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PHNOM PENH, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Thousands of tonnes of imported waste bearing skull-and-crossbones danger signs is to be sent back to Taiwan if it is proved toxic, a Cambodian minister said on Tuesday.

Some 3,000 tonnes of the material was found packed in triple-layer plastic sacks bearing the signs near southern Sihanoukville port, Minister of Environment Mok Mareth said.

Cambodian authorities believe the waste is toxic and will order its return if tests prove this, he said.

''If it's not dangerous why do they need to put it in three layers of sack with the skull-and-cross-bones sign and dump it in Cambodia?'' Mok Mareth asked.

''I myself am scared to go too close to the site,'' he told Reuters.

Officials were seeking the help of United Nations agencies to analyse the waste, Mok Mareth said.

''No one knows for sure whether it's radioactive or toxic but the U.N. will help us analyse it. If we find it is toxic we'll send it back to Taiwan,'' Mok Mareth said.

The material was labelled ''construction waste'' and imported from Taiwan last week by a Cambodian firm. It was dumped on land about 10 km (six miles) from Sihanoukville, which is 200 km (125 miles) southwest of Phnom Penh.

Local people had been going to the site, emptying rubble out of the sacks and taking them away to store rice, the minister said.

It is in a watershed area and Mok Mareth said he was worried that the waste could seep into the ground and contaminate water supplies.

TAIPEI, Dec. 16 (Kyodo) -- Taipei has instructed its representative in Vietnam to look into the export of suspected Taiwanese toxic waste to Cambodia, the semiofficial Central News Agency reported Wednesday.

The country's representative office in Ho Chi Minh City, whose responsibilities include neighboring Cambodia, has been asked to speedily contact Cambodian authorities and to confirm details about the shipment of the suspected toxic waste, Foreign Ministry spokesman Roy Wu said, according to the agency.

Cambodian Minister of Environment Mok Mareth was quoted as saying in press reports from Phnom Penh on Tuesday that 3,000 tons of imported waste marked with toxicity danger signs will be sent back to Taiwan if the shipment is proven toxic.

''If it's not dangerous why do they need to put it in three layers of sack with the skull-and-crossbones sign and dump it in Cambodia,'' Mok Mareth said, according to Reuters news agency.

The report said the waste, labeled construction waste, was imported from Taiwan by a Cambodian firm last week and was found near Sihanoukville port, a popular tourist destination. The report added the United Nations would help Cambodia to analyze whether the material is toxic or radioactive.

Wu said Taiwan hopes to get necessary information from the Cambodian side to determine whether the shipment actually originated in Taiwan.

Taiwan, whose nuclear waste dump on Orchid Island is virtually filled to capacity, drew international criticism last year over a commercial deal with North Korea for the permanent dumping of radioactive waste from its three nuclear power plants.

The contract between state utility Taipower, which operates all three nuclear power plants, and cash-hungry North Korea came about after Taiwan had negotiated inconclusively with Russia and rival China over nuclear waste exports.

Taiwan's Atomic Energy Council has not yet approved the planned waste shipments to North Korea on the grounds the future storage site in an abandoned coal mine is not completed.

There was speculation when Taiwan opened diplomatic relations with the Marshall Islands last month that Taiwan is hoping to eventually dump some of its nuclear waste in the Pacific archipelago.

But Taiwan's Foreign Ministry vehemently denied such plans at the time.

By Huw Watkin

Phnom Penh -- Officials are to investigate reports that toxic waste may have been dumped in offshore fishing grounds, following the discovery of suspect material near Cambodia's main port.

Environment Ministry officials said the material, discovered this week 15km from Sihanoukville, was contained in triple-lined sacks bearing the skull-and-crossbones warning sign.

Customs officials said the 200 tonnes of waste was imported by a local company last week as part of a 3,000 tonne shipment from Taiwan described in documents as construction waste.

They said the shipment was approved by "high officials" in Phnom Penh, but declined to give further details.

Taipei has instructed its representative in Vietnam to look into the export of suspected Taiwanese toxic waste to Cambodia, the semi-official Central News Agency reported yesterday.

Environment Minister Mok Mareth said it remained uncertain whether the material was toxic, but that he feared contamination of local water supplies.

Heng Narith, deputy director of the pollution control department, however, said the waste was not radioactive.

He said he believed the waste was from an industrial incineration plant and could contain dangerous heavy metals such as mercury, chromium and lead.

Mr Mareth said local people had emptied some of the sacks and had taken them home for use as bedding or to store rice.

Newspapers reported yesterday that at least four of those people had died after suffering severe bouts of diarrhoea, while others had reported severe skin conditions.

The reports could not be confirmed.

Mr Mareth has set up an inter-ministerial committee to investigate the dumping.

"If we discover this is toxic waste, it will be considered a crime against Cambodia and we will send it back to Taiwan," he said.

But he conceded it might be difficult to find a shipping company which was prepared to return the material without the express approval of Taiwanese authorities.

PHNOM PENH, Dec 17 (Reuters) - A sample of suspected toxic waste imported from Taiwan and dumped near Cambodia's main port has been sent to Hong Kong for analysis while authorities try to determine who is responsible for importing the material, officials said on Thursday.

A team from the interior and environment ministries is investigating and those responsible for dumping the load of some 3,000 tonnes of waste will face legal action, officials said.

''The process of investigation is going on,'' interior ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak told Reuters. ''I'm sure those involved will be brought to trial according to the law.''

Minister of Environment Mok Mareth said he was certain the waste material, in triple-layer plastic sacks bearing skull-and-cross-bone danger signs, was toxic. He said it would be sent back to Taiwan.

