Bricks laid for memorial

Bricks laid for memorial

PHNOM PENH (AFP): Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy laid on Thursday the first brick of a controversial memorial to victims of an unsolved 1997 grenade attack on a political rally which left at least 16 of his followers dead.

The groundbreaking ceremony -- led by Rainsy and attended by U.S. ambassador Kent Wiedemann -- was held just over a month after a face-saving deal between Rainsy and city authorities over the shrine, ending months of bickering.

The memorial will be the fifth after previous ones were removed by authorities and dumped.

At the end of June, city governor Chea Sophara gave permission for a permanent memorial about 100 meters from the previous site outside the national assembly where the grenade attack occurred.