Laws and regulations

Khmer Krom people fleeing persecution in Vietnam and denied refuge in Thailand are being sent to Cambodia, where the government does not ensure that their rights are protected, the Minority Rights Organization (MIRO) has said in a new report. The report—“Abandoned People Khmer Krom Seeking Refuge ...

Slapping Khmer song lyrics over international hits or ripping off the creative content of foreign-produced music videos is a practice in the Kingdom that must end within one year, Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts officials said at a conference in the capital yesterday. A crackdown ...

The Ministry of Justice is kicking into overdrive its long-stagnated efforts to finish three fundamental laws on the function of the judiciary, saying it hopes to complete the laws – which it characterises as key judicial reforms – by the end of the month, the ...

Riot police and security forces prevented an opposition delegation from meeting with 23 protest detainees in Kampong Cham province on Tuesday, for second day in a row. No violence was reported, as the delegation from the Cambodia National Rescue Party met with more than 100 police ...

International labour organisations Industrial Global Union, UNI Global Union and ITUC are seeking international support for a day of action in support of garment workers arrested during recent strikes in Cambodia. The groups are calling on people to demonstrate outside Cambodian embassies and deliver protest letters ...

Two years after Cambodia’s Acid Law took effect, and one year after a subsequent sub-decree further regulated the dangerous substance, significant hurdles remain in securing justice for victims of acid attacks, according to a paper published in the Cambodian Law and Policy Journalon Sunday. In her paper, ...

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has for the first time admitted to major flaws in its efforts to protect the roughly 4,000 families losing land to a $143 million project it is funding to rehabilitate Cambodia’s dilapidated railway system. On Friday, the ADB said it would ...

The U.N.’s General Assembly released its latest round of recommendations to improve the human rights situation in Cambodia on Thursday following a review held last week in Geneva. The statements made by delegations from 76 countries during the review urged Cambodia to fulfill its promise to ...

Market vendors hawking pirated government textbooks have a month to get their shops in order if they want to avoid an authority-led crackdown, a statement released on Friday by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport warns. Selling or buying textbooks labelled “not for sale” or ...

Sugar plantations that benefit from the European Union’s Everything But Arms (EBA) scheme, which allows preferential access to the E.U.’s market, have further impoverished Cambodia’s poor, and an investigation needs to be launched, a member of the European Parliament (MEP) said on Friday. Patrice Tirolien, MEP ...

Just weeks after the country’s only independent teachers’ association staged a strike for higher wages, Phnom Penh’s education chief told teachers this week that they must stop taking bribes to comply with the government’s promised reform agenda. Speaking to about 500 educators, mainly school directors, from ...

A labour law expert from the International Labour Organization yesterday rejected claims made by Cambodian factories and employers associations that workers in the Kingdom have no fundamental right to strike. In a paid advertisement in the Post yesterday, the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) and ...

Cambodia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has called on all embassies and consulates to accelerate visa application procedures and end all “unofficial” fees. Foreign Affairs Minister Hor Namhong said the government would crackdown on corruption related to the issue of visas. According to a Phnom Penh Post ...

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Tuesday charged a man with committing violence under aggravating circumstances after he was detained by protesters at a demonstration in Phnom Penh on Sunday and handed over to police on suspicion of instigating violence at the rally near Freedom ...

Cambodia’s human rights record was assessed Tuesday by the U.N. Human Rights Council’s 47 member states in Geneva, many of which cited concerns about the recent violent suppression of protests by the government, and a judiciary beholden to Prime Minister Hun Sen’s ruling CPP. The U.N. ...

Despite Cambodia’s labour law forbidding employers from taking action against workers for engaging in union activity, more than 100 labour union representatives have been fired from at least 12 factories this month for encouraging workers to strike for a $160 monthly minimum wage. The firings came ...

National Committee for Road Traffic Safety (NCRTS) warned that the motorcycle drivers would be fined up to 60,000 riel (USD15) if they don’t have driving licenses. According to the traffic law, the motorcycle drivers who don’t have licenses can face imprisonment, but because most of ...

The government will consider a planned union rally on Sunday of several thousand people at Freedom Park in Phnom Penh an attempt to “overthrow the government,” Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak said on Friday. Phnom Penh municipality rejected the request to hold the rally, but ...

Unions planning a mass rally at Phnom Penh’s Freedom Park on Sunday to call for the release of 23 detainees and a higher minimum wage in the garment industry say they will proceed with the event despite City Hall’s decision Thursday to deny permission. The nine ...

Phnom Penh official on Wednesday said that union leader Chea Mony violated the protest law and protest ban which was imposed by the government recently for the security concern. The Deputy Governor made the comment after Chea led march along the streets to mark the ...

Following the arrest of 11 activists on Tuesday as they attempted to deliver a petition to the U.S. and French embassies seeking the release of 23 jailed protesters, NGO representatives quietly delivered similar petitions to the Japanese Embassy and European Union headquarters Wednesday. The petitioners, representing ...

Unions aligned with Prime Minister Hun Sen’s government issued a statement Wednesday calling on it to “take action” against union leaders who they accuse of inciting workers to hold strikes and violent demonstrations. “We would like to request [CPP Labor Minister] Ith Sam Heng to take ...

More than 1900 people were killed in 4300 cases of accidents in 2013, which showed higher figures than the year 2012. This requires urgent attention by commuters, and officers in charge. The figures were made known at a training course on 20-21 January 2014, which was ...

The government must amend legislation to stamp out hate crimes and discrimination against Cambodia’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens, rights activists said during a forum in the capital yesterday. During the second day of the first community dialogue dedicated to the advancement and discussion ...