''I'm sure it's toxic waste,'' Mok Mareth told Reuters.

''If it's not toxic why do they need to transport it so far and waste money sending it to Cambodia? We must send it back to its country of origin, Taiwan,'' he said.

''We don't let anyone dump waste in Cambodia,'' he said. ''It's bad behaviour, a bad attitude, we must send it back.''

Heng Nareth, deputy director of the pollution control department, said two cans of the material, which was labelled construction waste and dumped about 10 km (six miles) from Sihanoukville port last week, had been sent to Hong Kong for analysis.

Khieu Sopheak declined to comment when asked if any Taiwanese business people connected with the waste shipment were being sought for questioning.

Senior police officials said no arrests had been made so far.

Local people who discovered the dump emptied the rubble out of the sacks and took them away to store rice before they were alerted of the potential danger.

The material was dumped in a watershed area and Mok Mareth said earlier he was worried it could seep into the ground and contaminate water supplies.

Mok Mareth said Singapore and the United Nations Development Programme had also agreed to help identify the suspect material.

TAIPEI, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Taiwan petrochemical giant Formosa Plastics confirmed on Friday that it was the source of 3,000 tonnes of mysterious waste found in Cambodia but said it had been certified as non-toxic.

''It's a misunderstanding. The waste was not toxic,'' said a spokesman for Formosa, Taiwan's top industrial enterprise, who asked that his name not be used.

The spokesman said the material was industrial waste that did contain traces of mercury but had been certified by Taiwan's Environmental Protection Administration as being well below hazardous levels and was safe for landfill disposal.

Cambodia's cabinet was taking no chances, decreeing that the waste must be returned to Taiwan even before hearing the results of toxicology tests ordered from Hong Kong.

''Our position is clear,'' environment minister Mok Mareth said after the cabinet decision. ''We must send it back as soon as possible. We cannot keep it any longer in Cambodia. Otherwise it will kill all Cambodian people.''

Officials said on Tuesday the 3,000 tonnes of waste had been found near the southern port of Sihanoukville, describing it as packed in triple-layer plastic bags labelled cement materials -- though some bore skull-and-crossbones danger signs.

Environmental inspectors said they suspected it included compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator and may include hazardous materials, such as lead, zinc or mercury.

Mok Mareth said he was certain the material was toxic.

Cambodian residents reportedly had salvaged some of the bags for rice storage before being alerted to the potential danger.

Cambodia organised an inter-ministerial panel to investigate and technical experts from Singapore and the U.N. Development Programme were summoned to help analyse the material.

Senior Cambodian police said no arrests had been made.

Formosa had said previously it believed was the source of the waste, but it was unsure until Friday, when it was able to match the waste with shipping details.

Formosa said the importing agent Jade Fortune Co of Taipei was the firm it had hired to export the shipment.

''That's who shipped it for us,'' the spokesman said.

The Formosa spokesman said Jade Fortune would be obliged to take the shipment back if it were returned by Cambodia.

To his knowledge, the Formosa official added, none of the bags carried skull-and-crossbones warnings.

Jade Fortune executive Chang Kuo-lung told Reuters the shipment had been approved by Taiwan and Cambodian authorities and was inspected on its arrival in Cambodia on November 30.

He also denied that the bags carried toxicity warnings.

''Why would something that's not contaminated have skulls and crossbones on it?'' Chang said.

Chang was non-committal on whether Jade Fortune would accept the returned shipment, saying that was a matter for the governments of Taiwan and Cambodia, which have no diplomatic ties.

Taiwan's Environmental Protection Administration said it had approved the shipment merely for domestic disposal, not export, and said it had fined Formosa for exporting the waste without proper approval.

Formosa would not comment on the reported fine.

The wayfaring waste, if returned, was likely to become a symbol of Taiwan's growing problems with waste disposal.

Formosa said the material found in Cambodia dated back to 1993, when it was first certified it as having safely low levels of mercury contamination.

The problem was that no landfill in Taiwan would take it in the face of protests by local opponents, Formosa said.

Even before reports of the shipment's arrival in Cambodia, EPA inspectors making routine checks of Formosa storage sites found the waste missing and launched an inquiry that resulted in the late November fines, EPA officials said.

PHNOM PENH, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Cambodia plans to send back to Taiwan nearly 3,000 tonnes of suspected toxic waste imported from the island, Environment Minister Mok Mareth said on Friday.

The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting on Friday morning with the full backing of Prime Minister Hun Sen, who is currently visiting Beijing, he told Reuters.

''Our position is clear -- we must send it back as soon as possible,'' Mok Mareth said. ''We cannot keep it any longer in Cambodia, otherwise it will kill all Cambodian people.''

Mareth said he was certain the waste material, in triple layer plastic sacks stamped with skull-and-crossbone danger signs, was toxic.

Legal steps were being taken in Cambodia to return the waste, he added.

''Whoever transported this to Cambodia, must export it back. We have no money for transportation and we are scared to get closer to the site,'' said the minister.

The waste shipment, labelled cement materials, was imported from Taiwan and dumped at a site 10 km (six miles) outside Cambodia's southern port town of Sihanoukville earlier this month.

Environment officials who have visited the site suspect that the waste includes compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator and may include hazardous materials, such as lead, zinc or mercury.

Samples of the waste have been sent to Hong Kong for testing - but no results have yet been released. Cambodia lacks the facilities or expertise itself to carry out any testing.

A five member team from an inter-ministerial panel set up this week to investigate the dumping incident was travelling to Sihanoukville on Friday.

The team plans to question customs and port officials and take away documents connected to the case.

It will also ask local authorities to fence off the area around the dump site, to keep villagers away.

