🤑 Cambodia's Bordertown Sin City Is a Post-Apocalyptic Gamblers' Hell - VICE

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That means less hassle with visas. Many are just tourists who have bought overland trips from Bangkok to the ancient Cambodian temple complex of Angkor Wat, which often includes a night's stopover at the border casinos. The area is just a few hundred metres wide and lies between the official Cambodian border crossing and the actual border with Thailand. In May , it became known around the world when a convoy of open lorries brought several hundred foreigners to safety following the Khmer Rouge's takeover in Phnom Penh--events that were later immortalized in the film The Killing Fields. Two worlds, separated by a wooden barrier. In Poipet, a non-governmental organization worker says land for the casinos was acquired by military interests in a less than proper manner. In the s, after they were driven from power, Khmer Rouge guerrillas held out for years in the area around Poipet: The land around here was--and still is in some areas--littered with landmines. In January, Cambodian mobs stormed and burnt down the Thai embassy and several Thai businesses in Phnom Penh over an alleged insult to their country by a Thai actress. We do get paid for published articles but research and investigations take time and are costly. And it's not a small undertaking. Sant Sarutanond, was quoted by the Associated Press as saying, "I strongly support the legalization of casinos because we can save billions of dollars that flow from the country every year. Asia Pacific Media Services is a non-profit media organisation and not a commercial enterprise. It was an unlikely place for a casino centre. There are now eight casinos in Poipet, which makes this otherwise nondescript border town, about four hours' drive from Bangkok, the biggest gambling centre in Asia after Macau in southern China. They were keen to see the situation resolved as the anti-Thai riots had led to the closure of the border, cutting off access to their casinos.

On Cambodia's frontier, the Poipet casino enclave has taken just four years to become a major gambling centre. But the two Sino-Cambodians are not the only casino owners in Poipet. It's also a lot easier for the many foreigners--Filipino and Malaysian croupiers, Thai shop assistants and Western casino managers--who are working inside this de facto no-man's land.

Who's going to check their Cambodian casinos in cambodia border and work permits, not to mention operating licences? But it could all vanish as quickly as it appeared. In August last year, Thailand's police chief, Gen. One casino still survives in Phnom Penh--the Naga Resort--but the others had to close or move.

Casino-gambling is banned in Thailand, so why not build casinos just across the border in Cambodia? On the other side: Glitzy, air-conditioned hotels, duty-free shops, massage parlours, an hole golf course, manicured lawns and beer gardens with quick and efficient service.

Cambodia's first casinos were casinos in cambodia border in Phnom Penh inbut inPrime Minister Hun Sen banned gaming within kilometres of the visit web page. Donations will casinos in cambodia border channelled through the PayPal account of our chief correspondent, Mr.

A stream of old motorbikes and battered pick-up trucks negotiates a pot-holed, dusty road, swerving to avoid raggedly dressed farmers pulling casinos in cambodia border carts to market.

The casinos feature blackjack, baccarat, roulette and slot machines--but the big bets are done away from the gaming halls in private VIP rooms. The only buildings are rundown shophouses and makeshift food stalls.

There's also concern in Poipet about where the casino money is going--a subject of much speculation. This casino enclave sits on the western edge of the Cambodian border town of Poipet.

Thais, too, are becoming concerned about the loss of money to border casinos, not just in Cambodia but also in neighbouring parts of Laos and Casinos in cambodia border, and a debate has begun on legalizing gambling.

Stranger still, they exist inside just one country, Cambodia. If you enjoy this website and its links, a donation, no matter how small or large, would be much appreciated and will go directly to supporting our ability to continue investigating and writing independently on issues such as organised crime, ethnic and political insurgencies, and regional security.

It's a perfect arrangement for the mainly Thai gamblers and the casino owners. Winners potawatomi casino are grateful for the support of our readers.

Bertil Lintner. Most of the money to build these casinos has come from investors in Thailand, but cash has also flowed from Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan and China.

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But placing them before the Cambodian border checkpoint allows the gamblers to leave Thailand without officially entering the neighbouring country. And, above all, casinos. In , the Holiday Poipet Casino was built, metres from the Thai border. Just down the road is the bridge on the Khlong Leuk canal, which forms the border with Thailand. Son Chhay, an opposition politician from the Sam Rainsy Party, says very little of it stays in the area. But some of the owners became publicly known earlier this year in a completely unexpected way. Other border areas in Cambodia have followed suit, most recently Bavet on the Vietnamese border, which is now home to the Le Macau Casino and Hotel. Westerners are few and far between. Phnom Penh couldn't afford to pay up, and so turned to two Poipet gambling tycoons called Kok An and Pad Suphapa to help cover the bill. Visit us on Facebook. As Cambodia doesn't have any gaming law or proper registration of the casinos, their ownership is obscure. On one side of the immigration and customs barrier, there is poverty and chaos. Opposition politicians and Western diplomats in Phnom Penh claim the casinos are run by the usual triumvirate of politicians, military officers and businessmen, and that they come from both countries. We are freelance journalists who make our living from writing for other outlets. That dramatic past faded into history when the gambling boom began.