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Thailand holds Cambodian critic over sex-trafficking film, wife says


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Thailand holds Cambodian critic over sex-trafficking film, wife says

By Prak Chan Thul

 

PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - A Cambodian labour activist faces deportation home from Thailand over his role in making a sex-trafficking documentary that angered the southeast Asian nation's government, which dismissed it as fake, his wife said on Friday.

 

The ruling party of Prime Minister Hun Sen has launched a crackdown on those it says are critics of the government, including human rights advocates and opposition politicians.

 

Rath Rott Mony, 47, was arrested in Bangkok on Friday as he attempted to travel to the Netherlands with his family after helping produce the documentary for the Russia Today channel in October.

 

His wife, Long Kimheang, told Reuters from Bangkok she feared Thai police would send him back to Cambodia.

 

"Police arrested my husband and they told me that Cambodian police had sent them a document, saying he produced a false story," Long Kimheang said.

 

"I am worried when they deport my husband, he will be put in prison."

 

Thai immigration officials were not immediately available for comment.

 

In a statement, Russia Today said it was highly concerned about the detention.

 

"We...are doing everything we can to help resolve the situation, including via diplomatic channels," it said, adding that it never pays participants or interview subjects.

 

The documentary, titled "My Mother Sold Me", included an account of a poor Cambodian girl who was sold into sex work, prompting authorities to question those involved.

 

Authorities later said the mother and daughter were paid to lie in the documentary, according to Cambodian police.

 

Cambodian police spokesman Chhay Kim Khoeun confirmed that police had asked for Rath Rott Mony, president of the Cambodian Construction Workers Trade Union Federation (CCTUF), to be deported.

 

"The documentary is a made-up story that destroys Cambodia's culture and reputation," he said.

 

 
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-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-12-08
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15 minutes ago, rooster59 said:

The documentary is a made-up story that destroys Cambodia's culture and reputation,

How very twee and convenient. Anyone who has spent some time in Phnom Penh will know just how widespread and infamous its sex industry became after the huge number of UN soldiers started "adding to the local economy". No-one with an open mind would doubt that poverty stricken mothers are sending their daughters off to the sex trade. And once more we have a case of a man who was on his way to another country who has been held up here instead of being allowed to depart. All they had to do was let him travel, but no, they put themselves in a difficult spot. Freedom of speech is not a strong point in either Thailand or Cambodia.

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55 minutes ago, rooster59 said:

Authorities later said the mother and daughter were paid to lie in the documentary, according to Cambodian police.

It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that this is true, Russia Today is quite capable of manipulating the truth to suit the propaganda needs of the Kremlin. 

 

Not saying they did in this case, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they had 

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Cambodia is not changing to the better anytime soon , corruption is even stronger over there.  If they want more genuine tourists to visit the first thing they should do is to admit they have a problem with poverty and sex trafficking.  

Tourists are not stupid and will choose another destination. 

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This is so depressing! Charges like 'destroys Cambodia's culture and reputation' need to be outlawed. Really whistleblowers need to be protected from employers, governments and anyone else who needs or wants to hide the truth. 

In the West government's simply lie to their citizens and a supine press allows the government to suppress information it doesn't like (as with D notices in the UK). The citizens see their fair share of propaganda, omissions and lies, but apart from using leaking of classified information as a rare charge as in the case of Chelsea Manning they generally don't jail whistleblowers.

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5 hours ago, Bluespunk said:

It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that this is true, Russia Today is quite capable of manipulating the truth to suit the propaganda needs of the Kremlin. 

 

Not saying they did in this case, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they had 

Pretty much like CNN, the "most trusted name in fake news" right?

 

Russia Today is actually quite objective and little to none of their reporting has anything to do with the Kremlin. It's just that you've been used to be believing fake news most of your life, that what comes out of RT seems like they're a bunch of crazy "conspiracy theorists" when in fact, they are the most objective mainstream TV station that exists. It's CNN, MSNBC and the BBC who are the actual crazies.

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28 minutes ago, Pedrogaz said:

This is so depressing! Charges like 'destroys Cambodia's culture and reputation' need to be outlawed. Really whistleblowers need to be protected from employers, governments and anyone else who needs or wants to hide the truth. 

