{"id":30661,"date":"2018-05-09T18:16:44","date_gmt":"2018-05-09T11:16:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh?p=30661"},"modified":"2018-05-17T18:19:21","modified_gmt":"2018-05-17T11:19:21","slug":"selected-comments-samdech-techo-hun-sen-at-the-gathering-and-meeting-with-workers-employees-in-bavet-city-svay-rieng-province-unofficial-translation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/en\/archives\/30661","title":{"rendered":"Selected Comments Samdech Techo Hun Sen at the Gathering and Meeting with Workers\/Employees in Bavet City, Svay Rieng Province [Unofficial Translation]"},"content":{"rendered":"

CNV:\u00a0

Warm Welcome Encourages Me to Continue Meeting Workers<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tonight I am going to stay in Svay Rieng province in a border town next to the Cambodian-Vietnamese border because we will have another gathering and meeting tomorrow. I have said it on numerous occasions that I will go to meet workers everywhere to talk to them about their living and working conditions, challenges, and solutions. I have done many of that in Phnom Penh, Kandal, Kompong Speu, and Preah Sihanouk provinces. I will spend two days in Svay Rieng starting from today with some 28,000 workers, one of the biggest meetings ever gathered. Please allow me to express my sincere appreciation and thanks for your hospitality and gestures through your hugs, which indicate deep sympathy and love for me and for the Royal Government. That is a source of encouragement for me to go on with you. Your parents and grandparents have made contributions with me to get this country out of its hardships. It is now your turn to do your parts with me to carry through such actions from your parents and grandparents [\u2026]<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Eight SEZ employ Nearly 40,000 Workers<\/strong><\/p>\n

First of all, I wish to make it clear for you all that I was the one to create this Bavet special economic zone (BSEZ). It was started by my long-time friend Clement Yang. We met in New York and he was the one who established a special economic zone in the Kompong Cham province. He then followed through to establish this Manhattan special economic zone at the Cambodia-Vietnam border. We now have up to eight SEZ in this area, and there are nearly 40,000 workers employed here [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Strategies to Transform Battlefields and Border Areas<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2026 Why then that we have come to this idea of establishing SEZ here. After ending war, I have pursued two important strategies. Firstly, transform former battlefields into market places and development areas. Secondly, turn border areas with neighboring countries into a peaceful, friendly, cooperative and developing ones. The two strategies have already become realities in the country, except in parts that we have had to work on removing mines and UXOs before allowing our people to access those areas for cultivations and\/or development [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Svay Rrieng Invaded and Bombarded by Former South Vietnamese and the US Troops<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2026 This place, in the past, was area under threats of war and constant fighting. As far as Svay Rieng province is concerned, in our history, there were many bitter experiences along the border area. Before 1975, prior to reunification of the South and North Vietnams, the administration in control of Prey Nokor supported by the US launched invasions into the territory of Svay Rieng. The area along the border was under intense bombardments by then US and South Vietnamese troops. The borderline was indeed battlefield. Later, the regime of Pol Pot waged war along the border too. These incidences left many mined fields after the liberation on 7 January 1979. We had even created a female team of de-miners to liberate the land [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Transforming Battlefields into Market and Development Places<\/strong><\/p>\n

Our policy or strategy to transform former battlefields into market and development places has now covered the whole Kingdom of Cambodia. We still have pockets of heavily mined areas. We cannot allow our people to trade their lives in those places where we have not yet made sure that there were no more lethal threats of mines and UXOs. We are seeking financial assistance to continue clearing mines and UXOs to protect our people\u2019s lives from hidden enemies and to let them make use of those lands for cultivation and development [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Making Border Peaceful, Friendly, Cooperative, and Developing Areas<\/strong><\/p>\n