Local residents who discovered the dump emptied the rubble out of the sacks and carried them off to store rice before they were alerted to the potential danger.

The material was dumped in a watershed area and environment officials are concerned it could seep into the ground and contaminate water supplies.

Senior Cambodian police officials who are investigating the case said no arrests had been made so far.

Technical experts from Singapore and the United Nations Development Programme are expected to arrive in Cambodia shortly to help analyse the suspect material.

By Huw Watkin

Phnom Penh -- Cambodian authorities have arrested the head of a local company for dumping a shipment of toxic waste which is believed to have killed at least two people.

Interior Minister Sar Kheng would not reveal the man's name, but yesterday said the head of the Huth Vuthy import-export company had been detained pending further investigations into the importation of about 3000 tonnes of heavy metal-contaminated waste from Taiwan.

The discovery of a 200-tonne dump of the material, and reports that more may have been disposed of in offshore fishing grounds, has incensed the country's new Government, with the Council of Ministers yesterday devoting a day of meetings to the issue.

Information Minister Lu Lay Sreng said a state of emergency had been called in an attempt to protect the health of people living near the dump, close to the southern port of Sihanoukville.

"Already two people have died and I appeal to the Sihanoukville authorities to evacuate people from the area surrounding the dump," he said.

Environment Minister Mok Mareth said the waste would be repatriated to Taiwan and those responsible for its importation would be prosecuted.

"Prime Minister Hun Sen has ordered me to prosecute all people involved in the importation, and to investigate ways to send this waste back to Taiwan," he said.

"We must send it back as soon as possible . . . We cannot keep it any longer in Cambodia, otherwise it will kill all Cambodian people."

According to a German news agency report from Taipei, a Taiwanese petrochemical company was fined $US1000 ($1612) earlier this week for exporting the waste to Cambodia without official approval.

The report quoted an official from Taiwan's Environmental Protection Agency who said the Formosa Plastics company could face further legal action.

"If Cambodia determines the waste is (still) toxic and entered Cambodia illegally, we will ask Formosa Plastics to retrieve it and impose a stiffer fine," the official reportedly said.

By Puy Kea

PHNOM PENH, Dec. 19 (Kyodo) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen threatened Saturday to suspend any government officials, including ministers, found to be involved in importing toxic waste from Taiwan.

''Government officials who are involved in the matter will have to face the law. From this afternoon, they will be suspended from work,'' he told reporters, adding that those officials included customs and port officers.

About 3,000 tons of materials described in customs documents as ''construction waste'' arrived by ship Nov. 30 and was dumped four days later on the outskirts of Sihanoukville, some 230 kilometers southwest of Phnom Penh, according to customs officials.

The waste was shipped in polyester bags labeled as originating from a plastics company in Taiwan.

Top Cambodian environmental officials said they suspect the materials include compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator and chemicals hazardous to health.

Local villagers who had scavenged the area reportedly suffered skin rashes and other symptoms, according to a pollution control officer, but those reports could not be independently verified.

Environment Minister Mok Mareth told Kyodo News on Saturday that the Cambodian government has appealed to international organizations involved with environmental issues to help examine the waste.

He said he heard two villagers have died and five others are sick, but it is unclear whether those were affected by the waste.

The government has appealed to locals not to go near the site, Mok Mareth said.

''At least 100 people are involved in the case because it is not normal to import 3,000 tons to one country,'' he said.

A local company president who imported the waste has been detained, according to the environment minister.

Hun Sen described the case as serious, saying ''I think it is heavier than the bombardment that the United States fired into Iraq in the last few days.''

Hun Sen appealed to the United Nations, World Health Organization and environment-related international organizations to provide Cambodia facilities to protect against the waste.

He also said the Chinese ambassador to Cambodia has agreed to seek the return of the waste to Taiwan.

Heng Nareth, deputy director of Cambodia's pollution control department, said the waste was not nuclear.

''I believe it comes from an industrial waste incinerator plant'' and contains some heavy metals such as mercury, zinc, chrome or lead that could affect human health, he said.

The waste fills an area roughly 30 meters by 40 meters, and consists mostly of white and gray stones and fine dirt. No warning signs were displayed at the site.

The Environment Ministry has neither the equipment nor expertise to analyze the waste, Heng Nareth said.

Hun Sen said Cambodia has banned importation of waste into the country since 1990.

PHNOM PENH, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Thousands of people attacked customs offices in Cambodia's main seaport on Saturday in a protest against a dump of Taiwanese waste that may have caused two deaths and sickened other people, state officials said.

Prime Minister Hun Sen demanded that the 3,000 tonnes of industrial waste be sent back home immediately. He appealed for help from the United Nations, World Health Organisation and relevant environmental agencies in resolving the matter.

State officials said several thousand protesters -- dock workers and local residents -- had stormed local customs offices in Sihanoukville which had cleared the waste shipment for import on December 4.

''...Angry demonstrators walked to the customs compound and the offices of the economic police and attacked them. I'm not sure how much damage they caused, but they smashed the offices,'' Cambodian co-defence minister Tea Banh told Reuters.

Disturbances continued into the late afternoon on Saturday.

Cambodian Health [Secretary of State] Mam Bunheng said at least two recent deaths and five cases of dizziness appeared connected to the waste haul, which was dumped about 10 km (six miles) from Sihanoukville.

''Those people who are sick are all workers at Sihanoukville port. They carried the sacks of Taiwanese waste from the ship,'' he told Reuters.

Taiwanese petrochemical giant Formosa Plastics (1301.TW) said on Friday it had sent the waste to Cambodia but it had been previously certified safe for landfill disposal.

Cambodian Environment Minister Mok Mareth said he believed the material was still dangerous.

