Okay readers, its time for a pop quiz!

Cambodian trivial pursuits question #309: How many times has the Cambodian Constitution

been violated since it was promulgated in October 1993? Anybody who has the faintest

idea, please send in your best quess. The Gecko has long since lost count.

Trivial Pursuits Question #310: How many times has the constitution been referred

to by those in power to accuse "the other side" or "someone on our

side who we don't want" of unconstitutional behaviour?

Trivial Pursuits Question #311: Is the answer to #309 more or less than the answer

to #310? Any respondent who gets the correct answer (complete documentation required

for all responses) to the above questions wins a free copy of the Constitution, a

copy of which will have to be found first, then dusted off and - rest assured - will

be delivered during the award ceremony suitably framed for posterity.

Trivial Pursuits Question #312: Is there anyone out there who believes the Constitution

really matters, or have we all accepted that the number of guns one has is the real

arbitrator of justice in the Kingdom? Those who believe the latter, especially donors

who are chipping in millions in support of the development of the rule of law, please

raise your hands?

Trivial Pursuits Question #313: How many donors who are supporting the development

of the rule of law and who agree that guns matter more than the constitution won't

raise their hands because they believe that stability is more important than justice,

assuming that with stability there is a greater chance to develop a judicial system

- based on the Constitution - that works?

** The NGO Forum has come out with a new publication called the "Mirror:

A Weekly Overview of the Khmer Language Print Media in the Royal Kingdom of Cambodia."

The publication has some articles translated into English and also lists titles of

articles that have appeared in the previous week. Here's a sample: "Hun Sen

admits that he got money from selling marijuana", Neak Proyut, 4/22/97; "Serey

Kosal grows a tail," Koh Santipheap, 4/22/97; "Ranariddh is the slave of

the Vietnamese puppets," Damneung Thmei, 4/22/97; "Nuon Soeur and Ieng

Mouly puppet lic, try very hard to gnaw Hun Sen's feet hair," Angkor Borei,

4/24/97; "Ganja Boss puffs himself up like a toad in order to hide the real

issue," Antarakum, 4/24/97; "Ranariddh says he hates the Vietnamese, but

Chea Kim Lang, 'his children', love to lick Vietnamese ass," Phnom Penh, 4/24/97;

"Serey Kosal is a premature baby," Serey Pheap Khmer, 4/27/97.

** According to an inside source, at the latest Council of Ministers meeting,

which Prince Ranariddh could not attend, Samdech Hun Sen asked Deputy Prime Minister

Ieng Kieth: "How can you attend a meeting with a puppet of the Vietnamese?"

** According to a diplomat, when Samdech Hun Sen invited all the ambassadors

to his Tiger's Den south of Takhmau, he spent the first 20 minutes lambasting the

North Koreans (who weren't invited). Said the diplomat: "South Korea seems to

be the flavor of the month."

** One of the best, totally unsubstantiated, baseless rumors heard in the

last two weeks was that the U.S. Navy's Pacific Fleet was off the coast of Sihanoukville

ready to intervene if things got too hot in the Kingdom.

** Some of the Rotary Club members appear to have gotten into a bit of a snag.

Several months back two of the club's honchos went with Hun Sen to Phnom Malai to

help out the breakaway Khmer Rouge.

On behalf of Rotary they made a pledge to Hun Sen to donate 5 tons of rice, but the

message seems to have been garbled in translation so that the premier, when making

his speech, said 500 tons.

Ever a man of his word, Hun Sen informed the Rotarians that he would have to keep

his pledge - and that they would have to find the cash for the 500 tons as well.

Ouch!