First of all, please allow me to express my warm welcome to nieces/nephews, owners of all seven factories, and Your Excellency, Lok Chumteavs present here today. Today HM the King, and HM the Queen Mother go for the inauguration of a hospital in the Khan Russeikeo (of Phnom Penh). I got the news only three days ago while I already had planned from two months before this meeting with our workers and employees. That had left me with no choice but to apology to Their Majesties for my absence at the event in their presences […]
Amicability and Hospitality between Leaders and Workers
I thank nieces/nephews for their hospitality and amicability in every meeting I have with them. Their gestures clearly indicate their affections on a leader, on whom they consider as their family member, father, uncle, and granduncle, or even grandfather. This has correlated that not only you who have known me but surely have your parents, grandparents since when you were not born or were small children. Our country went through a period of hardship and your parents, grandparents had also been with me and my leadership in those circumstances. As of this moment, you have made clear to me your feelings, encouragements, and supports for me and for my leadership for national development.
Previous Generation Lost Chances
I had no intention to be a leader. Originally, my ambition was to become a teacher. However, because of political upheavals, our country did not offer youth of my generation any chances. They made war and brought about loss of many lives. Youth in the previous generation lost their chances. I consider my live invaluable because I endured five times of injury and lost one eye. I have made, however, stringent efforts to stand up with your parents and grandparents to liberate the country, saving lives of some five million people. It has now generated to some 16 million people […] I went through a report sent to me yesterday that there were about 140 new born babies yesterday […] which has added the figure from January of 4,817 to about 5,000 babies […] for whose mothers we have spent about two billion Riel or half a million USD in their supports […]
Advantages Gained because of Everyone’s Efforts
… Our joy has been that our workers’ new salary has already been implemented. At the end of 2017, in December, we had come to an end of a minimum salary of 153 USD. Now, we have put into operation a minimum salary of 170 USD per month. This is a great achievement scored by our joint efforts. No one can claim it. It is here because of efforts of nieces/nephews workers, factories owners, and the Royal Government’s steadfast effort to build necessary infrastructures, to attract investments, and ensure access to markets for exports. We have made efforts together to rebuild a country from devastation and loss of human lives to impressive development achievements.
Cambodia’s Lowest Minimum Salary Stands Fourth in ASEAN
In the framework of ASEAN countries, Cambodia has become the fourth country that has one of the higher lowest-minimum salaries. Singapore stands first, Brunei stands second, Thailand stands third, and Cambodia stands fourth. Our civil servants receive a salary of over one million Riel or 250 USD. Our workers receive a minimum salary of 170 USD, plus advantages that can ensure their incomes of about 200 USD. We can see that our people’s income has grown. We also have a favorable condition this year. Agriculture has scored a remarkably good output. We may have a surplus, after consumption, of about 5.5 million metric tons because we had been able to gain secure good yields from both rainy and dry season rice. Along with that, prices for agricultural produces also seem to have surged. These have positive repercussions on incomes of rural farmers, who may have been your parents, in addition to incomes you have earned and shared with them for their agricultural activities […]
Factories/Handicraft Workshops – Production Community for National Development
In labor relations between managers and workers, we must ensure a reciprocation free of insults on workers. Everyone must think about own life and those of other people. Even though one may have a higher responsible posture, s/he should not because of that rank insult others, especially workers. Everyone is born naked. No one comes out equipped […] holding high position does not mean that you can bully those under you, and vice versa, those under one’s supervision should not insult those above. They must be mutual and helping each other, especially those who may have more difficulties. I wish to see that every factory in Cambodia, tens of thousands of them, and registered and non-registered handicraft workshops to turn themselves into communities whose productions further contribute to national development. I am so happy to see that we have improved workplace and labor relations. We still have some minor issues to follow up […]
No Need for Labor Court
There is no need to set up labor/industrial court because we have positive experiences from trilateral mechanism to resolve labor and workplace conflicts […] should we go for establishment of labor/industrial court, there would be issues who would win and who would lose. It is in this sense that we are seeking way to resolve conflict to ensure everyone is winner and there is no loser. I hope that the factory owners, managers and workers continue to work together in their factories for solidarity. Every time I dropped by the factories, I noticed there were always good solidarity, and thus far demonstrations have winded down.
As is raised by Minister of Labor and Vocational Training, HE Ith Sam Heng, we need to make a wide-ranging study to draw conclusions on health problem in workplaces where workers fainted. It happened in numerous places. We must widen our study and research on probable causes of this occupational hazard. We also have this fainting cases among students […] this is another recommendation for the Ministry of Labor and concerned institutions […]
No Investments and/or Tourism in War-Ridden Countries
… We have received some 5.6 million tourist arrivals in the last year. They came and they spent money in our country. We also have Cambodians who are going and spending abroad. Take for instance, some 92 thousand of Cambodians have entered Thailand either for medical or for tourism reasons. Some 5.6 million tourists have come to Cambodia, though. This has given us chances to create jobs through hotels, touring destinations, restaurants, transportation, and trading. The point to remember is that we must by all means prevent our country from falling into war again. No investors would come to a war-ridden country […] we also have our troop to help keep peace in some countries. Visited India recently, I also sought for cooperation with India on information exchange, training, and sharing experiences on issues of keeping peace in the world. Previously Cambodia received to its territory the UNTAC forces. It has been twelve years now that Cambodia send its troops for peacekeeping purpose in Lebanon, South Sudan, Central African Republic, and Mali. Our ability is higher. We have been able to ensure this because of the peace that we all have won […]
Peace Destroyer Must Be Punished
To achieve peace is difficult and we must not let anyone at all to destroy it. Whoever (carried actions to) destroy peace, s/he must be punishable. It is unavoidable. We give no chance to no one to destroy peace, to kill human lives, to take away people’s peaceful life, and income-making jobs that you are doing every day. People need wellbeing and peace. They do not wish to displace again. You workers must remember that where there is no peace, there will be no development […]
Weight-Control Is Healthy
There have been some comments that Hun Sen is getting thin. They even went this far to say that Hun Sen is very ill. In fact, I am perfectly healthy. Previously, I weighed 86 Kg. The Singaporean physicians recommended that I should go down to between 68 and 72 Kg for my height of 170 centimeters. I weighed this morning before coming here and recorded that I am at my 72.5 Kg. A perfect weight […] someone who scolded me a lot had just died some three weeks ago […] however, some said about Hun Sen being ill. I wonder if they are not insane to say so when Hun Sen is speaking every day […]
Seeking Premiership for Ten More Years
Let me convey through you my affections and consideration to your parents and grandparents and tell them that we must continue together to prevent peace from being destroyed. I hope that your parents and grandparents, should they are still alive, will exercise their rights to vote. I also hope that they will vote for me to continue premiership position. I wish to stay and take care of you for another ten years and shall I be here, I will not let anyone to destroy peace. I will not let them to do stupid things because we used to lose so many human lives. They should not continue to carry out national destruction actions. To stay long or not in power depends on voters. Some had run and lost every times have instead claimed that I was afraid to let them run in the elections. How could a convicted felon be allowed in the elections? […]
I have said something concerning labor and social protection here. Tomorrow I will talk about construction materials – cement, in Kompot province. The day after tomorrow, I will preside over the construction ceremony of a bridge over the Mekong at Kompong Cham’s Kroch Chhmar. It will be about transportations. Three different days, three different topics […] I also have many works to do in March because I will conduct two visits to foreign countries – Australia and the Greater Mekong Sub-region meeting in Vietnam’s Hanoi […]./.