Cambodian environmental inspectors suspected the waste included compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator and also hazardous materials such as lead, zinc or mercury.

''Even though the material was 20 years old, I believe the toxicity still remains,'' Mok Mareth said. ''There is panic among people living in areas surrounding the dump site.

''I'm also worried that the waste is in a watershed area. Last week, it rained, so we are still very concerned about the degradation of the waste and that mercury could seep into the ground and contaminate water supplies.''

Cambodian officials said some small samples of the waste had been taken to Hong Kong for testing but no results had yet been released. Cambodia lacks the facilities and expertise itself to carry out any testing, they said.

Cambodian lawyers were drafting steps to ensure the waste was returned to Taiwan and U.N. technical experts were expected to arrive on Monday to help analyse the dump.

Hun Sen said he was extremely concerned. ''The waste must be shipped out immediately. I appeal to the United Nations and the World Health Organisation and all the relevant environmental organisations to provide facilities to solve this problem.''

The prime minister said any officials involved in importing the waste into Cambodia would be suspended from their posts.

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia, Dec 20 (Reuters) - One rioter died on Sunday morning as 1,000 people stormed offices of local authorities in the Cambodian port city of Sihanoukville, police said on Sunday.

Chanting dock workers and residents were protesting against allegedly toxic waste imports from Taiwan that may have killed two people and sickened others.

In a second day of unrest, protesters burst into the offices of the Cambodian Shipping Agency Broker, KAMSHAB, near the port and began throwing office furniture from the top floor of the government agency.

''One demonstrator died when he was trying to take property from the government building of KAMSHAB. He fell out of the building,'' said Kheng Wicheth, chief of an immigration police base at the scene of the violence.

Two passersby were also injured by falling furniture, he added. The crowds later burnt some office furniture and a motorcycle.

The protests were aimed against company and government officials who had cleared the import of 3,000 tonnes of industrial waste from Taiwan petrochemical giant Formosa Plastics.

The waste had been dumped about 10 km (six miles) from Sihanoukville. It is believed by local environmental inspectors to be compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator and to also contain hazardous material such as lead, zinc and mercury.

Formosa Plastics has said the material is industrial waste that did contain traces of mercury, but had been certified by Taiwan's Environmental Protection Administration as being well below hazardous levels and was safe for landfill disposal.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has demanded that the waste be sent back to Taiwan immediately and appealed for help from the United Nations, World Health Organisation and other world environment agencies to resolve the problem.

Health [Secretary of State] Mam Bunheng said the deaths of at least two people and five cases of dizziness appeared connected to those involved with the movement of the waste.

Kheng Wicheth said the demonstration had spun out of control and that police lacked equipment to control the crowds.

One of the protesters, Hen Yon, 42, who lives near the dump site said local people were angry and frustrated.

''I want the corrupt officials to send back home the waste immediately,'' he told Reuters. ''I worry about my family's health because of the Taiwanese waste.''

Premier Hun Sen has warned that any government official found to be involved in the incident would be suspended and punished.

The director of a Cambodian company that imported the waste is still being questioned by police.

Cambodia's environment minister, Mok Mareth, told Reuters on Sunday that work would begin immediately to prevent the waste contaminating water supplies.

''We need to cover the waste immediately with plastic so it will prevent any further damage to the surrounding area,'' he said. ''We will use bulldozers and tractors to create a protective soil wall around the dump.''

Samples of the waste have been taken to Hong Kong for testing, but no results have been released. Cambodia lacks the facilities and expertise to carry out any testing itself.

A technical expert from the United Nations is expected to arrive in Cambodia on Monday to help analyse the suspect material.

By Ouk Navouth

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia (AP) -- Hundreds of Cambodians fled this seaport town today, fearing exposure to toxic waste and violent protests against those responsible for allowing it into the country.

Buses, taxis and the morning train leaving Sihanoukville for the capital, Phnom Penh, 115 miles to the north, were packed. Police said at least four people were killed and 13 injured in accidents on the bumpy, narrow road north.

About 3,000 tons of waste were deposited a few miles from the town two weeks ago. The dump was found by Environment Ministry investigators last week, and tensions have risen amid reports the waste may be toxic.

Prince Norodom Ranariddh, president of the National Assembly, said he was told that a $3 million bribe had been paid to officials to allow the waste into Cambodia from Taiwan.

Among those fleeing Sihanoukville were customs officials, who protesters blamed for letting the waste into the country.

In one accident, a pickup truck loaded with more than 20 people collided with a minivan, killing at least one person and injuring several.

''We were escaping because we were afraid of death, only to be injured in this accident,'' injured passenger Preap Nary, 35, said at a Sihanoukville hospital. Her three children also were hurt.

The waste was dumped in white garbage bags in an open area. Villagers went through the waste, scavenging some of the plastic bags to store rice and exposing the waste, which resembles blocks of cement and dirt.

Residents who rummaged through the waste have complained that they have suffered from exhaustion and diarrhea.

Bulldozers pushed mounds of earth around the dump site Sunday. Environment officials said they would cover the waste with plastic tarpaulins until the material can be removed.

Tensions reached the boiling point after the death of a port worker who reportedly cleaned the hold of the ship that brought the waste from Taiwan.

Although doctors have not established a clear link between the waste and the death, protesters took to the streets Saturday and threw rocks at an office at the port.

On Sunday, demonstrators ransacked a hotel they believed was owned by a company linked to the waste. Police fired assault rifles over the heads of the mob and dispersed it after the protesters wrecked the home of Deputy Governor Khim Bo.

Today, about 60 demonstrators marched on district offices where the waste was dumped.

