Jungle girl disappears

Remember the jungle girl, she's gone again:

Cambodia's mysterious "jungle girl" has disappeared back into the forests where she was found less than a year ago, police said Tuesday. The wild woman believed by the parents of Rochom P'ngieng to be their long-lost daughter melted back into the jungle about a month ago and searches for her have proven fruitless, said Ley Tom, O'Yadaw district deputy police chief in the remote north-eastern province of Ratanakiri. (Source)

The district deputy police chief thinks she's just crazy...

A safe city is a just city

... is the theme of World Habitat Day, which is today! What is a safe city? Is it a city that you can walk around at any time of the day or night, wearing whatever pleases you, and not walk in fear? There are very few cities that are safe if that is the definition.

One of the most significant causes of fear and insecurity in many cities today is crime and violence.

• Between 1990 and 2000, incidents of violent crime per 100,000 persons increased from 6 to 8.8 (UN-Habitat 2007)
• Recent studies show that over the past five years, 60 per cent of all urban residents in the world have been victims of crime, with 70 per cent in Latin America and the Caribbean (UN-Habitat 2007) UN-Habitat Press Release
  

The statistics are presented in the press release are accurate and reflect research. However, I wonder about the gender balance. Women and girls are much more at risk of violence in any city, and yet statistics refer to "persons". Does that mean that the default is man? That is unacceptable.

Got him!

Nuon Chea has been arrested!

Nuon Chea was put on a helicopter at his jungle home to fly to the capital, Phnom Penh, to appear before a panel of judges, witnesses said.

The 82-year-old was second-in-command to Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot.

More than a million people are thought to have died during the four years of Khmer Rouge rule between 1975-79.

Nuon Chea, who was also known as "brother number two", has been living alongside Khieu Samphan, once the Khmer Rouge's head of state, in Pailin, the movement's former jungle headquarters.

Police and court officials went to his home near the Thai border early on Wednesday to question him, witnesses said.

He was then taken under police escort to a helicopter for the flight to Phnom Penh. (Source)

Not a good guy and looks ancient. Hope he survives long enough to give evidence and get convicted.

Another spanner in the works?

You know it is amazing to me that Cambodia purports to be a democratic country with the normal rules and procedures, and then a member of the royal family publicly requests the PM to override a government agreement, demonstrating that there is no democracy here.

Prince Sisowath Thomico proposed to prime minister Hun Sen to review the possibility to shut down the KR Tribunal (KRT), claiming that this mixed tribunal cannot find justice, but that it is instead fomenting political movements and it will cause instability to the country and take away peace.

Prince Thomico added: “Moving forward, I am certain that this tribunal (KRT) will foment political movements and causes our country to lose peace and stability in the future.” The prince added: “I have the honor to send a letter to Samdach prime minister so that he reviews the possibility to shut down the ECCC at this point.” (Source)

Of course, the tribunal is politicised. How could it not be? The national and UN staff are trying to determine who is the most responsible for the genocide. Politicians and others are trying to absolve the general populace from complicity by insisting that only the leaders of the KR bear any responsibility. What baffles me is that people like Ta Mok aka the Butcher were given a heroes funeral, even after committing appalling atrocities.

People want justice and people want the truth. It is, of course, too late to try people like Ta Mok and Pol Pot, this process should have taken place 15 years ago, but at least it is finally happening. Justice may not be total but the truth will come out. Many are scared of that, of their own complicity.

And now Thomico tries to throw another spanner in the works. So many people are trying to derail the tribunal or slow it down significantly. It is a process that needs to happen and the people deserve the truth. Let the ECCC and the UNKART do their work.

Blink and miss

Was I the only one who missed Matt Dillon at Elsewhere on Friday evening? I was there but amazingly enough could not see any Hollywood stars!

