Wrap: Cambodia Elections 2018

Published on Aug 29, 2018 by Luke Hunt

Arguably the real story of Cambodia’s 2018 election was that Prime Minister Hun Sen has effectively pulled the bamboo curtain down on a quarter century of multiparty democracy in the Southeast Asian state. Read more:A New Era for Hun Sen’s Cambodia?Election Result Entrenches Cambodia As A One-Party StateWhat’s at Stake in Cambodia’s One-Sided Election?A Hun Sen Poll Victory Is As Certain As Death And TaxesChinese Spies ‘Target Cambodian Election Committee’.

Phnom Penh Post Sold

Published on May 14, 2018 by Luke Hunt

Australian miner Bill Clough has ended months of speculation and announced the sale of The Phnom Penh Post – effectively the last bastion of independent journalism in Cambodia – to a Malaysian investor for an undisclosed sum. The sale raised fresh fears over independent journalism in Cambodia, where radio stations and The Cambodian Daily have closed while the opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) has been dissolved and its leaders jailed or fled into exile as Prime Minister Hun Sen looks to consolidate his authority ahead of upcoming elections this year. Clough hinted the current media climate had influenced his decision to sell Post Media Ltd, which includes The Phnom Penh Postand Post Khmer publications, to Sivakumar G, known as....

SE Asia's Tough Upcoming Elections

Published on May 7, 2018 by Luke Hunt

Four pending general elections have the potential to reshape Southeast Asian political dynamics with the recent slide towards autocracy raising fears that the ballot box will become little more than a tool for entrenching authoritarian power structures. Voters in Malaysia and Timor-Leste will head to the polls on May 9 and 12, respectively. General elections are scheduled for July 29 in Cambodia and are widely expected in Thailand towards the end of this year. Read more. .

Vietnam Hopes for a Free Press

Published on Apr 18, 2018 by Luke Hunt

A free press has been an anathema in Vietnam ever since the communists seized control of the north in 1954 and annexed the south 21 years later. But there are hopes that Hanoi’s rigid control of journalism might ease amid its growing dependency on the West as a bulwark against Beijing’s expanding military reach across the region.That dependency was highlighted by the recent visit by the United States aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, a show of military strength in Vietnamese waters which coincided with the scrapping of two-term presidencies in China, enabling Xi Jinping to rule for life as paramount leader.Read more..

Closure over Australia's Refugee Deal in Sight

Published on Mar 16, 2017 by Luke Hunt

Issues involving countries as far afield as Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Costa Rica still need resolutionBy Luke HuntClosure for Australia and its controversial Pacific Island refugee camps is finally looming with teams of contractors deployed by the United States kick-starting the resettlement programs amid lingering doubts over hundreds of asylum seekers who could be left behind.A team from the Bangkok-based Resettlement Support Centre East Asia have wrapped-up initial interviews on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea, a month-long process which initiated the first stages in the resettlement of up to 1,250 refugees.Another two teams from the Department of Homeland Security in the US have also arrived on Nauru and Manus to follow-up on those interviews and begin the “extreme vetting”....