Environment Minister Mok Mareth has blamed an unidentified government official and port authorities for letting the waste into the country.

The Taiwanese company that sent the waste has said it obtained permits from Taiwanese and Cambodian authorities. Cambodia is seeking to return the waste to Taiwan, which has so far refused.

The company, Formosa Plastics Corp., has denied the material is toxic but admitted it contains traces of mercury, which can be poisonous.

TAIPEI, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Taiwan on Monday took its first steps toward defusing a deadly uproar over a local firm's export of possibly toxic waste to Cambodia, seeking to assist Phnom Penh's inquiry into the case.

The foreign ministry said Taiwan's Environmental Protection Administration hoped to send a team to Phmon Penh to help assess the nature and toxicity of the waste, which was found dumped outside the port of Sihanoukville in early December.

''We're willing to help,'' a foreign ministry statement said.

The environmental agency said it hoped Cambodian officials would protect the integrity of the dump site and allow Taiwan experts to join the inquiry to determine how it got there.

''We want to see where the responsibility lies,'' the agency said in a statement.

Taiwan's Formosa Plastics (1301.TW) has acknowledged being the source of the 3,000 tonnes of waste and that it contained traces of mercury, but said it was certified in Taiwan as safe for landfill disposal.

On Monday, a Formosa executive said the petrochemical giant would respect any Cambodian decision but stopped short of saying it was preparing to bring the waste back to Taiwan.

Taiwan's environmental agency said Formosa would be responsible for returning the waste to Taiwan if it is found to be toxic.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has ordered the waste sent back to Taiwan immediately, not waiting for the results of toxicology tests ordered from Hong Kong and Singapore.

The case has claimed at least one and possibly six lives.

One Cambodian protester died in weekend rioting as more than 1,000 protesters sacked offices of local authorities who allowed the waste to be imported.

Health authorities were looking into unconfirmed reports that two Sihanoukville residents had died and five suffered dizziness after coming into contact with the waste.

Three people were reported killed on Monday in road accidents as they fled the affected area.

Cambodian residents reportedly had salvaged some of the bags for rice storage before being alerted to the potential danger.

As of Monday, 30 Sihanoukville customs, port and police officials, including their chiefs, had been suspended as the investigation continued, officials said.

Cambodian inspectors said some of the waste appeared to be compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator, possibly containing hazardous material such as lead, zinc and mercury.

Taiwan's foreign ministry, which has no diplomatic ties with Phnom Penh, said action was impossible without fuller details of the incident, noting that it had been relying on news reports.

Cambodia recognises only Taiwan's arch rival, China.

Formosa said the material found in Cambodia actually dated back to 1993, when it was first certified it as having safely low levels of mercury contamination.

The problem was no landfill in Taiwan would take it in the face of protests by local opponents, Formosa said.

By Chhay Sophal

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Three people were killed and 14 injured in car crashes while fleeing Cambodia's southern province of Sihanoukville on Monday amid fears over suspected toxic waste dumped there by a Taiwan firm.

''Many people are fleeing Sihanoukville to Phnom Penh because they are worried about their houses, most were children under the age of 10,'' the city's police commissioner Em Bunusath told Reuters.

The accidents occurred in heavy rain which had triggered fears of water contamination from the waste, he said.

''We are worried that more people will flee because they are afraid and concerned about their family's health,'' he said.

One of the crash victims, Preap Navy, 35, said from her hospital bed that all three of her sons had been hurt.

''I was taking my children to Phnom Penh to escape fom Sihanoukville. Everyone is afraid of the waste,'' she said.

The streets of the port city Sihanoukville were calm on Monday after a weekend of violent protests by residents demonstrating against the dumping of the waste.

All schools were closed for the day and many government offices shut as staff stayed away from work.

But some 50 residents staying about 10 km (six miles) from the port city, where the 3,000 tonnes of waste was dumped, attacked and ransacked a local government office on Monday and stopped only when police intervened, witnesses said.

At least one rioter was killed on Sunday in a rampage by more than 1,000 people as protesters sacked offices of local authorities who had allowed the waste to be imported. On Saturday, crowds had attacked the local customs offices.

The government moved quickly to defuse the situation. Officials said on Monday that 30 Sihanoukville customs, port and local police officials, including their chiefs, had been suspended as investigations continued into the waste shipment.

The industrial waste was exported by Taiwan petrochemical giant Formosa Plastics.

The waste is believed by local environmental inspectors to be compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator and to also contain hazardous material such as lead, zinc and mercury.

Health Minister Mam Bunheng had said the deaths of at least two local residents and five cases of dizziness appeared connected to their involvement in movement of the waste.

Formosa Plastics has said the material is industrial waste with traces of mercury, but had been certified by Taiwan's Environmental Protection Administration as being well below hazardous levels and safe for landfill disposal.

Cambodia's deputy Prime Minister, Sar Kheng, appeared on state run television on Sunday night, appealing to Sihanoukville's residents to remain calm.

He promised that the government was doing all it could to ensure that the waste was speedily returned to Taiwan.

''The government appeals to the United Nations, the World Health Organisation and the United Nations Environment Programme...so the waste can be brought back to the original country,'' he said.

''The government has set up an investigation committee to find out whoever is involved in the case must be punished.''

Prime Minister Hun Sen has said the waste must be sent back to Taiwan immediately and appealed for international assistance to resolve the problem.

The director of a Cambodian company that imported the waste was still being questioned by police.

Angry mobs also attacked the home of Sihanoukville's first deputy governor, Khim Bo.

''They destroyed everything; they burnt his Toyota Landcruiser, a motorbike and furniture. They even took money from his house,'' said Cambodia's environment minister, Mok Mareth, who was in Sihanoukville to assess the situation.

