Civil society

Violence in Cambodia has escalated in recent months with Prime Minister Hun Sen’s attempts to quash competition ahead of the upcoming elections on July 29, 2018. Security and surveillance measures have been strengthened, media outlets have been closed down, protests have been met with violence and mass ...

Phnom Penh City Hall yesterday said that demonstrations, strikes and protests increased last year when compared to 2016. A report released yesterday said that 2017 saw 1,760 demonstrations, strikes and protests, an increase of 162 compared to 2016. Last year, there were 613 protests by citizens and ...

Yesterday, Rainsy said the new Cambodia National Rescue Movement had a five-part plan, starting with appealing to the international community to take action. The next step is to work with “economic” partners to put financial pressure on the government.Next, Rainsy said the movement will encourage ...

The government has created a new interministerial committee to manage the activities of international NGOs, with an Interior Ministry official yesterday saying the body was intended to monitor organisations’ compliance with the controversial NGO Law. ...

Politicians and civil society members in New York called on the United Nations to take harsh measures to restore democracy in Cambodia during a panel on Tuesday, even recommending leaving Cambodia’s seat at the UN empty and putting senior ruling party officials on a blacklist. ...

The European Parliament passed a resolution yesterday calling on the European Commission and European External Action Service to impose visa restrictions on Cambodian officials and freeze their assets, and to review the human rights clauses of the Everything But Arms (EBA) agreement for a potential ...

The Ministry of Interior has issued a first warning to associations and NGOs that failed to submit the requisite reports to the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Finance before the deadline on September 30. According to a press release issued on Monday, only 648 ...

Civil society this year marked International Human Rights Day much differently than last year, out of concern that any public gatherings would be likened to joining a colour revolution to overthrow the government. ...

The Ministry of Interior warned NGOs and associations yesterday to submit their annual financial reports or face legal action, including being shut down. ...

In an unexpected turn, Prime Minister Hun Sen announced on Saturday that the outspoken Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) will not be shut down, despite accusing the local NGO last week of serving foreign interests. In an article posted to government mouthpiece Fresh News, the ...

The interim representative of the UN’s High Commissioner for Human Rights in Cambodia met yesterday with the head of the Cambodian government’s rights body, voicing concerns about the threatened closure of a prominent outspoken local NGO. ...

The Ministry of Interior yesterday confirmed that certain civil society organisations and their members are being “monitored” following accusations, levelled during the Supreme Court hearing on the dissolution of the opposition party on Thursday, that they participated in a purported “revolution”. ...

More than a month after the announcement of its ostensibly 30-day suspension, land rights organisation Equitable Cambodia remains stuck in limbo, with the Ministry of Interior saying the NGO must wait for the ministry’s approval to reopen. ...

Twenty-two NGOs released a joint statement yesterday demanding the release of two activists detained by Koh Kong Provincial Court after recording a video of sand dredging. ...

Thousands of organisations have failed to meet the deadline for filing their financial reports under the controversial Law on Associations and NGOs (Lango), according to a ministry official. ...

A student group was suspended by the Ministry of Interior yesterday for a series of violations of the Law on Associations and Non-governmental Organisations (Lango), including the highly controversial Article 24, which requires organisations to remain “politically neutral”. ...

Defence Minister General Tea Banh yesterday told Asean member states and eight other countries how the recent government crackdown on media outlets and NGOs was legal and justified. ...

Jailed opposition leader Kem Sokha, exiled former opposition leader Sam Rainsy and more than 50 human rights NGOs called on France and Indonesia to reconvene the signatories to the Paris Peace Accords yesterday amid fears that the historic treaty is in danger of being “completely ...

A senior Defence Ministry official said yesterday that the United States had provided financial assistance to its own organisations and to NGOs to carry out anti-Cambodian government activities. ...

A senior Ministry of Defence official yesterday claimed that housing rights group Sahmakum Teang Tnaut (STT) had received close to half a million dollars a year from the United States to foment “colour revolution” among the land dispute groups it worked with – a claim ...

The Interior Ministry has instructed provincial officials to urgently report any instances in which activities are carried out by any NGOs or grassroots associations without prior notification, adding that authorities can stop any planned events if they affect “public order and national security”. ...

Around six people were arrested outside the United States Embassy in Phnom Penh yesterday for attempting to stage a small protest, but were released later in the afternoon after agreeing to not demonstrate again without a City Hall permit. ...

States, United Nations officials and civil society representatives continued to heap criticism on Cambodia’s approach to civil and political rights at the UN Human Rights Council yesterday. ...

The Ministry of Interior yesterday ordered the temporary suspension of land rights NGO Equitable Cambodia for allegedly violating its own by-laws and the controversial law regulating NGOs passed in 2015. ...