Got a response from Cosmo

Last week I wrote a letter to Cosmo to complain about their disgusting grey rape article, and today I received this in reply:

Dear Reader,

We received your letter of concern regarding our September story “A New Kind of Date Rape” and want to address what seems to be a misunderstanding. Cosmopolitan did not invent the term gray rape. The phrase emerged when the author of our article, Laura Sessions Stepp, was researching a book on today’s hookup culture.

In fact, the words were used by women who were left confused after a sexual encounter they were not one hundred percent sure they had consented to and by women who had known friends who were similarly confused. The confusion, many of these women admitted, was the result of having been under the influence of alcohol at the time of the encounter. Our article endeavored to help victims in these situations make sense of their ordeal, explain their avenues of recourse, and offer advice on how women can prevent so-called gray rapes from happening.

Cosmopolitan has a long history of covering the topic of sexual assault and, more important, of being an advocate for victims. Linda Fairstein, a former Manhattan sex-crimes prosecutor of 25 years, is a regular contributor to our pages. She and other rape experts applaud Cosmopolitan’s efforts to keep our readers educated about such difficult issues as sexual assault.

Sincerely,

The Editors of Cosmopolitan

Right, thanks for the generic response, Cosmo. Other letter writers got exactly the same one. Thanks for not addressing a single one of my points. Nowhere did I claim that Cosmo invented the term grey rape. No one thinks that, so get over your wounded puppy dog eyes already. Why do you think that women who have suffered sexual assault and rape are confused? Well let's count the reasons shall we?

• the media portrays rape as something that happens in a dark alley so how could it possibly be rape if you know the man or have had sex with him before
• 'My boyfriend would never do that to me. Would he?'
• 'She was wearing a red dress. What did she expect?
• 'You asked for it.'
• 'You were drunk'

For many other reasons that society teaches women that it's not rape unless you are a teetotaller virgin. It's misogyny. It's judgemental. It's "why can't you stay home like a good girl? Why don't you wait until you're are married and then you can give up your silly little career and produce babies. Won't that make you happy?"

For more information, play rape bingo by Midnight Louise!

Of course women are confused and angry and upset but they should not have to try and minimise their experiences. Our society denies non-violent rape victims a context to frame their experiences. The common perception that it is only rape if it is a stranger in a dark alley has been proved false time and time again. The vast majority of women are raped by their partners, friends or relatives. And yet there is no acceptance of this, which is why women may express the doubts mentioned.

No consent = rape

There is no doubt in my mind that your article was irresponsible and will increase the confusion among young women. A retraction and an apology would be more fitting.

You drive in PP? Read this

From KI Media:

Kep Chuktema, the governor of Phnom Penh... ordered the posting of police and military police officers at all 38 light stops in the city of Phnom Penh, in order to efficiently put into application this new traffic law, starting 03 September.

He said that there should not be any wait for a meeting to inform about this law. Kep Chuktema ordered the posting of 5 civilian police officers and 5 military police officers at each stop light to put into application the new law. Kep Chuktema said that the application of the law does not mean that the 10 police officers stationed at each stop light should stop vehicles to demand bribes, but only for them to stop these vehicles to explain to their owners about the new traffic law.

He said that he ordered the cops not to fine the motorists, however, should fine be issued, receipts must be provided by the Ministry of Interior or by the Ministry of Finance. If no receipts are provided for the fines, the cops involved can be sentenced to jail between 6 months to 3 years. Kep Chuktema said that the cops at the stop lights must call in motorists to explain about the traffic law after 9:00 AM only, in order to avoid creating traffic jams.

So avoid the traffic lights until you've got your licence, unless you want to pay bribes!

Apologies to Monty Python

My phone tripped down the stairs this morning.

It's not pining, it's passed on. This phone is no more. It has ceased to be. It's expired and gone to meet its maker. This is a late phone. It's a stiff. Bereft of life, it rests in peace. If you hadn't glued it together, it would be pushing up the daisies. Its mechanical processes are now history! It's off the twig! It's kicked the bucket, it's shuffled off his mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the choir invisible! This is an ex-phone!

I will sacrifice my lunchtime to go shopping for a new lifeline, of the Nokia kind.