Officials have already begun work to prevent the waste, which had been dumped in a watershed area, from contaminating the water supplies.

Bulldozers are digging protective walls and the waste is being covered by plastic sheeting.

Samples of the waste are to be sent to Hong Kong for testing as Cambodia lacks the facilities and expertise to carry out any testing itself, officials said.

By William Ide

TAIPEI, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Taipei urged Phonm Penh on Tuesday to launch a thorough inquiry into a local firm's export of possibly toxic waste to Cambodia, saying it was ''irrational'' to blame Taiwan without sufficient evidence.

''If they haven't gone through proper, scientific certification procedures before laying all the blame on it, the Republic of China cannot accept that,'' said Henry Chen, a foreign ministry spokesman. ''One cannot make groundless accusations.''

''What they are doing is irrational,'' Chen added.

The uproar intensified on Tuesday with police in Cambodia's southern province of Sihanoukville saying nearly 50,000 residents had fled their homes because of the 3,000 tonnes of industrial waste exported by Taiwan's Formosa Plastics Corp.

The waste bearing skull-and-crossbones danger signs was found dumped early this month 10 km (six miles) from Sihanoukville, which has a population of just over 150,000.

Cambodian inspectors said some of the waste appeared to be compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator, possibly containing hazardous material such as lead, zinc and mercury.

Sihanoukville's police commissioner, Em Bun Sath, told Reuters four people died and 13 were injured in car crashes on Monday as they left the port city in heavy rain.

The Taiwan foreign ministry spokesman said Taipei, which does not have formal ties with Phonm Penh, had contacted Cambodian officials in Vietnam's Ho Chih Minh city, but had yet to receive any response.

Cambodia recognises only Taiwan's arch rival, China.

Chen reiterated that Taiwan was willing to take responsibility but only after the truth was uncovered.

''If it is found that the waste is truly the source of the problem then we will ask the local company to fulfil its responsibility,'' Chen said.

Formosa Plastics has acknowledged being the source of the waste but said it was certified in Taiwan as safe for landfill disposal.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has ordered the waste sent back to Taiwan immediately, without waiting for the results of toxicology tests ordered from Hong Kong and Singapore.

Health [Secretary of State] Mam Bunheng said the deaths of at least two local residents and five cases of dizziness appeared linked to involvement in the movement of the waste.

One Cambodian protester died in weekend rioting as more than 1,000 protesters sacked offices of local authorities who allowed the waste to be imported.

As of Monday, 30 Sihanoukville customs, port and police officials, including their chiefs, had been suspended as the investigation continued, officials said.

Late on Monday, a Formosa executive said the petrochemical giant would respect any Cambodian decision, stopping short of saying it was preparing to bring the waste back to Taiwan.

Formosa said the material found in Cambodia actually dated back to 1993, when it was first certified as having safely low levels of mercury contamination.

The problem was no landfill in Taiwan would take it in the face of protests by local opponents, Formosa said.

By Chhay Sophal

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Nearly 50,000 people have fled in panic from Cambodia's southern province of Sihanoukville since the weekend in fear of waste believed to be toxic dumped by a Taiwan firm, police said on Tuesday.

The exodus left four more people dead and 13 injured in car crashes on Monday as they fled the port in heavy rain, local police commissioner Em Bun Sath told Reuters.

''Some 30 percent of residents of Sihanoukville province have left because they are worried,'' he said.

More than 200 military police and soldiers arrived in Sihanoukville city, about 10 km (six miles) from the waste site, to guard against a repeat of weekend protests against the dumping in which one other person was killed and several injured.

Officials raised new health concerns on Tuesday, saying the province's water supply could have been contaminated by the waste, which they believe contains hazardous materials such as lead, zinc and mercury, and bears skull-and-crossbones danger signs.

Health [Secretary of State] Mam Bunheng said the deaths of at least two residents and five cases of dizziness appeared linked to their involvement in the movement of the waste.

Although Sihanoukville was calm on Tuesday, schools remained closed for a second day along with many government offices and the port, Cambodia's main sea gateway.

At the weekend, more than 1,000 protesters sacked the offices of officials who allowed import of the waste, which originated from Taiwan petrochemical giant Formosa Plastics. Thirty officials from the local customs, port and police have been suspended.

Deputy chief of the provincial cabinet Sok Than told Reuters poor people in Sihanoukville city had carried off some of the waste to use to repair their houses before dumping it near water sources when they heard it was dangerous.

''Some were using the waste with cement to make flooring as stone is expensive. When they heard it was dangerous, they took it and left it on the streets and places near water like streams.''

The head of the local water authority, Prak Chanroeun, told Reuters his office had sent water samples to be tested in Phnom Penh but results were not yet available.

''I can't say now whether we can use the water or not but we are still supplying it. So far we don't have any information about any problem with our water. We will inform the people after the results of the tests become available.''

The authority supplies 30,000 of the province's 150,000 people.

Acting head of state Prince Norodom Ranariddh told reporters he believed the waste was "very dangerous'' and the government had vowed to track down the culprits.

"I think there is all kinds of waste,'' he said. ''When no country wants to stock it on its soil it means it's very poisonous.''

He said Prime Minister Hun Sen had said bribes paid to accept the waste from the Taiwan firm may have totalled $3 million.

Environment Minister Mok Mareth sought to stem the exodus, telling reporters any harmful effect from the waste would be limited to the area in which it had been dumped.

The waste is believed by local environmental inspectors to be compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator. Formosa Plastics has said it has mercury traces, but had been certified by Taiwan's Environmental Protection Administration as well below hazardous levels and safe for landfill disposal.

