Monday, April 22nd, 2019

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Posted by: | Posted on: April 22, 2019

Cambodia to Arizona: Bo Dul’s extraordinary journey to democracy

Cambodia to Arizona: Bo Dul’s extraordinary journey to democracy

Op-Ed: Arizona Capital Times, By: Katie Campbell and Carmen Forman April 19, 2019


Founders Day 2018: Sambo “Bo” Dul – Young Alumni Achievement Award
Sambo “Bo” Dul is the elections director under Secretary of State Katie Hobbs

Sambo “Bo” Dul wasn’t born in a democracy.

Her father gave his life to smuggle her and her family out of Cambodia following the Khmer Rouge genocide.

Thirty-five years later, she’s a crucial cog in Arizona’s elections.

On January 7, Secretary of State Katie Hobbs tapped Dul, a former election law attorney at Perkins Coie, to be her elections director.

“It was very hard to think of leaving [Perkins Coie], but I also couldn’t not think about it,” Dul said. “It was like once that genie came out of the bottle, I couldn’t put it back in.”

PATRIOTS

Dul was born in Cambodia at one of the most tumultuous times in the country’s history.

Her family fled the aftermath of the Khmer Rouge genocide when she was just a year old.

The trek to a refugee camp on the Thai-Cambodian border was perilous. Her father didn’t survive.

Pure luck may have been all that kept Dul, her pregnant mother and siblings alive.

Crying babies aren’t ideal for quietly fleeing a country, so her family slipped Dula sleeping pill before the trip.

As the Duls approached the Thai-Cambodian border under the cover of night, the sleeping pill wore off. Dul, finding herself in the arms of a stranger as her mother had grown too weary to carry her, started wailing.

That might’ve been the end, but the wind was blowing away from the soldiers lining the border, carrying the sound of her cries in the opposite direction. She was carried to safety.

She lived in the camp on the Cambodian-Thai border until she was 5.

Her family arrived in the United States as refugees in the 1980s.

Her mother, Leng Poch Dul, didn’t speak English, so Dul was in charge of completing her family’s immigration paperwork and securing their place in the U.S.

While in high school, the Dul family’s immigration status was renewed for another year, but something had gone wrong with her paperwork and immigrations officials couldn’t pinpoint the problem even after she skipped school in Tempe to go to the immigration office in Phoenix.

Her experience highlighted how bureaucratic errors could plunge the lives of immigrants into a tailspin of anxiety, anger and even resignation.

“At some point, I was just like what can I do? There’s nothing I can do?” she said.

It took nearly a year for Dul to find out that someone had misfiled her paperwork. All this time, she feared deportation.

Dul later became a U.S. citizen, and took full advantage of what America has to offer.

She graduated summa cum laude with three degrees from Arizona State University, and went on to simultaneously earn a law degree from New York University and a master’s degree in public affairs from Princeton University. She built a successful law career and a family of her own.

And she set out to help others like her family through a pro bono immigration law program called the Phoenix Legal Action Network or PLAN.

Telling her story isn’t always easy, but it’s evenmore important now than ever to combat misinformation about other immigrants who fought so hard to get to America, she said.

Dul said it’s important to share what she went through – and what she does now – out of love for America, Arizona and democracy. Stories like hers prove that immigrants can be “patriots,” too.

INVALUABLE

Attorney Roopali Desai had made the call and given the pitch.

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Posted by: | Posted on: April 22, 2019

Cambodia hires Brownstein Hyatt

កុងត្រាជាមួយមន្ត្រីព្រឹទ្ធសភាជាន់ទាបថ្នាក់ឃុំសង្កាត់រដ្ឋវ៉ាសុឺនតោនក្នុងទឹកប្រាក់៥សែនដុល្លាក្នុងមួយខែ ឥឡូវជាមួយក្រុមហ៊ុន Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck ក្នុងទឹកប្រាក់៦សែនដុល្លាក្នុងមួយខែទៀត ដើម្បីជួយឡបប៊ីសហរដ្ឋអមេរិកនូវអ្វីដែលយើងអាចយល់ថាជាការសំរួលអោយសហរដ្ឋអាមេរិកយោគយល់រដ្ឋបាលឯកបក្សរបស់លោកហ៊ុន-សែន។ ក្រោមការដឹកនាំបែបអត្តចរិកពុករលួយ(corrupt mindset) ទោះនាឡិការដៃតំលៃជាង៣លានដុល្លាអាមេរិកក៏ហ៊ានពាក់បង្ហាញជាសាធារណៈដែរ ចុះទំរាំលុយជាតិជាច្រើនយកមកប្រើទិញនិងជួលដើម្បីរក្សាអំណាចផ្ទាល់ខ្លួននោះ មិនមានអ្វីចំលែកទេសម្រាប់មនុស្សវង្វេងផ្លូវលុសក្នុងអំណាចយោងតាមទ្រឹស្តីព្រះពុទ្ធជាម្ចាស់៖ អវិជ្ជា បច្ចយា សង្ខារា នោះ។ តែអ្វីដែលគួរអោយអនិច្ចានោះគឺមានបណ្ឌិតមួយចំនួនហៃអើដើរតាមដានជើងមនុស្សវង្វេងផ្លូវនោះថែមទៀត ដោយមិនគិតគូរដល់អនាគតកូនចៅខ្លួនឯងក៏ដូចជាយុវជនខ្មែរជំនាន់ក្រោយៗទៀតសោះឡើយ។

Cambodia hires Brownstein Hyatt

Op-Ed: Politico, By THEODORIC MEYER (tmeyer@politico.com

04/19/2019 01:52 PM EDT,With Daniel Lippman

BROWNSTEIN HYATT WILL LOBBY FOR CAMBODIA: The government of Cambodia has hired Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck to lobby on its behalf in Washington. “We’re going to be helping to forge and renew their relationship with the U.S. government,” Marc Lampkin, the managing partner of the firm’s Washington office, told PI in an interview. Al MotturDouglas MaguireAri ZimmermanDavid Cohen and Brian McKeon will lobby for the country as well, according to Justice Department filings. The contract is worth $60,000 a month and lasts nearly a year.

— Cambodia has shelled out to bolster its representation in the U.S. over the past month. As PI reported earlier this month, the Cambodian government hired Doug Ericksen, a sitting Washington state senator, and Jay Rodne, a former state representative, to lobby on its behalf through their company, PacRim Bridges LLC. The contract is worth $500,000 a year. Ericksen praised the country’s widely criticized elections last year, calling them “amazingly transparent” and “incredibly well conducted.” Ericksen didn’t respond to PI’s request for comment, but he defended the arrangement in an interview with The Seattle Times. “We could have tried to skirt the rules and not file under FARA,” he said. “We are doing everything out in public. I am just trying to make my way in this world.’”