We have to transform borders with neighboring countries into ones of peace, friendliness, cooperation and development. This point has happened and extended through the Cambodian-Vietnamese border, the Cambodian-Thai border, and those with Laos, where formerly were full of tranches and almost regular fighting areas. We have achieved our goal to transform those borders into socio-economic development areas. Not far from the border with Vietnam, we have here SEZ and so many hotels. People of the two countries \u2013 Vietnam and Cambodia \u2013 are making trades harmoniously. We have done the same with Thailand in Koh Kong, Banteay Meanjei, and other areas, where there are potential of tourism. In Koh Kong, for instance, we also have this car assembly line [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Development Strategy Is Long Term, Not Quick and Dirty<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2026 You may have noticed this long-term vision and strategy relating to the country\u2019s development and making former battlefields market and development places. We also transform border areas into places of peace, friendliness, cooperation, and development. They have realized economic connectivity between Cambodia and neighboring countries, others countries in the region, not only with Vietnam, Thailand and Laos. We have plan to ensure connectivity with China and others in the region too. For example, we are pondering which would be the best access for transportation between Cambodia and China? Which port in China we could ensure quicker transportation of goods to and from Cambodia. This is what we see as long-term vision leadership, and not quick and dirty ones [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Keeping Peace, Political Stability, Security, Social Order, Jobs and Employments<\/strong><\/p>\n

Peace has created us chances of investments, which resolve and expand production in our country and jobs for our people. It is because of peace that Cambodia secured an advantage of 5.7 million tourist arrivals in the last year. No one would wish to tour a war-inflicted country. You may watch TVs or other social media means to see that countries like Syria, Libya, Yemen, etc. are in intense war. Cambodia in the past was no different. What I wanted to achieve, and if you wish to keep your jobs and incomes, is first and foremost keeping peace, political stability, security and social order [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Your parents and\/or grandparents have made great efforts to help liberate the country. Over ten thousands children of people in Svay Rieng and Prey Veng reported to the call for establishing an army under my leadership. The majority of them were from Svay Rieng. We still have not accounted for families of another 49 fallen combatants. I have had to keep them for the time being in Vietnam because we could not account for their families [\u2026] many had fled to Vietnam from the genocide. I recruited many of them. We were able to set up the National United Front for the Salvation of Kampuchea, which acted as political organization and included a youth wing working to liberate the country [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Keeping Peace by Voting for CPP<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hence, it is important that you must do whatever to prevent acts of destruction of peace on our country. Those who seek to topple have sought every means to insult. You have learnt of your parents\u2019 and\/or grandparents\u2019 experiences [\u2026] you should continue to take parts in keeping peace. Peace keeping can be achieved surely if you and your families vote for CPP [\u2026] I never have wished to be Prime Minster. My best wish was to be a teacher. I did not know that I would be Prime Minister for 33 years. I am going to go on for another ten years, should you support and vote for me. It would be a record-breaking thing but it is more important to quell those who wish to ruin our nation and peace. I would continue to work against them and defend our people, protect and improve your jobs and incomes. Your salary increase in 2018 and will continue to go up in 2019. We will talk about how much it will be at a later stage [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Banks Should Offer Loans to Career Drivers for Brand New and Safe Vehicles<\/strong><\/p>\n

I thank the person who gives me a vehicle and I will give it to the province of Svay Rieng [\u2026] we may have to figure out ways to use this vehicle to transport workers to and from works. (Someone explained usefulness of the vehicle). Let us find a way to make this vehicle useful for workers in SEZ. I let the provincial authority of Svay Rieng to manage it [\u2026] there had been so frequent in the news of collided or crashed trucks. We could seek funding from anyone bank to buy the vehicle on an installment basis and rebates will go to the bank later. That would be a good thing to buy vehicles from the factory [\u2026] banks should offer loans to career drivers to purchase the vehicles and they use them for transporting workers. It would be safer [\u2026]<\/p>\n

The Royal Government and investors are in this case helping each other. I also noted that yesterday the MSEZ also made contributions to the Cambodian Red Cross. CRC received a sum of over 18 million USD at the World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day. I think I would not go any longer [\u2026] I came rather early this morning to be able to catch up with you, who woke up since even 1am. Never mind, you will have this afternoon off [\u2026].\/.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tonight I am going to stay in Svay Rieng province in a border town next to the Cambodian-Vietnamese border because we will have another gathering and meeting tomorrow.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":30185,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,22],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-30661","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-general-news","8":"category-speech"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30661","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30661"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30661\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30661"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30661"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressocm.gov.kh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30661"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}