Mok Mareth rejected this: "Mercury is a toxic substance. If they thought this waste was really not hazardous why did they ship it to Cambodia at such a high cost?''

Taiwan has said its EPA hoped to send a team to assess the waste, which Hun Sen has ordered sent back to Taiwan without waiting for results of tests.

On Tuesday, Taiwan Foreign Finistry spokesman Henry Chen urged Phnom Penh to launch an inquiry, calling it ''irrational'' to blame Taiwan without sufficient evidence.

''If it is found that the waste is truly the source of the problem then we will ask the local company to fulfil its responsibility,'' he said.

Late on Monday, a Formosa executive said the firm would respect any Cambodian decision, but stopped short of saying it was preparing to bring the waste back to Taiwan.

The firm said the waste dated back to 1993 and the problem was no landfill in Taiwan would take it given local protests.

Mok Mareth said containers and storage materials were being sent to the dump to collect and contain the waste. Neighbouring Vietnam was sending protective uniforms for workers there.

AGENCIES in Sihanoukville -- Four people died in road accidents yesterday as up to 1,000 people fled the southern province of Sihanoukville, fearing exposure to toxic waste.

All transport leaving Sihanoukville for the capital, Phnom Penh, was packed. Police said at least seven accidents had been reported.

Police Commissioner Em Bun Sath said four people had been killed and 13 injured.

Prince Norodom Ranariddh, President of the National Assembly, said he had been told a US$3 million (HK$23.2 million) bribe had been paid to allow the waste into the country from Taiwan.

Secretary of State for Rural Development Ly Thuch said the Prince and Prime Minister Hun Sen had agreed to punish those responsible "for such a disaster".

Among those leaving Sihanoukville were Customs officials, blamed by protesters for allowing the waste in, and their families.

About 60 demonstrators marched on district offices 10km north of the port of Sihanoukville, near where 200 tonnes of the 3,000-tonne consignment was dumped about two weeks ago without public warning. More is feared to have been dumped offshore.

Two workers from the human rights group Licadho were arrested for allegedly inciting protesters during violent demonstrations on Sunday.

A Licadho official in Phnom Penh said the workers had only been monitoring the protests.

Tensions have steadily risen since news of the dump emerged a week ago.

They reached boiling point after the death of a port worker said to have cleaned the hold of the ship that brought the waste from Taiwan.

Doctors have not established a link between the waste and his death.

Formosa Plastics, the Taiwanese company which sent the waste, has said it obtained permits from Taiwanese and Cambodian authorities. It says the material is not toxic, but admits it contains traces of mercury, which is highly poisonous in large doses.

Local environmental inspectors believe the waste is compressed ash from an industrial waste incinerator which also contains lead and zinc.

Samples are to be sent to Hong Kong for testing.

By Chhay Sophal

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia (Reuters) - Thai military scientists with geiger counters Tuesday inspected Taiwanese industrial waste dumped in southern Cambodia after a panicked exodus of thousands of people fearing chemical poisoning.

More than 10,000 had fled the province of Sihanoukville since the weekend, which saw violent protests against officials who allowed petrochemical giant Formosa Plastics to dump the waste, said Kong Saran, head of the provincial information department.

Earlier, local police chief Em Bun Sath said up to a third of the province's 150,000 population had fled.

Police said four people had died and 13 had been hurt in car crashes Monday as they fled Sihanoukville in heavy rain, bringing reported deaths blamed on the dumping to seven.

Officials raised new health concerns Tuesday, saying the province's water supply could have been contaminated by the waste, which they believe contains hazardous materials such as lead, zinc and mercury, and bears skull-and-crossbones danger signs.

Thai Army specialists, including nuclear scientists and chemists, said they had detected no abnormal radiation at the dump, about 10 km (six miles) from Sihanoukville city, but said samples would be taken to test it for any chemical hazard.

''So far our man has determined the level of radiation is not significant and not a health hazard. It's just normal background radiation,'' said Colonel Chalermsuk Yugala.

''Chemical-wise, I can't yet give you and answer -- it could be toxic; it could be non-toxic.''

Although there was no violence in Sihanoukville Tuesday, schools remained closed for a second day along with many government offices and the port, Cambodia's main sea gateway.

Over 200 military police and soldiers arrived early Tuesday to prevent a repeat of the violence, in which one person was killed and several injured as mobs sacked government offices.

Deputy Prime Minister Sar Kheng and Environment Minister Mok Mareth appealed for calm, saying the waste was not as dangerous as people feared and would be shipped out of Cambodia.

Officials said protective suits for 500 workers assigned to gather up the waste had arrived from Singapore and Vietnam.

Prime Minister Hun Sen has ordered the waste sent back to Taiwan without waiting for test results, but Taiwan's Foreign Ministry urged Phnom Penh to launch an inquiry, calling it irrational to blame Taiwan without sufficient evidence.

''If it is found that the waste is truly the source of the problem then we will ask the local company to fulfil its responsibility,'' said ministry spokesman Henry Chen.

Formosa Plastics has said the waste has mercury traces, but had been certified by Taiwan's Environmental Protection Administration as unhazardous and safe for landfill disposal.

Mok Mareth rejected this: ''If they thought this waste was really not hazardous, why did they ship it to Cambodia?''

Acting head of state Prince Norodom Ranariddh told reporters he believed the waste was ''very dangerous.''

Formosa Plastics said it would respect any Cambodian decision, but stopped short of saying it was preparing to bring the waste back to Taiwan. It said it dated back to 1993 and no landfill in Taiwan would take it, because of local protests.