In the West government's simply lie to their citizens and a supine press allows the government to suppress information it doesn't like (as with D notices in the UK). The citizens see their fair share of propaganda, omissions and lies, but apart from using leaking of classified information as a rare charge as in the case of Chelsea Manning they generally don't jail whistleblowers. 

Exactly. Actually, real whistle-blowers in the west are either silenced, threatened, sometimes killed or if none of these work, they are labelled "conspiracy theorists" or some other wacky ad-hominem to discredit them - the sheeple swallow this and will avoid investigating the truth behind the claims. I find it insane that the recipients of these unwarranted attacks don't file libel and slander lawsuits. However, because defamation is only a minor civil offense in western countries (unlike in Thailand) filing such suits probably won't achieve much.

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5 hours ago, Lungstib said:

How very twee and convenient. Anyone who has spent some time in Phnom Penh will know just how widespread and infamous its sex industry became after the huge number of UN soldiers started "adding to the local economy". No-one with an open mind would doubt that poverty stricken mothers are sending their daughters off to the sex trade. And once more we have a case of a man who was on his way to another country who has been held up here instead of being allowed to depart. All they had to do was let him travel, but no, they put themselves in a difficult spot. Freedom of speech is not a strong point in either Thailand or Cambodia. 

 

Yep. For all the claims that Thailand is backward, Cambodia is 10 times worse. It's a backward wild west (or should I say "wild east") sort of place where anything goes. It's run by a bunch of childish pussies who can't accept even the mildest criticism and live in some kind of parallel universe that has nothing to do with reality. I mean, Cambodia is a nice country to visit and all, but look at the reality of the place, it's a joke, which even Thais and Vietnamese will readily admit: The country is filthy, rubbish is strewn everywhere (haven't they heard of rubbish collection? And that poor sanitation spreads disease?), the roads are truly third world - they are full of potholes, the driving is abysmally bad (much worse than even in Thailand - it's only because Thailand has like 20 times more vehicles on it's roads that Cambodia isn't number one in the world in terms of road accidents) and the corruption is legendary. Whereas on the Thai side, officers don't accept tips and those that do are reprimanded, on the Cambodian side no matter how many complaints (go to Google Maps and click over the reports on any Cambodian border crossing - it's all 1-star reviews) they don't clean up their act. Cambodian customs and immigration officers are uncouth, unfriendly and downright hostile. Far, far worse than even the worst Thai officers I've encountered.


Freedom of speech in Cambodia is rock bottom - far lower than in Thailand, which at least is concerned about what the rest of the world thinks about it. Meanwhile Cambodia is in a race to the bottom - Hun Sen is currently selling off the country to the Chinese, Sihanoukville is already 20% Chinese from mainland China and more continue to come in daily. Maybe in 2030 the newest Chinese province will be crowned, formerly called Cambodia and it will be known as "Zhong Guo Nan" (i.e. South China).

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6 hours ago, Bluespunk said:

It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that this is true, Russia Today is quite capable of manipulating the truth to suit the propaganda needs of the Kremlin. 

 

Not saying they did in this case, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they had 

Unlike the BBC of course.

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1 hour ago, jimster said:

Pretty much like CNN, the "most trusted name in fake news" right?

 

Russia Today is actually quite objective and little to none of their reporting has anything to do with the Kremlin. It's just that you've been used to be believing fake news most of your life, that what comes out of RT seems like they're a bunch of crazy "conspiracy theorists" when in fact, they are the most objective mainstream TV station that exists. It's CNN, MSNBC and the BBC who are the actual crazies.

CNN, BBC And MSNBC are light years ahead of RT in terms of honesty. 

 

RT is the Kremlin’s chosen vehicle for disseminating propaganda. 

 

 

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56 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

CNN, BBC And MSNBC are light years ahead of RT in terms of honesty. 

 

RT is the Kremlin’s chosen vehicle for disseminating propaganda. 

 

 

LOL! You are seriously brainwashed. It is well known that CNN, BBC and MSNBC are propaganda rags spewing out fake news day in day out. The fact you take them seriously says a lot about you. You couldn't even stick to the topic at hand, without launching an unwarranted attack against one of mainstream media's few relatively honest news outlets. Of course CNN told you to think this way, because that's what western mainstream media does - it tells you how to think.

