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Posted by: | Posted on: May 14, 2012

The Cambodian Wild West Good economics can only do so much without good politics

That’s no recipe for long-term growth, the lesson being that political institutions like the bureaucracy and courts matter. Cambodia might be exceptional in the extent that it lacks institutions, but in the government’s current intent, there’s a whiff of the same attitude prevalent in other Asian capitals. Mr. Hun Sen wants to be likened to the strongmen of Asia who have lifted their nations into modernity, yet his own example shows why strongmen who focus on economics without bothering about creating accountable political systems might leave a poor legacy for their countries.

By ABHEEK BHATTACHARYA
Phnom Penh

Tiny Cambodia might seem like the most exciting place for business in Asia these days. Regulations are minimal and often non-existent. Income taxes are left simple. Returns on capital won’t get debased by the government, since the reigning currency is the U.S. dollar. Judging by sheer growth—Phnom Penh hit double digits often last decade—these sound like the right ingredients for a successful frontier market.

There are a lot of frontier men here trying to succeed too, including foreigners. Leopard Capital CEO Douglas Clayton, one such foreigner who runs a $34 million private-equity fund in Cambodia, reckons one of the reasons for the country’s success is that “it treats local and foreign investors the same.” Foreigners can own 100% of just about anything, which makes Cambodia “one of the only free economies in emerging Asia,” he says.

But on closer look, Cambodia isn’t free. It’s a free-for-all, where without proper rules, only the most well-connected thrive. The country may be prospering now, but over time, it will prove to be a reminder that even fast-developing societies can’t do without one key ingredient: political reform that helps enforce the rule of law.

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Posted by: | Posted on: May 7, 2012

The Purpose and Meaning Vishaka Celebration 2556

Namo Sakya Muni Buddha;
Venerable Monks, Nuns and Members of International Buddhist Foundation
Ladies, Gentlemen and Distinguished Guests,

Today, we are gathered here to celebrate the most sacred and auspicious day for Buddhists worldwide. This day was also recognized by the United Nations as the most sacred day and passed a resolution on December 15, 1999 as the Global Holiday.

Vesak or Visakha in Pali language means the sixth month of lunar calendar. On a full moon day of this month, three very powerful events transpired in Buddha life.

1st His Birth: In the scripture (Tri Pittaka) describes that “Lord Buddha was born on Friday, full moon of Vesak, the year of dog in Lumbini Park (probably on May 13, 624 B.C.)”

2nd His Enlightenment: Buddha renounced his luxurious palace life at age 29 to seek Enlightenment. For six years He practiced the ancient methods of self denial (Dukkharakiriya) until his skin emaciated and blood dried out without achieving Enlightenment. Then He realized that extreme asceticism was not the answer.

Finally, through using his own method of middle path (Majjhimakka Padipadha) at age 35 Buddha attained Enlightenment. It was on a Wednesday, full moon of Vesak, the year of Rooster (probably on May 13, 589 B.C.) Lord Buddha then embarked on His journey from place to place and tirelessly taught the Dhamma for 45 years.

3rd: His Parinibbaba. Lord Buddha ascended to Parinibbana at age 80 in Kusinara district. It was a Tuesday, on a full moon day of Vesak, the year of Snake (probably on May 13, 544 B.C.),

On this especial day we should be mindful of Buddha’s final advice: “all compound things are constantly changing and decaying, so strive on diligently to achieve individual goal.”

We are grateful to the founding members of the International Buddhist Foundation for celebrating this day since its inception. On behalf of The International Buddhist Foundation I would like to thank all communities and their members for their support and participation. We are grateful to the Prajna Buddhist Temple of Vietnamese community for hosting this event at this beautiful temple.

Sophan Seng
President of International Buddhist Foundation of Canada (IBF)
President of Khmer-Canadian Youth Association of Alberta

Posted by: | Posted on: May 3, 2012

Sri Lanka-Cambodia Relations with Special Reference to the Period 14th – 20th Centuries

Dr. Hema Goonatilake, Sri Lanka-Cambodia Relations with Special Reference to the Period 14th – 20th Centuries.

Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka,

New Series, Volume XLVIII, Special Number
Issued on July 21, 2003 to commemorate the
250th Anniversary of Upasampada in Sri Lanka

The emergence of Theravada Buddhism in Cambodia is conventionally traced back to the 13th century A.C. However, there is emerging epigraphical and sculptural evidence, that Buddhism of both the Mahavihara and Abhayagiri of Sri Lanka had made a strong early impact on the development of Theravada Buddhism in South East Asia when a good part of this region was dominated from about the 5th-6th century A.C. by the Mon Khmer culture, and later became part of the Khmer empire.