Mok Mareth told Reuters he was delighted the waste was not radioactive, but added: ''There are indications of at least a level of mercury, lead and other materials.''

He said test results, also being carried out by Hong Kong and Singaporean scientists, would be available within two days.

Frightened citizens continued to leave Sihanoukville Tuesday -- the poor by train and the wealthier by bus or car.

''All 11 members of my family have left already. I am just here to look after the restaurant,'' said restaurateur Sam Phala ''We are scared the rain could spread the poison into the water.''

Deputy chief of the provincial cabinet Sok Than told Reuters poor people had carried off some waste to repair homes before dumping it near water sources when they heard it was dangerous.

''Some were using the waste with cement to make flooring as stone is expensive. When they heard it was dangerous, they took it and left it on the streets and places near water like streams.''

The head of the local water authority, Prak Chanroeun, told Reuters that samples had been sent to Phnom Penh for tests.

By Puy Kea

PHNOM PENH, Dec. 22 (Kyodo) -- Around 10,000 people have fled Cambodia's southern seaport town of Sihanoukville since news broke several days ago that illegally imported toxic waste has been dumped on the town's outskirts, Interior Ministry officials said Tuesday.

The officials said many residents have fled in the mistaken belief that the 3,000 tons of industrial waste, imported from Taiwan on Nov. 30 and dumped four days later about 10 kilometers outside the town, is radioactive.

The Environment Ministry has appealed over television and radio for calm, saying the waste, believed to be compressed industrial ash, is not radioactive, though it has been found to contain mercury.

Local police said buses plying between Sihanoukville and the capital of Phnom Penh, located 230 km north, continue to be jam-packed with passengers.

The exodus has led to an increase in the number of road accidents, which have claimed four lives and left 17 people injured over the past few days, they said.

Last weekend, several hundred people rallied in Sihanoukville, accusing local authorities of corruption and demanding the waste be sent back to where it originated.

At least one demonstrator was killed and five military police injured in the protest.

The president of the local company that imported the waste has been arrested, while several customs officials and inspectors suspected of conspiring with the company to import it have been suspended.

National Assembly President Prince Norodom Ranariddh said Monday he had heard from Prime Minister Hun Sen that the company spent 3 million dollars to bribe local officials to allow the waste to be imported.

Sihanoukville Gov. Khem Bo told Kyodo News the government mobilized 500 soldiers to package the waste.

Deputy Prime Minister Sar Kheng, who doubles as co-minister of the interior, told reporters the government is preparing oil barrels and shipping containers to package the waste for shipment out of the country as soon as possible.

By Chris Fontaine

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia (AP) -- Soldiers armed with shovels and wearing

protective suits began cleaning up 3,000 tons of suspected toxic waste

today as government officials demanded a Taiwanese company pay compensation

for dumping it in Cambodia.

''We have to force this company to pay damages,'' Deputy Prime Minister Sar Kheng said as he watched the soldiers work.

Officials said they hoped the start of the cleanup would ease the hysteria that has gripped this coastal town since the waste was discovered more than a week ago.

Thousands have fled Sihanoukville, fearful the waste may damage their health or kill them.

Meanwhile, two human rights workers were charged for allegedly leading an angry mob that ransacked a deputy governor's house over the weekend when a protest over the waste turned into a riot.

The organization they work for has vehemently denied the allegations, and international human rights groups registered concern over their arrest.

Environment Minister Mok Mareth said initial tests conducted on samples of the waste have shown it contains the poisonous metal mercury, but the level of the toxicity is not yet known.

''There is mercury, but the quantity of the mercury must be determined by chemical analysis,'' Mok Mareth said. ''It is not very dangerous as long as we can collect it into canisters.''

A team of chemical experts from the Thai army concluded the material is not radioactive, as Mok Mareth and other Cambodian officials had previously alleged.

A dockworker mysteriously died a few days after he cleaned the hold of the

ship that brought the waste. News of the death added to the hysteria.

A train leaving Sihanoukville today was filled to capacity, with people perched on the roof and grabbing space in box cars and flat beds normally used for cargo.

''I've heard that if it rains the poison will rise out of the waste and kill people,'' said Chhey Vanny, who arrived at the train station at dawn.

A total of 12 people have been arrested for allegedly participating in the riot, including two human rights workers from the local organization Licadho. Prosecutors say were the ringleaders.

Licadho officials have strenuously denied the allegations, saying the two were merely monitoring a situation where human rights violations could have occurred.

The two rights workers were formally charged today with robbery and inciting damage to public and private property, chief prosecutor Mam Muth said. He added that he had photographs, video footage and tape recordings as evidence.

The arrests have sparked concerns among international human rights groups.

''These arrests send an ominous message about the Cambodian government's commitment to respecting basic human rights,'' Sidney Jones, an official at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.

Officials estimate that it will take more than a week for 600 soldiers working in shifts to pack the waste into plastic-lined oil drums. The barrels will be loaded into three shipping containers and left at the dump site for the time being.

Prime Minister Hun Sen has demanded that the waste be sent back to the company that shipped it to Cambodia, Formosa Plastics Corp. The company has said it obtained the proper permits from the Cambodian authorities to import the waste.

Prince Norodom Ranariddh, president of the National Assembly, has said that a $3 million bribe was paid to government and port officials to allow the waste into the country.

By Puy Kea

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia, Dec. 23 (Kyodo) -- The Cambodian government Wednesday ordered 250 soldiers to repackage hazardous industrial waste which was imported from Taiwan earlier this month.

The soldiers were provided with protective clothing, including gas masks, boots and helmets, and have been ordered to complete the task within 10 days.

The waste arrived in Cambodia on Nov. 30 and was dumped four days l