Cambodia

PHNOM PENH, June 16 - Three hundred garment workers have fallen ill this week at a factory in Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh, the latest outbreak of "mass fainting" in the country blamed on poor working conditions.

Please visit the CCC website to take action and write to the brands implicated within to demand that the workers are allowed to return to work immediately, with compensation paid for the time they have been without work.

The Clean Clothes Campaign is deeply concerned for the safety and welfare of union- and worker leaders in Cambodia. On November 18th Sous Chantha, a trade union leader of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Unions (C.CAWDU) was arrested and charged with drug trafficking. This arrest is believed to be a frame-up in order to disturb his union activities, and he risks 2 to 5 years in jail.

Around 68,000 garment-factory workers in Cambodia have started a week-long strike to demand a wage of US$ 93. They say that a recently-established minimum wage of US$ 61 fails to cover basic living expenses and does not meet living wage standards. The Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Union (CCAWDU) and National Independent Federation Textile Union of Cambodia (NIFTUC), with with around 75,000 members are calling upon the Cambodian employers association to enter into negotiations.

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PUBLIC STATEMENT

23 December 2008
AI Index No: ASA 23/044/2008

Cambodia: Supreme Court must deliver justice

The Cambodian Supreme Court must seize the opportunity to deliver justice in the high-profile murder case of union leader Chea Vichea on 31 December 2008, Amnesty International said today.

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) - Soaring inflation and stagnant wages have led thousands of Cambodian garment factory workers to quit and look for better-paying jobs or return to the countryside, union leaders said Wednesday.

This is By KER MUNTHIT from Associated Press.

On April 12 the Cambodian Court of Appeals upheld the convictions of Born Samnang and Sok Samoeun for the 2004 murder of Free Trade Union of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC) leader Chea Vichea. The FTUWKC maintains that these men are not the killers of Chea Vichea and that their detention is unjust. The union has appealed to the International Labour Organization (ILO) to establish an international committee to investigate and bring to justice the real killers of Chea Vichea, as well as those responsible for the murders of FTUWKC leaders Ros Sovannareth and Hy Vuthy.

On February 24, Hy Vuthy, president of the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC) at the Suntex garment factory, was shot dead while riding his motorbike home after finishing his night shift at the factory, located in Phnom Penh's Dangkao districut.

Activists suspect that he was murdered for his union activity.

Read on for more info and follow the link to send an email of protest now!