Chasing Cars, November 14, 2010

Going viral. Probably the most talked about traffic issue at the moment is an everyday occurrence on Cambodia's road. Car travels down the wrong side of the road, hits a moto, tries to evade police. The difference is that this time someone his uploaded it onto YouTube and everybody has been talking about, especially on Facebook.

• Deaths reported: three monks in one go, a professional boxer accidentally. Two girls by a soldier who was briefly arrested by police before letting him go because he had not intended to hit the girls.

• Then in Banteay Meanchey a dead cow was arrested / confiscated:

  'He [province's chief of traffic police] said the corpse was detained for two hours at the station, but the owner failed to appear and the owners of the cars decided not to wait any longer and negotiated to pay for the damage themselves. “They [ the aggrieved damaged car owners] took the dead cow with them,” he said. “I don’t know what they will do with that cow.”'

• China mending bridges? No, building new ones for Cambodia's railways (Phnom Penh Post). Other rail news. New reopened routes will lead to the costs going down for road transport.

• There's an upswing in tourism meaning more flights, none of the aforementioned promises (Hanoi, Manila, Jakarta), but more of the same. Also no flights to Sihanoukville. Which is quite pathetic. TCambodia's national airline (CAA) should be opening up routes to here, but is in a bind as the operator of the airline is none other than the Vietnamese government which has no interest at all in opening Sihanoukville up as it competes directly with Vietnam's own plans for making Phou Coc the beach destination of the neighbourhood. Talk about a neighbourhood bully.

  'Developers and real estate agents have again emphasised the need for regular flights to Sihanoukville airport, with one party calling it “possibly the single most critical issue affecting tourism” in Cambodia',

  is just one of the lines Phnom Penh Post uses to highlight the case. The final sentence in the article?

  'Mai Xuan Long, an official at CAA, declined to comment'.

  Stephen Finch's comment also focuses on the situation. He asks some poignant questions.

  'Why isn’t CAA supporting these newly emerging destinations, especially given that Cambodia’s new flag carrier is understood to be partly government-run? The surging prices on CAA’s route from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh amid nonexistent carrier competition is equally debilitating for Cambodian tourism. Whereas the new airline offered special promotion fares between Cambodia’s two biggest tourism destinations after launching in July last year, now a round trip for foreigners usually costs more than US$200 when airport tax is factored in. That route across the Kingdom must rank as one of the most expensive internal flights in the region per kilometre'.
  

• The government is planning more overhead bridges (Phnom Penh Post) despite current ones not fitting the bill.

  'is it me or are the road exits around the overpass at Chbar Ampeouv another classic piece of local planning ? It seems that if you're traveling south on Norodom and want to turn left across the Chbar Ampeouv bridge then you can only do this by turning right for a few hundred metres until you can execute an illegal u-turn around the concrete lane dividers ? And similarly if you're traveling north from Takmao and want to turn left onto the southern end of Monivong, it seems you now have to turn right to go across the newer Chbar Ampeouv bridge before turning round to come back over the old Chbar Ampeouv bridge'.

  More discussion on Khmer 440.
  

• Khmer 440 also mention that there is a radar gun in Sihanoukville working ...

Chasing Cars, March 24, 2010

On a non traffic related matter I recently signed up to Smart internet, they offering some of the cheapest internet on mobile phones. Cheap is definitely not good. Needed just 3 visits to their customer service and now it's working, but soooooo slooooooow. And they have blocked access to KI Media, a seemingly unendless amount of news stories.

'While trying to retrieve the URL: http://ki-media.blogspot.com/ The following error was encountered:

• Access Denied. Access control configuration prevents your request from being allowed at this time. Please contact your service provider if you feel this is incorrect [sic]'.

Anyway on Cambodia's traffic front. Yesterday's (23 March 2010) Phnom Penh Post provided an opposition parliamentarian a couple of columns to allow him to publicly complain about the lack of redress within the Cambodian legal system. Remember his son was shot after a traffic dispute in Phnom Penh's center. Though at the time it was a bit ambiguous about the cause of the dispute, it is tellingly that the police have been unable to arrest the killer despite having his name.

' “... the police have not got any clue about the suspect’s whereabouts. I request that the police speed up their work in this case so that justice can be brought to my son,”...'

However it does seem weird that a parliamentarian thinks he can jump the line. Injustice is common within the country and the legal system is only working for the rich and well-connected. If anything this parliamentarian should know this. Or not?

• How the law sometimes 'works':

  'A 33-year-old man is facing prosecution after he was accused of involvement in a Wednesday traffic accident in Phnom Penh that killed a 30-year-old garment worker and a 13-year-old boy. However, authorities speculated that the man might not be sent to court if he agrees to pay US$4,500 in compensation to the victim’s family. By law, accused perpetrators still face court action even if they agree to out-of-court monetary compensation. But another driver who was allegedly involved in the same accident was not sentenced after he paid up'.

