1. COTTON CAMBODIA Tiffani Nguyen

2. INTRODUCTION  Cambodia is located at the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and the Gulf of Thailand.  Cambodia has a population of over 14.8 million people.  The country has several minority groups including Vietnamese, Chinese, Chams and 30 hill tribes.  The main religious practice of the Cambodian people is Theravada Buddhism.

3. POLITICS  Government type: multiparty coalition democracy under a constitutional monarchy  Capital: Phnom Penh  Independence: November 9, 1953 (from France)  Chief of State: King Norodom Sihamoni  Head of Government: Prime Minister Hun Sen  Leading political parties: Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia (FUNCINPEC), Norodom Ranariddh Party (NRP), Sam Rangsi Party (SRP).  Cambodia suffered genocide under the Communist Khmer Rouge regime, led by Pol Pot from 1975-1978. Vietnam overthrew the regime and occupied Cambodia for 10 years.  UN-sponsored elections were held in 1993 to create the first coalition government after 13 years of civil war

4. ECONOMY  GDP $32.95 billion (2011 est.)  8.8 million labor force (2010 est.)  From 2004-2007, Cambodia’s economy steadily grew 10% per year, sustained mostly by the garment and tourism industries but has declined a as a result of the global recession.  In 2008, the garment industry made up 80% of Cambodia’s total exports, with about 62% of garments exported to the United States.  Currency: 4,006 riel per US $1 (exchange rate 2007). The dollar is Cambodia’s “de-facto” currency.

5. LEGAL SYSTEM  The legal system is based on civil law, customary law, and common law with a basis of Communist legal theory Cambodia  United Nations Transitional Authority in also functions in Cambodia.  As a member of the United Nations, Cambodia is also subject to compulsory International Court of Justice jurisdiction as well as International Criminal Court jurisdiction.  A combined UN-Cambodian tribunal was established in 2003 to oversee trials of the surviving Khmer Rouge leaders

6. LEGAL SYSTEM  The legal system is based on civil law, customary law, and common law with a basis of Communist legal theory Cambodia  United Nations Transitional Authority in also functions in Cambodia.  As a member of the United Nations, Cambodia is also subject to compulsory International Court of Justice jurisdiction as well as International Criminal Court jurisdiction.  A combined UN-Cambodian tribunal was established in 2003 to oversee trials of the surviving Khmer Rouge leaders

7. MAJOR FIBER PRODUCED  The most popular fabric produced in Cambodia is silk.  Put patterns of flowers and birds, mythical or realistic, often showing Khmer tales, scenes from Angkor Wat, and the life of Lord Buddha  They use natural dyes made from plants.  They get their red dye from lac insect nests, blue dye from indigo, yellow and green from Prohut bark, violet dye from violets, and black dye from ebony bark.  Cotton is also popular in Cambodia especially woven cotton.

8. Rationale Level 2- Activities related to Textile Manufacturing