Safe New Year

Phnom Penh’s police presence will be increased during Khmer New Year in a bid to reduce the high number of minor crimes and traffic accidents that typically occur during the holiday, city officials said Sunday. Municipal Police Chief Touch Naruth said police will maintain a 24-hour presence across the capital city’s eight districts throughout the three-day celebration. “We will deploy nearly 1,000 police officials to protect people from minor crimes and to ease traffic jams,” he said, adding that there will be a particularly strong presence in areas where large crowds are expected to congregate. Deputy municipal Governor Man Chhoeun said security will be stricter than last year. “We will absolutely ban people from throwing water, hitting others with sticks or painting people with powder,” he said. “Anyone who violates these rules will be briefly detained for education.”