Phnom Penh is bracing for yet another round of political protests, with 10,000 people set to rally over the next three days against alleged voting irregularities in July's general election.
Security forces have begun demonstrating crowd control measures in Phnom Penh's Freedom Park, which is the site of upcoming anti-government protests.
Local media estimated that 10,000 to 20,000 people will rally there in coming days.
They want to show support for the opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) and its leader Sam Rainsy.
He is calling for an independent investigation into the July vote where his party won 55 seats according to the official results.
The CNRP's own total vote was 63 seats, giving it a slight edge in the National Assembly over Prime Minister Hun Sen's Cambodian People’s Party.
Opposition leader Sam Rainsy said: "There are widespread evidence from independent observers, (and ) both national and international independent organisations have pointed to countless and serious election irregularities that might have distorted or even overturned the will of the Cambodian people."
Mr Hun Sen said that an independent agency is not needed to verify election results.
And the government in a White Paper published soon after the election said there is no evidence to back the opposition's claims.
An earlier protest in September turned violent when soldiers clashed with demonstrators causing one death and several injuries.
And despite various government attempts to rein in these protests--like limiting the duration and the number of people in the rally -- Mr Sam Rainsy has said they will ignore these requests.
For the moment, politics here remain in a deadlock---the opposition is boycotting the National Assembly until the issue of vote fraud is satisfactorily resolved. - Channel News Asia
The Sultan of Brunei introduced tough Sharia-law punishments on Tuesday including death by stoning for crimes such as adultery, hailing what he called a "historic" step toward Islamic orthodoxy for his country.
Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah -- one of the world's wealthiest men -- said a new Sharia Penal Code in the works for years was officially introduced on Tuesday in the tiny, oil-flush sultanate and would be phased in beginning in six months.
Based on individual cases, punishments could include stoning to death for adultery, severing of limbs for theft, and flogging for violations ranging from abortion to alcohol consumption, according to a copy of the code.
The code applies only to Muslims.
"By the grace of Allah, with the coming into effect of this legislation, our duty to Allah is therefore being fulfilled," the sultan, 67, said in a speech.
An absolute monarch whose family has tightly controlled the oil-rich country of 400,000 for six centuries, the sultan first called in 1996 for the introduction of Sharia criminal punishments.
The sultan already imposes a relatively conservative brand of Islam on his subjects, compared to Brunei's Southeast Asian Muslim neighbours, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Brunei bans the sale and public consumption of alcohol and closely restricts other religions.
But Sharia has been a rare point of contention in a land where the sultan's word is unquestioned, with many Bruneians quietly grumbling that the concept is out of step with the affluent country's laid-back ethnic Malay society.
"These rights-abusing policies are a good indication of why modern democracy and the right of people to participate in their government is a much better idea than anachronistic absolute monarchy," said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch.
The situation shows that "respect for basic civil and political rights is near zero in Brunei," he added.
The monarch himself has acknowledged concerns over Sharia in recent years as the code was being drafted.
Compatible with Malay culture?
It was not immediately clear how aggressively it would be enforced.
Two years ago, the Attorney-General's office promised Brunei would apply an extremely high burden of proof for Sharia cases and judges would have wide discretion in applying it, in comments apparently aimed at easing public fears.
"It seems almost incompatible with Malay culture, which is peace-loving," said Tuah Ibrahim, 57, driver of a boat taxi in the capital Bandar Seri Begawan.
He said Sharia can be acceptable if proportionate to the crime, but adds: "I can't imagine our country turning into somewhere like Saudi Arabia."
Brunei already has a dual system combining civil courts based on British law -- the sultanate was a British protectorate until 1984 -- and Sharia-compliant courts limited to personal and family issues such as marriage and inheritance.
Nearly 70 per cent of Brunei's people are Muslim ethnic Malays. About 15 per cent are non-Muslim ethnic Chinese, followed by indigenous tribes and other groups.
Bankrolled by South China Sea oil and gas fields, Brunei has one of Asia's highest standards of living, including free medical care and education through the university level.
The monarch's wealth -- estimated at $20 billion by Forbes magazine two years ago -- and luxurious lifestyle have become legendary, with reports emerging of his vast collection of luxury vehicles and gold-bedecked palaces.
The monarchy was deeply embarrassed by a sensational family feud between Hassanal and his younger brother Jefri Bolkiah over the latter's alleged embezzlement of 15 billion dollars during his tenure as finance minister in the 1990s.
Subsequent court battles and exposes revealed salacious details of Jefri's un-Islamic jet-set lifestyle, including allegations of a high-priced harem of Western paramours and a luxury yacht he owned called "Tits."
Despite a suave image overseas, the sultan repeatedly warns at home of the potential impact that increasing integration with the world could have on Brunei's moral values and has leaned towards Islamic orthodoxy of late.
In the past year, the government introduced mandatory religious education for all Muslim children and ordered all businesses closed during Friday prayers.
In his speech, the sultan appeared to try to assuage any international concerns that may arise, saying the Sharia change "does not in any way change our policies ... as a member of the family of nations." -Channel News Asia
Thirteen Vietnamese fishermen were arrested after being found in Philippine waters with a haul of protected sea turtles, police said Monday.
The fishermen were caught on Friday off the western Philippine island of Palawan, in waters near the South China Sea where authorities say foreign poaching of endangered or protected species has become a major problem.
"Upon initial inspection, it was found out that the said foreign fishing vessel is loaded with undetermined (number of) pieces of dead sea turtles," said Benigno Caabay, a station officer at the Palawan police provincial headquarters, quoting an official report.
The 13 are being held at a police camp in Palawan while officers look into filing a case against them, Caabay added.
Sea turtles are protected under Philippine law and catching them is punishable by at least 12 years in jail.
In recent years, Philippine authorities have frequently caught foreigners, often Chinese, catching or buying sea turtles in the waters off Palawan.
In November last year, in the same area where the Vietnamese were caught, the Philippine navy rescued more than 100 sea turtles from poachers. But the fishermen, whom authorities believed to be Chinese, escaped.
Twelve Chinese fishermen were also arrested in April after their boat, which ran aground on a protected reef, was found to be carrying hundreds of dead pangolins, or scaley anteaters, another protected species.
Their case is still pending in court.
The issue of foreigners poaching endangered species has become sensitive in the Philippines, with environmentalists calling for stronger action against the perpetrators.
Following pressure from their governments, the foreigners often have the charges dropped or lessened, allowing them to be deported quickly back home.
Caabay said fisheries experts were still determining what species of turtles were caught, although he stressed they were all protected under local laws.
The turtles were frozen and packed tightly in the cargo hold of the fishing vessel, he said.
Turtles are used in traditional medicine or are served as delicacy in many Asian countries.-Yahoo Philippines
