Oct. 6: The Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications announced that a "50th
Anniversary of FAO '95" stamp would be released on Oct. 16. Those interested
in purchasing the stamp should contact the General Post Office.
Oct. 9: H.M. King Norodom Sihanouk issued a statement concerning
his position on the death penalty. The King said: "I strongly wish that the
Royal Cambodian government and the National Assembly maintain the abolition of the
death penalty like our liberal democracy and pluralistic politics, which conforms
to our actual Constitution."
Oct. 10: Reuters reported: The Cambodian government and four major
foreign hotel groups are discussing investment proposals worth more than $100 million
for the northwest town of Siem Reap. First Prime Minister Prince Norodom Ranariddh...
said the government had set aside 560 hectares of land for development projects in
Siem Reap."
Oct. 10: The Cambodia-IRRI-Australia Project issued a press
statement which said: "A new threat to rice has invaded Cambodia. Golden
apple snails have recently been discovered in Phnom Penh and Svay Rieng. There
are unconfirmed reports of the snails in Siem Reap, Pursat and Prey Veng. People
initially raise the snails as food, but the snails eventually escape from ponds and
jars and infest rice fields...Golden apple snails produce bright pink egg masses
around grass, sticks, rice or anything extended above water in paddies. If the eggs
are broken a blood-red liquid is released...The shells are the color of honey, which
makes them distinct from the native Cambodian snails which have black or dark-green
shells...Please do not breed or sell this snail...help eradicate this newly introduced
pest."
Oct. 11: The Cambodian-British Centre held a reception to welcome the new
CAMSET team members: Jan Thomas, Assistant Director, Trainer Training; Liz Abbott
and Helen Drinan, Teacher Trainers.
Oct. 12: Reuters reported: "Cambodia's sole international airport
recorded almost 100,000 tourist arrivals and welcomed more than 25,000 businessmen
in the first eight months of the year, the Tourism Ministry said. The statistics,
from the interior ministry, showed the total airport arrivals - tourists, businessmen
and officials - stood at 19,624 in August, up 33.1 percent on the 14,743 who passed
through Pochentong Airport in August last year."
Oct. 12: Reuters reported: "Cambodia is expected to become self-sufficient
in rice in 1995 and may have a surplus to export after years of shortfalls, First
Prime Minister Norodom Ranariddh told reporters...'Not only are we not going
to face any shortage of food, but maybe we'll have more - I strongly and clearly
believe that we will be sulf-sufficient this year,' he said after meeting new FAO
representative Ad Spijkers."
Oct. 12: British Ambassador Paul Redicliffe presented to Environment Minister
Dr. Mok Mareth a color guide book of the Preah Suramarit-Kossomak National
Park at Kirirom. The British Embassy funded the entire editorial, design and printing
costs for the book. Four Thousand copies have been printed in English and a Khmer
version will be produced later this year. Proceeds from the sale of the book will
be used by the Ministry of Environment to improve facilities for visitors to the
national Park.
Oct. 12: The Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace released its
"CICP Newsletter, Issue No. 8", which included articles on "Food Security
in Cambodia", "What does MFN Mean to Cambodia", and "Investing
in the Future".
Oct. 13: Reuters reported: Phnom Penh port...is preparing for a
boom in cargo trade as a $30 million facelift progresses, port officials say. The
comprehensive renovation project is expected to be completed by the end of l996 and
will more than double handling capacity and bring equipment up to international standards
at the river port, built by French companies in the 1950s."
Oct. 14: Swiss singer and guitarist Stephan Eicher played to a packed
audience at the Chatomuk Concert hall. A statement released on Eicher said he has
"itchy feet and his destiny does not fit with the rigid world of showbusiness.
The event was organized by the French Embassy and the French Cultural Centre in collaboration
with the Ministry of Fine Arts.
Oct. 16: Reuters reported: "Phnom Penh plans to reopen
an agricultural university in eastern Cambodia next year, the first such reopening
in the provinces since institutions of higher learning were closed under the rule
of the Khmer Rouge. Education Minister Tol Lah said on Oct. 16 the government
was restoring the university of agriculture in Kompong Cham province and hoped to
have it open by 'early l996'."
Oct. 16: Reuters reported: "Cambodia's local business community
elected tycoon Teng Boonma to head the country's first Chamber of Commerce since
the early 1970s. Boonma, the 54-year-old managing director of the Thai Boon Roong
Group, was elected late on Oct. 15 by the chamber's 24 directors after they were
picked earlier in the day....About 500 representatives from the local business community
turned out to vote for the chamber, with 46 candidates vying to represent four different
business sectors - trade, industry, agriculture and services."
Oct 16: The Japanese government announced that it would provide $515,000
to the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts for the supply of equipment for the conservation
and restoration of monuments at Angkor Wat. Equipment to be supplied includes a 25-ton
rough terrain crane, a mini crawler crane, a four-ton cargo truck with three-ton
crane, cutting machines, and various air compressors and jack hammers. Overall, the
Japanese have pledged $9.6 million to the UNESCO Japanese Trust Fund for the preservation
of Angkor during the 1994-1998 period.
Oct. 17: The chairman of Cognac Otard, Mr. Henri de Castellane was
welcomed to Cambodia at a dinner in his honor held at the Hotel Sofitel Cambodiana.
Oct. 18: The British Chamber of Commerce in Bangkok arrived in Phnom Penh
for a four-day visit. The 14-strong delegation, led by Mr. Simon Makinson of MPS
& Associates, Ltd. met with various ministries, the CDC, the CIB as well as the
business community resident in Cambodia. The mission members represented a range
of interests including banking, industry, construction, tourism and law.
