Campuccino #83
Media freedom, labour rights, and culture
Sou Sdei and welcome to Campuccino, your fortnightly dispatch of key headlines in Cambodia with a dash of opinion.
To new subscribers, welcome! I’m Darathtey, a communication consultant, writer, and researcher. Learn more about my work here.
As monsoon rains hum almost daily from cloudy Phnom Penh’s sky and humidity hangs thick in the air, I find myself caught in October's workload madness – which explains why this newsletter might have seemed like a ghost in your inbox. But amidst the chaos, there's cause for celebration: Campuccinno just turned 4 years old! To every reader who has made this journey a lot more rewarding than I ever anticipated, especially those who've been here since my very first issue, I bow in gratitude. Your consistent support and engagement mean the world.
As we drift toward the year's finale, I'll be embracing some much-needed hibernation – a time of rest, soul-searching, and dreaming up fresh possibilities for what's ahead. This means the newsletter’s rhythm might stay a bit jazzy until January rolls around. But fear not! While I recharge my batteries, let's dive into the latest tales from the Kingdom of Wonder.
- Darathtey
The last newsletter I sent out was about Mech Dara’s arrest. So, it is only fair that I started this one with an update of his release, on bail. Of course, the ideal outcome would be for all charges against him to be dropped, but if you’ve been following the law of the land in Cambodia, you would know that our judicial system is one treacherous terrain to navigate, to say the very least. Anyway, let us take a big deep exhale that Dara is out, for now. This article by Jacob Sims provides a well-rounded summary and analysis of the recent development. For local coverage, check out a piece by Seoung Nimol for CamboJANews.
I’d also like to draw attention to those whose efforts were consequential for the release. They were those people who advocate at different avenues for his release and those who worked to raise awareness of Dara’s arrest via social media account @freemechdara.
In lieu of Dara’s arrest, the UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) has raised two concerns regarding journalism in Cambodia. First, they urged the government to stop allowing crimes against journalists to go unpunished. Second, they expressed worry over how authorities are using incitement charges as a way to target members of the media.
Speaking of capture and release, Nagaworld Union leader Chhim Sitar was finally released on 16 September after spending two years in prison for an “incitement” charge. Sithar is a president of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld (LRSU) which has been on strike since December 2021 against NagaWorld casino’s decision to implement mass layoffs in the middle of a pandemic. Two years in prison did not deter Sithar from fighting for her cause. Read an interview with her here.
The World Justice Project (WJP), an international research and civil society organisation, recently released its annual Rule of Law Index. Cambodia holds second place…….from the bottom in an index of 142 countries. The Cambodian denounced the ranking, of course. Despite the low ranking, Cambodia showed some positive changes in its legal system according to the WJP report, particularly in making laws and government information more public, with a 5% improvement from 2023 (scoring 0.21). While our criminal justice system still lags behind both regional and global standards, we maintained decent scores in order and security (close to the global average with a 9% gap) and saw improvements in civil justice. However, despite these improvements, Cambodia's scores generally remain below global averages.
Rule of Law is not the only area we rank low on. According to World Population Review, Cambodia received one of the lowest-ranking literacy rates of 84 percent which is beneath all of Southeast Asian nations except Timor Leste. I’m gonna just leave it at that 😁
Visually Pleasing
Arts & Culture
🍚 I have a confession: I sometimes intentionally watch various YouTubers' travel videos about Cambodia and judge them on how creative their itineraries can be. I call it research – seeing my home from the perspective of a stranger. More often than not, I am met with typical tourist activities. However, I sometimes stumble upon a few different ones where the hosts at least attempt to be more creative with their Cambodian activities. The one I'm featuring today is from creator Luke Martin. His “24hrs of Cambodian Street Food in Siem Reap” impressed me. From the staple pork and rice to Cambodian steakhouse, I found myself drooling. I appreciate his effort to go behind the scenes at some of those places as well.
🍜 Speaking of food - has anyone caught the latest Chef's Table: Noodles? I jumped straight into the Cambodian episode featuring Chef Nite Yun. While the show delivered its usual gorgeous cinematography (I mean, Chef's Table never disappoints in making everything look drool-worthy), I hate to say it, but I felt kind of meh about the episode. Look, I've got to be honest here - I'm probably not the target audience because my first reaction was basically "tell me something I don't know!" Being born and raised in Cambodia, I've heard this storyline a million times: genocide, exploring roots, reviving Khmer cuisine. Don't get me wrong - I'm not criticizing or downplaying anyone's story. This is just me thinking out loud and realizing that there's this interesting split: Cambodian-Cambodians and Cambodian-[something else] are two totally different breeds, even though we share the same roots. So here's my take - when either side tells their story, it might not necessarily speak for the other side, you know what I mean?
👠If fashion and history is your thing, and if you’re living in Phnom Penh, “Cambodia Women’s 1960s Fashion Show” might be of your interest. The event is hosted by Bophana Centre, and will be on Saturday at 6PM.
🎙️ This one is for my French-speaking reader. "Back to the roots" is a podcast episode featuring French individuals of Asian origins who have returned to their homeland (Cambodia) to pursue creative and entrepreneurial careers. The event, held in Phnom Penh, features a live podcast with four guests: Adana Mam Legros, an artivist; Tifanny Doche, an artistic director in fashion; FONKi, an artist; Davy Chou, a director and producer. The episode focuses on the experience of returning to one's roots, establishing oneself in Cambodia, healing intergenerational trauma, drawing from mixed cultural heritage for creative work, and building bridges between France and Asia. The podcast is in French only (thank you Google translate!).
🤓 You know how many of us have a list of things to do, to read, to see? “The Art of Ikat: A Cambodian Renaissance”, an exhibition curated by Dr. Magali An Berthon, was on my to-see list which I unfortunately missed (I blame it on my in-your-30s life crisis). So, before you click on the link of the exhibition and question why I mentioned an event that happened earlier this year, hear me out. My forever-curious self went down the rabbit hole of the exhibition’s website and found so many interesting materials that I could still could explore and learn a thing or two about Ikat, which I only just realised translated to “ហូល”. Even if you’re not a big reader of text, the two videos – Oum Sophea: Silk Legacies and Linda Sok: Weaving Images – make the one click to the website worth it.
Worth Reading
Scam Stories Hinge on On-the-Ground Journalism | Global China Pulse
An emerging form of organised crime challenged traditional reporting methods, requiring journalists to adapt their investigative techniques and piece together seemingly unrelated criminal activities – from online fraud to human trafficking – before the full scope of the cyber-scam industry complex can be brought to light.
Angkor Plywood, the ‘timber cartel’ shipping Cambodian forests internationally | Mongabay
Mongabay’s investigation found evidence of the company harvesting protected tree species and exporting them to Vietnam and China, despite legal restriction.
Campuccino is a fortnightly dispatch of key headlines in Cambodia, written by @DarathteyDin.
I’d love to hear from you. If you have feedback or content ideas, please write to me at hello@darathteydin.com