsy appelle ses militants à la réserve.