Off the wire
• Roundup: 1 out of 10 S. Korean companies becomes chronic "zombie": report  • Japan approves "hamburger" design for 2020 Olympics' main stadium  • China Focus: Post 80s consumers critical in economic transition toward consumption  • 1st LD Writethru: 2 killed when plane crashes in Indian capital  • 6 killed in eastern Afghan clash  • Yearender: China's free trade strategy takes shape with new agreements with S. Korea, Australia entering into force  • 1 out of 10 S. Korean companies becomes chronic "zombie": report  • Panama Canal expansion on track to complete in April 2016  • Brazilian president urges LatAm to settle political differences, bolster cooperation  • Panama Canal expansion on track to complete in April 2016  
You are here: 　 Home

Cambodian protesters attack police, injuring 2 officers

Xinhua, December 22, 2015 Adjust font size:

Striking Cambodian factory workers in two special economic zones (SEZs) in eastern Svay Rieng province's Bavet town pelted security forces with stones and injured two military police officers on Tuesday morning, a senior official confirmed.

"Thousands of workers at the Manhattan and Tai Seng SEZs continued their protests this (Tuesday) morning, and they threw rocks at our security forces and fire trucks," Svay Rieng provincial deputy governor Hou Rattanak told Xinhua. "Two military police officers were injured and one fire truck was badly damaged."

The police fired water cannon to disperse them and did not arrest any protesters, he said, denying local media reports that police had used smoke bombs on protesters.

Hou Rattanak said the clash broke out when protesters made their way to other factories to intimidate other workers to join their protests, but were blocked by riot police.

He said police are investigating who is behind the protests, as trade unions denied their involvements.

It was the second consecutive-day skirmish between police and protesters. On Monday, police used water cannon on those protesting workers, detained 58 for education and released them in the evening after they agreed not to use violence or damage property in the future.

Thousands of factory workers at the two SEZs staged protests since Wednesday last week to demand a 20 U.S. dollars raise to the current monthly rate of 128 U.S. dollars, 8 U.S. dollars more than the 140 U.S. dollars figure mandated for 2016 by the government in October.

The Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) said Monday that some 45 factories with more than 30,000 workers at the two SEZs "have suffered serious economic damages, for instance, property damage and complete production loss" due to the protests.

Garment and footwear sector, the kingdom's largest foreign currency earner, are comprised of nearly 1,100 factories with some 700,000 workers, according to the government figures.

The sector exported products worth 3.3 billion U.S. dollars in the first half of 2015, accounted for about 80 percent of the country's total exports. Endit