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7 minutes ago, jimster said:

LOL! You are seriously brainwashed. It is well known that CNN, BBC and MSNBC are propaganda rags spewing out fake news day in day out. The fact you take them seriously says a lot about you. You couldn't even stick to the topic at hand, without launching an unwarranted attack against one of mainstream media's few relatively honest news outlets. Of course CNN told you to think this way, because that's what western mainstream media does - it tells you how to think.

No, I know that the bbc and cnn are trustworthy news sources because I can think. 

 

The same facility allows me to recognise what rt is. 

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56 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

Yes. 

Yes, the BBC, one of those disgusting pro-war outlets that basically is complicit in shoring up consent for the illegal invasions of middle eastern countries. The same BBC which engages in propaganda that undermines the sovereignty of the likes of Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar too.

 

The BBC produces some good documentaries, like that recent 4-part rally series where 4 celebrity teams race classic cars from Singapore to Vietnam via Malaysia, Thailand and Cambodia (the series only filmed the Thai, Cambodian and Vietnam portions) but for news and current affairs and social issues, it's pure pro-business, pro-western government propaganda and lots of made up nonsense, like promoting fake "science" only mentally ill people would do like "there are hundreds of genders". Actually, anyone who studied biology knows there are only 2 biological genders. Sorry BBC but you are a disgrace for brainwashing the young and naive into believing such fairy tales.

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1 minute ago, jimster said:

Yes, the BBC, one of those disgusting pro-war outlets that basically is complicit in shoring up consent for the illegal invasions of middle eastern countries. The same BBC which engages in propaganda that undermines the sovereignty of the likes of Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar too.

 

The BBC produces some good documentaries, like that recent 4-part rally series where 4 celebrity teams race classic cars from Singapore to Vietnam via Malaysia, Thailand and Cambodia (the series only filmed the Thai, Cambodian and Vietnam portions) but for news and current affairs and social issues, it's pure pro-business, pro-western government propaganda and lots of made up nonsense, like promoting fake "science" only mentally ill people would do like "there are hundreds of genders". Actually, anyone who studied biology knows there are only 2 biological genders. Sorry BBC but you are a disgrace for brainwashing the young and naive into believing such fairy tales.

Ah, I see which section of the conspiracy theory fringe you are coming from now

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22 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

No, I know that the bbc and cnn are trustworthy news sources because I can think. 

 

The same facility allows me to recognise what rt is. 

You can think? LOL. No you can't. You are an ideologue driven by far left state propaganda, which is what the BBC and CNN are. CNN and BBC don't teach critical thinking skills - they teach obedience to authority. They teach you never to question what they say. All they've done since Trump entered office is to engage in 24/7 Trump bashing, sore losers they are. They are basically the modern day western version of the Soviet propaganda ragtag "Pravda", which, although I've never read it's modern day version is probably closer to RT or China's CCTV than what the BBC is now. CNN and the BBC have now become like Pravda of the Soviet era, which if they ever had any objectivity lost it a long time ago. I don't have to watch either channel anymore, I already know what they will publish - anything to divide the people, to brainwash them into loving collectivism and hating individualism. They are profoundly anti-freedom and anti-western while at the same time they try to drive a wedge into other countries politics and society too. Their cover up of the crimes of Thaksin is a case in point.

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5 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

Ah, I see which section of the conspiracy theory fringe you are coming from now

Ah I knew that was coming. The "conspiracy theory" ad-hominem. Seriously dude, you need to open up your mind and stop following your beloved fake news and start thinking for a while, if you're capable. Like that Russiagate conspiracy theory being promoted by CNN. It's fake, there's absolutely no truth to it whatsoever.

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3 hours ago, jimster said:

Exactly. Actually, real whistle-blowers in the west are either silenced, threatened, sometimes killed or if none of these work, they are labelled "conspiracy theorists" or some other wacky ad-hominem to discredit them - the sheeple swallow this and will avoid investigating the truth behind the claims. I find it insane that the recipients of these unwarranted attacks don't file libel and slander lawsuits. However, because defamation is only a minor civil offense in western countries (unlike in Thailand) filing such suits probably won't achieve much.

I would suggest hiring Pol Pot as your lawyer if you are going to file for libel in the killing fields...

 

Have fun.