• In and on forums on Cambodia one of the most often asked questions regards transportation and if buses run between x and y, and how are they? Andy B. reviews on his blog his recent trip with paramount to Siem Reap: '

  If you want to do the bus trip between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap then don't choose Paramount Angkor Express, as their bus that carried me between the two, leaving the capital at 6pm, was one of the most uncomfortable I've ever been on. And believe me I've been on some crap buses'.

  After receiving a comment praising the same company he adjusts his views:

  'the bus he [bus driver] was in charge of had seen better days and needed some new screws fitted. By comparison the Mekong Express bus to PP was considerably better'.

• A small article (22 March 2010) in the Phnom Penh Post on how the number of accidents is up. As usual the article is full of statistic wonders.

• The Australian company hoping to earn a buck off Cambodia's railroads has found out that the going will be tough:

  'David Kerr, CEO of Toll Holdings Group Cambodia (THGC), asked the government to put regulations and infrastructure in place, which are needed to fix the country’s railways'.

  Should have thought that before signing up ...

• A promise is what? Cebu Pacific had promised to start to fly to Cambo land this April, but nothing seems to be in the pipeline. This thread on Khmer 440 seems to suggest that it's not such a bad thing ...

  'Cebu Pacific Air is the worst airline I have ever flown--huge delays, booking hassles, canceled flights with no advance notice, refunds that never arrive, and horrible service ...'

• Promises? That's what they hope what will get the Sihanouk airport up and running.

  'Sihanoukville airport is still struggling to attract airlines due to the enduring slump in the regional travel industry, according to an official at Societe Concessionaire des Aeroports (SCA), the French firm that manages the Kingdom’s airports.
  Still, not a single airline has agreed to flights to the airport despite the offer of zero percent airport tax.
  SCA’s Chief Planning Officer Tanguy Bertolus said Tuesday that new national carrier Cambodia Angkor Air (CAA), a joint venture between the government and Vietnam Airlines, was showing reluctance to fly to the recently renovated airport due to the difficult economic climate.
  “Cambodia Angkor is a subsidiary of Vietnam Airlines and the Cambodian government, and they are not really keen right now to take risks and open new lines,” he said'.

  That's goobledigook. The company has only been existing for 12 months and the situation when they started was probably worse than now. So why are they backtracking?

• More tourist related info. As in the previous editions of CC the ... 'boat cartel' ... Though they call themselves a Water Transport Association, they have been trying to cream off the boat owners by imposing themselves and getting the tourists to foot the bill. The way it works:

  'Ly Puthy, association president, said a letter thumbprinted by all members would be sent to the Tourism, Interior, Public Works and Transport ministries, and to Phnom Penh Governor Kep Chuktema, requesting that Rin Naran – owner of the Chamkar Sne boat – immediately join the association'.

• Talking about boats. Why all the fuss about tourist boats?

  'Two women died when a boat sank on the Mekong River in Prey Veng province on Friday, police said, the most recent of a string of such incidents throughout the Kingdom prompting officials to issue warnings about the dangers of overloading passenger boats and other vessels'.

• Tourism helps? After visiting Cambodia in 2007 (by bicycle) Dan Austin decided to get help in, by donating cycles to children. In Cambodia of course, in Uganda, in Peru. The organisation 88 Bikes, gets a (very positive) roll call on CBS News. 88 is the cost of donating a bicycle.
  

• Has someone picked up on this? Phnom Penh is to become clean? Cambodian Beginnings has a short blog entry.

  'However, as of next month Phnom Penh City Hall intends to rectify the state of it's streets. 5000 riel fines (US $1.20) will be administered to anyone seen discarding rubbish in public places. The boulevards are wide, tree-lined and quite beautiful in some places. Perhaps this fine will go some way in returning Phnom Penh to it's hayday of being the 'Paris of the East' in the 1950's'.

• Elsewhere in the city the officials are trying to prevent anarchy from amorous bulls.

  'Police in the capital’s Dangkor district have seized 15 wayward cows and bulls after a recent spate of incidents in which lustful bulls have vigorously pursued potential mates, disrupting traffic and endangering passersby, officials said'.

  This even made the international press. Or better said the Malaysian press.
  

• A clinic in Phnom Penh was closed down due to complaints following a traffic accident. Or not?