The movement of Buddhist monks and teachers from Sri Lanka to the region was facilitated by advances in navigation technology that witnessed a quantum leap during the period of the fourth-fifth centuries. This helped the spread of the Pali language, the lingua franca of Theravada through

Pali texts written in Sri Lanka.

 Cambodian monk translates Sri Lankan Pali text into Chinese

         From the first to the sixth century, Funan, the earliest known kingdom in Cambodia with Oc Eo (in present day Vietnam), as the central port, was a trading power, and known as the most powerful kingdom in mainland Southeast Asia. The capital city of Funan was Phnom Ksach Sa in the province of present day Prey Veng in Cambodia. According to a local legend, the kingdom was founded by an Indian Brahmin named Kaundinya (Chinese form: Hun-t’ien) after subduing the queen of Funan, Soma (Chinese form: Liu-ye), a legend paralleling our Vijaya-Kuveni legend.

During the fifth and sixth centuries, Funan was an important centre of Buddhist learning (P. Pelliot, “Le Fou-nan”, BEFEO, vol. III,1903, Briggs 1951, p. 12). According to the Chinese History of Southern Ts’i (479-501), the King of Funan, Kaundiya Jayavarman  (478-514) sent in 484, an Indian Buddhist monk, Nagasena, a resident of Funan as ambassador to the Court of the Chinese Emperor Wu-ti taking ivory stupas with him. According to another Chinese source, History of Leang (502-556), the same king sent another envoy to China in 503 with gifts including a coral statue of the Buddha (Hazra, 1981, p. 73). These illustrate the importance of Funan as a centre of Buddhism then.

         One of the earliest references to Buddhist relations between Cambodia [Funan] and Sri Lanka goes back to 505 A.C. The Vimuttimagga, (a manual of practical instructions on sila, samadhi and panna) a Pali text of the Abhayagiri school of Sri Lanka, composed by Upatissa in the 2nd century
A.C., exists today in the Chinese language. At the invitation of the Chinese emperor, the Funanese monks Mandrasena and Sanghabhara (or Sanghapala) had taken many Theravada and Mahayana texts to China. It was the latter who translated the Vimuttimagga into Chinese in 505 A.C. (Demieville et al 1978). The Pali language and the Abhayagiri tradition of Theravada, it can be concluded, was known in Cambodia during this time. It may be noted here that it was several decades before this time that the Chinese Buddhist monk Fa-Hsien stayed at the Abhayagiri Vihara, and went back to China with a large number of Buddhist texts written in Sri Lanka.

Further evidence for the presence of Pali Language in CambodiaThere is other evidence for an early Pali presence. A statue of the Buddha with an inscription with the formula in the Pali language “Ye dhamma…” was found near Toul Preah in the province of Prey Veng in Southern Cambodia (IC, Vol. I, p. 297). The whole inscription is in Pali with only the word hetuprabhava in Sanskrit. On the basis of the script, Bhattacharya has dated this inscription to the 7th century. The presence of the Pali language in the 7th century in the Southern part of Cambodia indicates that Theravada Buddhism existed there at the time, at least in some pockets.

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Posted by: | Posted on: April 3, 2012

An ASEAN Peacekeeping Force in Myanmar?

An ASEAN Peacekeeping Force would have been invaluable last year, at the height of the Thai-Cambodian spat, to patrol the contested border area as part of a conflict resolution mechanism. While tensions are currently deflated, the problem endures and can re-erupt at any time.  ASEAN should be prepared to react the next time. A credible multinational standby force could also demonstrate ASEAN’s determination to stand together in the face of outside threats in the South China Sea and elsewhere.

PacNet #23 Monday, April 2, 2012

An ASEAN Peacekeeping Force in Myanmar?

By Fuadi Pitsuwan

Fuadi Pitsuwan (pitsuwan2@gmail.com) is a graduate student at Harvard’s Kennedy School and a WSD-Handa Fellow at the Pacific Forum CSIS in Hawaii. The views expressed in this article are the author’s, not those of his affiliations.

Does the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) want to sustain itself and hold credible weight in international politics? Does it want to develop and possess the ability to respond to potential challenges faced individually or collectively by its members? If so, then ASEAN should consider the establishment of a regional multinational standby force with a dual purpose of peacekeeping and collective defense against extra-regional threats.

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