Effective August 1, the Post, Telegraph, and Telecommunications (PTT) Department

of the State of Cambodia introduced new phone rates for international calls. For

the first time PTT will also charge users for local calls.

To make calls from Cambodia to most of the world, international rates have gone down.

For a one-minute call to Europe or North America the rate has dropped from U.S. $5.65

to U.S. $5.30. For Japan, Southeast Asia (except Thailand), and the rest of Asia

the new tariff has dropped from U.S. $4.80 to U.S. $4.50. In Thailand the previous

rate of U.S. $4.80 is now set at U.S. $4.

Rates to Eastern Europe, Russia, and the newly independent Soviet Republics have

increased from a previously subsidized U.S. $2.80 per minute to a still low U.S.

$3.80.

The rates to Australia will stay the same at U.S. $3.80 per minute.

For local calls, to help offset government budget deficits, phone numbers with 22,

23, 24, and 25 exchanges will now be charged a flat fee of 1,000 riel a month. The

26 and 27 exchanges-the "IDD Lines" which can dial direct out of the country-will

now cost 20 riel per local call after 60 minutes of free calls per month.

Previously, all local calls on any exchange-22 thru 27-were free.

For the 28 exchange-the U.N. Private Automated Branch Exchange (PABX) dedicated lines-local

calls to other 28 lines will still be free. Those non-28 exchanges calling into the

U.N. will be charged accordingly. It has not been worked out whether 28 calls to

non-28 exchanges will cost the U.N. or not.

Presently there are about 3,000 functional phones with the 22 to 25 exchange numbers

operating in Phnom Penh, none of which can call outside the city or overseas.

IDD lines in operation number around 700, with an expected 2,200 total lines available

within three months. The U.N. PABX system has 200 lines in operation in Phnom Penh,

with an expected 500 numbers capable of calling each other within Cambodia or overseas

when the system is fully operational.