Garment Workers Gather To Demand More Wages, Better Conditions

Thousands of garment workers gathered in a demonstration in Phnom Penh on Wednesday, to demand better salaries and improved working conditions for the hundreds of thousands of workers in Cambodia’s factories. Workers say a government increase of the minimum wage, to $80 per month, is not enough to keep up with the rising cost of living in the country. The demonstration took place in front of the National Assembly, where representatives of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party and royalist Funcinpec addressed the workers. The demonstration was the first since political parties began ramping up for the July 27 national elections. (Suy Heimkhemra, Phnom Penh)