Thong Uypang
Thong Uypang, 67, is the owner and was the editor-in-chief of Koh Santepheap, one of the most popular newspapers in Cambodia. At 19, he started to work as the editor-in-chief of Koh Santepheap, a newly established newspaper created by his teacher. But in 1975, when the Khmer Rouge took power in Cambodia, Uypang and his family were evacuated to Prey Veng and the newspaper stopped its publication.
After the fall of Khmer Rouge, Uypang started working at the ministry of Telecommunications, Transport and Posts (ក្រសួងគមនាគមន៍ ដឹកជញ្ជូន និងប្រៃសណីយ៍) as a secretary to a deputy minister. In 1993, he was granted a license from the ministry of information to republish Koh Santepheap and quit his job at the Ministry. Together with his wife, Yin Phanny, they republished the paper and self-funded it.
Uypang was the publisher of the newspaper when he survived an assassination attempt in 1998 and is believed to have links with the CPP.
Uypang remained the publisher and editor-in-chief of the newspaper until 2005. He also holds the title of Oknha since 2002 and is a member the Solidarity Front for Development of the Cambodian Motherland (SFDCM) (រណសិរ្សសាមគ្ដីអភិវឌ្ឍន៍មាតុភូមិកម្ពុជា), which created on December 2, 1978 and toppled the Khmer Rouge regime in 1979 with the support of Vietnam. Even though Uypang is no longer the official editor-in-chief of Koh Satepheap, he still overseas and supervises the content and publication of the Koh Santeapheap group media outlets. He now lives in Phnom Penh with his wife, daughter and his son-in-law, while his youngest son is living in the US.
Further Information
Headlines
Sources
Reang, P. & Moeun, C. N. (2006). Investigative reporting: A handbook for Cambodian journalists
Phone Interview with Thong Uypang, owner and founder of Koh Santepheap