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Cambodia

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Cambodia. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Phnom Penh

Head of State

King Norodom Sihamoni

Head of Government

Prime Minister Hun Manet

last updated:

29 November, 2024

She Zhijiang. The Chinese national is a “key figure in online gambling and telecoms fraud crimes”, according to China’s Foreign Ministry. Photo: Handout

Thailand

Crime kingpin who claims he spied for China ‘fears for his life’ in Thai jail

Lawyers for She Zhijiang, who is fighting extradition to China, say the Chinese national can no longer walk after being ‘brutally’ attacked.

27 Jan 2025 - 10:17AMvideocam

Crime in Hong Kong

Hongkonger stuck in Thailand to fly home on Monday after scam farm ordeal

25 Jan 2025 - 4:21PMvideocam

Lunar New Year

4 people die in Cambodia in Lunar New Year gift crush

23 Jan 2025 - 5:01PM

Crime in Hong Kong

Electric shocks, physical assault: inside Southeast Asia’s forced labour camps

Recent high-profile rescue of mainland actor Wang Xing has put the plight of thousands trapped in compounds in focus.

24 Jan 2025 - 3:53PM

Hong Kong society

Second Hong Kong man rescued from Southeast Asia scam farm: ex-politician

Former District Councillor Andy Yu tells the Post the man has fled to Bangkok after four months of captivity.

20 Jan 2025 - 8:53PM

War and conflict

Cambodia extends mine-free deadline after villager, 2 deminers killed

The villager ‘ran over an anti-tank landmine’ on his farm in northwestern Battambang province.

18 Jan 2025 - 4:50PM

Malaysia

Malaysian freed from Cambodian scam centre over lack of computer, English skills

The 38-year-old single father, who lost 20kg during his captivity, had been duped into travelling to Cambodia on an offer to work as a driver for US$5,000.

16 Jan 2025 - 6:07PM

A Malaysian father, lacking computer and English skills, was freed from a Cambodian scam syndicate after being lured by a fake job offer. Photo: Shutterstock

Hong Kong

Overseas job offers may appear attractive but due diligence in order

Measures by Thai authorities to protect visitors – including those from Hong Kong – by heading off sham offers of lucrative work a welcome step.

16 Jan 2025 - 6:15AM

Crime in Hong Kong

Thailand set to roll out measures on visitor safety, Hong Kong official says

Security official Michael Cheuk expresses hope 12 Hong Kong residents stuck in Southeast Asia can be brought home before Lunar New Year.

15 Jan 2025 - 8:48AMvideocam

Hong Kong politics

Explainer | How can Hongkongers protect themselves from Southeast Asian job scams?

Hong Kong authorities have come under renewed pressure to ensure the return of residents believed to be held captive in the region.

16 Jan 2025 - 6:58PM

Thailand is under an amber outbound travel alert, the lowest level on Hong Kong’s three-tier system. Photo: EPA-EFE

China-Asean relations

Cambodia’s China-backed canal on Mekong seen to put ‘fragile ecosystems’ at risk

Chinese and British researchers say Funan Techo canal’s passage through habitats crucial to biodiversity may cause ecological harm and more.

14 Jan 2025 - 4:26PMvideocam

Colourful smoke bombs mark the groundbreaking ceremony for the Funan Techo canal in Cambodia’s Kandal province, in August last year. Photo: AFP

Thailand

Thai murder suspect acted out of ‘gratitude’ in Cambodian lawmaker killing

Motorcycle taxi driver and former marine Ekkalak Paenoi confessed to the crime on Saturday after his arrest on Wednesday.

12 Jan 2025 - 5:19PM

Accidents and personal safety

Hong Kong woman, 24, back home after suspected abduction in Southeast Asia

Security Bureau says Immigration Department followed up on case and ‘it is understood that the person has returned to Hong Kong’.

12 Jan 2025 - 1:29AM

Thailand

Suspected hitman extradited to Thailand over shooting of Cambodian lawmaker

Thai national Ekkalak Paenoi faces charges including premeditated murder in the death of Lim Kimya in Bangkok.