  'The Health Ministry has opted to shut down a medical clinic that was accused of negligence in its treatment of a man who succumbed to injuries sustained in a traffic accident last week, the director of the Phnom Penh Municipal Health Department said Sunday.
  ...
  “The association ran a health-care business without approval from the Ministry of Health and was shut down,” Sok Sokun, the municipal Health Department director, said Sunday. “It will be allowed to reopen only after it receives an official license to operate from the ministry.”'

Just outside Phnom Penh

• And did I mention that Phnom Penh once more slipped up an opportunity to join in with WNBR? As Byron Bay, Melbourne, Canberra, Lima, Adelaide, Golden Bay, Sydney, Sao Paulo.
  This (northern hemisphere) summer then?
  

Putting law into practice: a first?

Finally the new traffic law seems to be kicking in, that is if you believe the Associated Press original article. Not only that, it's turned out to be world news:

UK's The Sun:

'Cow in custody for killing six'

Japan's Mainichi:

'Cambodian cow in police custody for killing motorists'

The same caption from US AOL:

'Cambodian cow in police custody for killing motorists'

So how now, brown cow? Sorry it was a 'white' cow. The referred to incident:

'A Cambodian cow was taken into police custody for causing traffic accidents that resulted in the deaths of at least six people this year, a police official said Tuesday. The cow's owner could also face a six-month prison term under a new traffic law that holds people responsible for accidents caused by their animals, said Pin Doman, a police chief on the outskirts of Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh'.

Well, well, indeed. The trouble is that the law is not being enforced, partially because the politicians who cobbled it together and gave their blessing to it, had no idea what was in it! Unfortunately, this unique fact (new traffic law being enforced finally) is a non-fact; cows can not be arrested under the new law. There's no provision for that.

As the accident(s) happened at night:

'The white, 1.5-meter (5-foot) tall cow was standing in the middle of a main road Monday night when a 66-year-old motorcyclist crashed into the animal and died. Most Cambodian roads are dark at night [most roads anywhere are dark at night full stop!].'

The law would have required the following (Art. 34, no 2):

'At night or daytime, if cannot see well, animal herders have to hold white light in front and red light in the back'.

It is unclear if this applies to the herder or to the cow. And what the penalty could be. But either way it seems the cow was in violation of the new traffic law. Welcome to the team, Crossing Cambodia says, as every single person in Cambodia is in violation of this law: it's simply not enforceable.

Well, if this feat (killing one motorcyclist) seems incredulous the article adds:

'Earlier this year, the same cow was responsible for another traffic accident that resulted in the death of five people and several injuries, when a truck veered off the road and crashed as its driver tried to avoid the animal.'

There are actually so many angles on this story, let's start by a anonymous comment over on KI Media:

'Other domesticated animals to watch out for on the roads include dog, chicken, buffalo, pig, duck, and cat. I have a friend whose car ran over a small pig crossing the road some time ago. He was stopped by the police and forced to pay $50 compensation to the pig owner. Had it been a big pig his car would have overturned and he may have been killed or injured. However, that was not their understanding on what the public roads are used for'.

That was probably before the new traffic law , ....

James Sok on www.cambodia.org applauds the efforts of Cambodia's finest:

'This is an evidence of good law enforcement in Cambodia. This proves the critics of Cambodian police wrong. Cambodian police does its job very properly according to the law and regulation.

It is not an easy task to arrest a cow like this. Imagine, Cambodian police officers do not have special equipment to handle such arrest. However, police department under effective command of His Excellency Commissioner General of the National Police does a very good job.

Bravo!!!'

Quite right, but as said the police are not enforcing the law just bringing their own view of things into practice.

The original article was from October the ninth. Cambodia Daily (12-10-2007) got into this piece of World Breaking News. They use the caption:

'Detained Cow Is a Repeat Traffic-Law Offender'.

The Cambodia Daily adds, that the driver who crashed was

'a drunk motorcyclist'.

The police chiefs name is

'Tin'

Doman, not Pin. The prior accident resulted in

'three deaths'

not five. The first time around the owner's were let off. The cow only

'suffered minor injuries [that's good news!]'.

Understandingly (at least in Cambodia) the cow is gaining some cult following. As Cambodia's past shows killers can be popular and revered. The owner:

'reveres the cow and believes it to be the cause of good fortune in business'.

Let's hope he means in the long term; the cow is now not under 'arrest' anymore but has been confiscated after

'the family of the victim refused the first offer of $125'.

A second compensation offer is in the pipeline. Finally, the cow is

'somewhat of a celebrity in the village'.

Despite all this nonsense it ultimately points out how utterly incompetent the Cambodian law enforcement is being carried out. Perfectly sensible measures aimed at the entire nation's population's safety are disrespected; but beware if you are an opposition party or an open critic of Cambodia's regime, law enforcement will catch up with you even before you know you are astray of any law.

Well, that's Cambodia