Phnom Penh — “He brutally used violence against me. … He hit me. He grabbed my neck. I really had a hard time when I was with him, and my mental health was very unstable.” When Thach Chanty, a 35-year-old woman from the southeastern Cambodian province of Kampong Cham recalls life with her former husband, “My tears almost fall down.” Chanty, who works as a garment worker, now struggles to support her two children in the aftermath of a marriage she describes as colored with neglect and violence. Escaping the brutality left her alone in a society that continues to judge divorced women as hav ..read more

washington / phnom penh, Cambodia — Authorities in Cambodia say they have closed a probe into missing Thai pro-democracy activist Wanchalearm Satsaksit, who was allegedly abducted in Phnom Penh four years ago. Wanchalearm was pushed into a black Toyota Highlander SUV on June 4, 2020, near the Mekong Gardens condominium, where he lived, eyewitnesses told VOA Khmer reporters at the time. Cambodian authorities said last week that they were unable to confirm he ever lived in the building, or find details about the vehicle he was allegedly taken away in. "We have filed the report to court and ..read more

New York — Six years ago, Nachiket Chanchani visited Angkor Wat for the first time. Inspired, the architectural historian began thinking about the relationship between the complexities of modern post-genocide Cambodia and the ancient temple complex. Chanchani, an associate art history professor at the University of Michigan, kept reflecting on Angkor Wat, juxtaposing the temple complex against art created since the Khmer Rouge killed nearly 2 million Cambodians between 1975 and 1979. During the pandemic, his thoughts crystallized amid worldwide suffering, anxiety and fear. “I thought that ..read more

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA —  More than a year after Cambodia's government crackdown on cyber-slavery scams, anti-human-trafficking groups say scams are still operating at scale, casting doubt on the official narrative that Cambodia has significantly addressed its human trafficking problem. Cambodia has received widespread attention for its human trafficking epidemic, in which workers are forced to ensnare overseas victims in online fraud schemes. In September 2022, the government raided scam compounds, netting thousands of arrests and deportations. Since then, Cambodian authorities say th ..read more

Phnom Penh/Washington DC — The company first came for Yim Sophat’s land in 2016, claiming her rice field and cashew orchard weren’t hers at all, despite her land title and years spent farming the plot in Preah Vihear province in northern Cambodia.  The 61-year-old joined her dispossessed neighbors in filing complaints with village, district and provincial officials. Then they took the dispute to the courts and to the Cambodian government’s Anti-Corruption Unit, arguing that only bribes could explain the official inaction.  “There was no answer,” she told VOA Khmer ..read more

London — John Pilger, an Australia-born journalist and documentary filmmaker known for his coverage of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, has died, his family said Sunday. He was 84. A statement from his family, posted on X, formerly Twitter, said Pilger died on Saturday in London. “His journalism and documentaries were celebrated around the world, but to his family he was simply the most amazing and loved dad, grandad and partner," the statement said. Pilger, who has been based in Britain since 1962, worked for Britain's left-leaning Daily Mirror newspaper, broadcaster ITV’s investigative prog ..read more

phnom penh, cambodia — Cambodia is still struggling to fulfill its ambitious goal of becoming a Chinese tourist hub, building on its pre-pandemic reputation as an attractive destination. Last month, it opened a new China-funded airport not far from the ancient Angkor Wat temple complex in Siem Reap, a UNESCO World Heritage site. This came after the 2016 rollout of a "China Ready" tourism strategy, aimed at equipping tour guides with Chinese language skills, providing signs and travel documents in Chinese, and making sure food and facilities meet Chinese tastes. But in a post-pandemic ..read more

The People's Bank of China and the National Bank of Cambodia on Tuesday signed a memorandum of cooperation on establishing a yuan clearing arrangement in Cambodia, China's central bank said, furthering economic cooperation between the two countries. China has been trying to boost the yuan globally since 2009 to reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar in trade and investment settlements and challenge the greenback's role as the world's major reserve currency. Over the past two years, Beijing has signed similar yuan clearing deals with Brazil, Kazakhstan, Laos, and Pakistan. China has ..read more

Tens of thousands of spectators thronged the riverfront in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh Sunday for an annual dragon boat race -- the centrepiece of the kingdom's three-day water festival, cancelled during the Covid pandemic. Around 300 boats, their crews dressed in matching bright T-shirts, strained for the win as they dipped their colourful paddles into the Tonle Sap river with the royal palace behind them. Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni, Prime Minister Hun Manet, his father Hun Sen and senior government officials looked on as the yearly extravaganza began, with crowds urging the canoes ..read more

A First Lady, the aftermath of the Killing Fields, a Secret Service officer, and a writer’s transformed view of the world ..read more