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3 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

Bbc and cnn equal honest and trustworthy news. 

 

Rt equals Kremlin propaganda. 

 

Im censoring nothing, you are free to believe in your conspiracy theories. 

 

Just because I do not share them is not censoring them. 

You can't even comprehend what I said. I said BBC and CNN censors anything they don't like.

 

You have lost the argument yet you state, for the second time, that your fake news outlets are honest? Seriously! I have rarely seen such intense levels of brainwashing as in your statements for a long time on this forum.

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9 hours ago, Lungstib said:

How very twee and convenient. Anyone who has spent some time in Phnom Penh will know just how widespread and infamous its sex industry became after the huge number of UN soldiers started "adding to the local economy". No-one with an open mind would doubt that poverty stricken mothers are sending their daughters off to the sex trade. And once more we have a case of a man who was on his way to another country who has been held up here instead of being allowed to depart. All they had to do was let him travel, but no, they put themselves in a difficult spot. Freedom of speech is not a strong point in either Thailand or Cambodia.

Nor Lao , Burma, China , Vietnam, Indonesia , Philippines there seems to be a common thread here.

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1 minute ago, Odysseus123 said:

I would suggest hiring Pol Pot as your lawyer if your are going to file for libel in the killing fields...

Do you have a comprehension problem? I replied to someone's response about whistle-blowers by way of making an example of what actually happens to whistle-blowers in the west in general, nothing to do with Cambodia per se. This topic has gone so far off topic because one person decided to attack a news channel who produced a documentary that is the basis for this news article, while using it as an opportunity to defend his propaganda outlets as being truthful. 

 

But to return to this topic, it is indeed sad what has happened to this documentary maker. It is however not surprising, knowing just how sensitive and juvenile the Cambodian government is. Normally, it would be the likes of the BBC who would be in hot water in a country like Cambodia, because it's news outlets like them who function basically as agents to subvert countries like Cambodia so that their governments can become more friendly to pro-western, pro-globalist interests. Because Hun Sen has decided to become friendly with China, it's why he has come under fire by the western mainstream media. On the other hand, RT rarely interferes in the sovereignty of other countries, nor does Russia (or China) in general. It's western countries, aided by their media that do that.

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5 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

If you want to see who has been brainwashed, look in a mirror. 

You might want to look at yourself in the mirror. Besides, not sure how you can survive here in Thailand with your opinions - Thai people as a whole hate westerners (farang) like you telling them what to think. You should really go back to your progressive United Kingdom, which is where I understand you hail from.

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7 minutes ago, jimster said:

Do you have a comprehension problem? I replied to someone's response about whistle-blowers by way of making an example of what actually happens to whistle-blowers in the west in general, nothing to do with Cambodia per se. This topic has gone so far off topic because one person decided to attack a news channel who produced a documentary that is the basis for this news article, while using it as an opportunity to defend his propaganda outlets as being truthful. 

 

But to return to this topic, it is indeed sad what has happened to this documentary maker. It is however not surprising, knowing just how sensitive and juvenile the Cambodian government is. Normally, it would be the likes of the BBC who would be in hot water in a country like Cambodia, because it's news outlets like them who function basically as agents to subvert countries like Cambodia so that their governments can become more friendly to pro-western, pro-globalist interests. Because Hun Sen has decided to become friendly with China, it's why he has come under fire by the western mainstream media. On the other hand, RT rarely interferes in the sovereignty of other countries, nor does Russia (or China) in general. It's western countries, aided by their media that do that.

Do I have a comprehension problem?

 

No.

 

Do you have a verbal diarrhea problem?

 

Yes.

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7 minutes ago, jimster said:

You might want to look at yourself in the mirror. Besides, not sure how you can survive here in Thailand with your opinions - Thai people as a whole hate westerners (farang) like you telling them what to think. You should really go back to your progressive United Kingdom, which is where I understand you hail from.

You understand wrong, at least you’re consistent. 

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22 minutes ago, Odysseus123 said:

Do I have a comprehension problem?

 

No.

 

Do you have a verbal diarrhea problem?

 

Yes.

That's exactly what you have. You can't understand what I wrote then you proceed to write an utter piece of trash talking about Pol Pot. Seriously, get a life and maybe go back to school.

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