11 Jan 2025 - 6:37PM

Thai national Ekalak Paenoi (centre) is escorted by police officers at the police airport in Bangkok on Saturday. Photo: AFP

Crime

Cambodian police arrest suspect in politician’s Bangkok shooting

Multiple Thai media outlets reported that a gunman on a motorcycle opened fire on Lim Kimya as he arrived in Thailand’s capital.

8 Jan 2025 - 10:25PM

Lim Kimya of the Cambodia National Rescue Party speaks during an interview in 2017. Photo: AFP

Diplomacy

Cambodia’s approval of Japanese naval visits signals ‘balanced’ foreign policy

The move comes as Cambodia-China ties might have stalled due to Beijing holding up funding for Phnom Penh and concerns about scam centres.

25 Dec 2024 - 10:06PM

Crime

Cambodian man gets 31 years in jail for gunning down soon-to-be married couple

Businessman Srey Sina was also ordered to pay more than US$2 million in compensation to Long Lysong and Khin Kanchana’s families.

24 Dec 2024 - 10:05AM

Japan

‘Modern slavery’: the dark truths behind Japan’s foreign trainee scheme

As more victims step forward, the spotlight intensifies on a system that activists say prioritises profit over workers’ dignity and safety.

18 Dec 2024 - 3:45PMvideocam

Foreign trainees work at a car parts factory in Hiroshima prefecture, western Japan. The Japanese government has pledged to scrap the technical internship training programme by 2027. Photo: Reuters

Religion

Naga, the mythical snake that protected Buddha yet poisoned a river

Often many-headed and called the King of Serpents, Naga is worshipped by Hindus and Buddhists, especially in Southeast Asia.

1 Jan 2025 - 5:20PMvideocam

Defence

US warship docks in Cambodia for first time in 8 years

China responded to the US warship’s visit by saying such exchanges should promote regional peace and stability, ‘rather than the opposite’.

17 Dec 2024 - 10:57AM

Singapore

Singapore saw 9,000 phishing takedowns, Meta says in scam centre alert

The company, which owns Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, said scammers in Southeast Asia were using sophisticated tactics to lure victims.

11 Dec 2024 - 9:46AM

Meta has taken down more than 2 million accounts linked to scam centres in Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and the Philippines this year. Photo: Shutterstock

South China Sea

China’s naval base handover in Cambodia: a sign of waning US influence?

When the Ream Naval Base’s revamp is completed, analysts say China could get preferential access and increase its regional presence.

11 Dec 2024 - 8:06AM

Cambodian soldiers at Ream Naval Base in 2019. Photo: EPA-EFE

China trade

Cambodia says Xi supports controversial canal, but China stance is still unclear

Former Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen thanked Xi Jinping for backing Funan Techo Canal when they met this week.

5 Dec 2024 - 6:30PMvideocam

Crime in Hong Kong

Hong Kong customs seizes HK$100 million of Taiwan-bound contraband goods

Items confiscated included laptops, smartwatches and circuit boards found in shipment to Taichung, authorities say.

25 Oct 2024 - 7:25PM

Trending in China

Next Blackpink Lisa? Cambodia princess ‘to train for stardom’ in South Korea

Precocious 12-year-old speaks five languages, has 910,000 YouTube followers, eyeing K-pop fame.

18 Oct 2024 - 6:00PM

Next Lisa of Blackpink? Cambodian princess reportedly eyes K-pop stardom. Photo: SCMP composite/IG@lalalalisa_m/Weibo

Crime in Hong Kong

Hong Kong customs seizes HK$40 million of smuggled goods bound for Cambodia, Thailand

But authorities suspect Southeast Asian countries were part of indirect routes for contraband ultimately destined for mainland China.

15 Oct 2024 - 7:04PM

The container terminal in Kwai Chung, where HK$40 million worth of contraband goods was seized by customs on October 2. Photo: Sam Tsang

Hun Sen

Hun Manet may be Cambodia’s prime minister, but his dad still pulls the strings

Cambodia’s prime minister operates under the watchful eye of former leader Hun Sen, who remains a formidable force in Cambodian politics.

14 Oct 2024 - 1:39PMvideocam

Women and gender

Pregnant Filipino women arrested in Cambodia for surrogacy could be jailed

Cambodian authorities said the women were charged under the country’s laws against human trafficking and sexual exploitation.

14 Oct 2024 - 8:41AM

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