Civil and political rights

Freedom of expression

NEC body to fight bad press

Amid accusations of bias in favour of the ruling party – and following the removal of the main opposition party from the electoral field – the National Election Committee has announced the creation of a new press reaction team to “attack back at negative points”. ...

Niem Chheng and Andrew Nachemson
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/nec-body-fight-bad-press

No rallies for Sokha trial, says ministry

The Ministry of Interior has said it will not allow any demonstrations in front of the Supreme Court during a hearing on Thursday to decide if the opposition CNRP will be dissolved, while the Koh Kong provincial governor’s office warned it will prevent residents from ...

Kong Meta and Andrew Nachemson
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/no-rallies-sokha-trial-says-ministry

Cambodia Daily brings out online-only platform

The shuttered Cambodia Daily announced late on Tuesday night that it has “relaunched” as a noncommercial publication. On its Facebook page, the Daily announced the re-opening as “a digital only, non-commercial publication based off shore”. Several items – including an aggregated news round-up and a “Timeline ...

Leonie Kijewski and Kong Meta
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/cambodia-daily-brings-out-online-only-platform

Daily founder claims liability

The founder of the now-shuttered Cambodia Daily, Bernard Krisher, has told Prime Minister Hun Sen in a letter that he will travel to the Kingdom to take on any tax liabilities of his daughter, Deputy Publisher Deborah Krisher-Steele, stemming from the paper’s dispute with the ...

Niem Chheng and Ananth Baliga
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/daily-founder-claims-liability

CNRP meetings ‘banned’ in Kampong Chhnang

Opposition members in Kampong Chhnang say they have been banned from meeting since the arrest of CNRP leader Kem Sokha on Sunday, with the provincial police chief yesterday saying he would “not allow” the party to “discuss politics”. ...

Soth Koemsoeun
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/cnrp-meetings-banned-kampong-chhnang

More condemn shutdown of Daily

International condemnation of the government’s aggressive pursuit of a tax dispute with the Cambodia Daily continued to pour in yesterday, with the US Embassy in Phnom Penh calling the closure of the hard-hitting newspaper a “sad day for the press and for Cambodia”. ...

Ananth Baliga
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/more-condemn-shutdown-daily

Daily silenced after 24 years

After 24 years of fiercely independent journalism, the Cambodia Daily will publish their final edition today due to an “exorbitant” $6.3 million tax bill levelled at them last month – an outcome critics say threatens Cambodia’s free press ahead of next year’s crucial national election. ...

Ananth Baliga and Niem Chheng
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/daily-silenced-after-24-years

Cambodia Daily calls government action ‘assault’ on the press

The Cambodia Daily yesterday said it was under “siege” and continued to call the government’s targeting of the newspaper an attack on press freedom, as five radio station owners that had been ordered to shut stop attempted to resume their services. // //   ...

Ananth Baliga and Niem Chheng
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/cambodia-daily-calls-government-action-assault-press

KPP head arrested for Facebook post criticising deployment of troops to Laos border

Khmer Power Party head and former convicted “terrorist” Sourn Serey Ratha was arrested yesterday over a Facebook post criticising the deployment of troops to the Laos border by suggesting that grunts in the field would suffer while the military’s leaders hung back to enjoy “money” ...

Meas Sokchea
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/kpp-head-arrested-facebook-post-criticising-deployment-troops-laos-border

Kim Sok gets 18 months and must pay $200K in compensation to CPP

Political commentator Kim Sok was sentenced to 18 months in prison this afternoon on charges of incitement and defamation for appearing to suggest that the ruling party was behind the killing of popular analyst Kem Ley. ...

Niem Chheng and Ananth Baliga
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/kim-sok-gets-18-months-and-must-pay-200k-compensation-cpp

Court denies analyst Sok’s request for bail

The Supreme Court yesterday upheld a lower court’s decision to deny jailed political analyst Kim Sok’s request for bail, also rejecting his request to summons Prime Minister Hun Sen, the plaintiff in the two defamation and incitement cases that landed the analyst in detention. ...

Kim Sarom
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/court-denies-analyst-soks-request-bail

Cambodians unconcerned by threats of violence ahead of election

Political campaigning in Cambodia’s local elections began on Saturday and has so far passed without incident. Cambodians in Phnom Penh on Monday said they hoped that the election could be conducted fairly and free of violence. Sim To, a second-year student at Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia, ...

Kann Vicheika
http://www.voacambodia.com/a/cambodians-unconcerned-by-threats-of-violence-ahead-of-election/3869453.html

Hun sen scolds media during forum session

Prime Minister Hun Sen used a news conference at Thursday’s World Economic Forum on Asean in Phnom Penh to warn that two foreign-owned news outlets, including The Cambodia Daily, were “against” the government and that journalists who did not report “properly” would be seen as ...

Matt Surrusco
https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/hun-sen-hijacks-forum-session-to-scold-media-129604/

At capital coffee shops, political conversations tainted by fear

Many of the news media’s favorite political analysts aren’t picking up their telephones. They say they are busy with work, traveling abroad or focusing on their studies. ...

Ben Sokhean and Ben Paviour
https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/126704-126704/

Release Kem Ley footage, sued commentator tells government

Undeterred by the $500,000 lawsuit filed against him by Prime Minister Hun Sen, political commentator Kim Sok returned to the radio waves on Tuesday to say that the government could settle the case against him by releasing video footage of Kem Ley’s murder. ...

Kuch Naren
https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/release-kem-ley-footage-sued-commentator-tells-govt-125168/

Hun Sen slaps analyst with $500K lawsuit

Political commentator Kim Sok’s worldly possessions—two iPhones, an iPad and $200 in savings—may soon become Prime Minister Hun Sen’s property after the premier filed a $500,000 lawsuit against the commentator for allegedly claiming that the CPP killed Kem Ley. ...

Kuch Naren and Khy Sovuthy
https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/hun-sen-slaps-analyst-with-500k-lawsuit-125114/

Youth political expression hampered, opposition says

A number of young people were detained in 2016 for making social media posts deemed to be inciting violence. The opposition has said freedom of expression among its youth wing is limited compared to more seasoned activists. ...

Kann Vicheika
http://www.voacambodia.com/a/youth-political-expression-hampered-opposition-says/3714709.html

PM calls for accurate reporting

Prime Minister Hun Sen has called on all media institutions in the country to disseminate accurate news and avoid immoral acts and commentary that could sway public opinion or that of the judiciary. ...

Taing Vida
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/34311/pm-calls-for-accurate-reporting/

Internet freedom ranking slips

Cambodia fell four spots in a 2016 ranking of internet freedom across the world released yesterday, with the organization behind it tying the drop to a spate of arrests for nothing more than Facebook posts and a much-maligned telecommunications law that critics say gives the ...

Pech Sotheary
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/32011/internet-freedom-ranking-slips/

Rights must improve: UN

The UN’s special rapporteur for human rights yesterday told Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn that Cambodia is the top ranking country in terms of freedom of expression in the Asean region, but must improve in other areas of human rights which have been raised by the ...

Pech Sotheary
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/30914/rights-must-improve--un/

Call for better handling of land disputes

Civil society organizations yesterday repeated calls for land disputes to be resolved quickly, peacefully and without authorities using police and the courts to put pressure on communities. Speaking at an event celebrating poor urban communities at the American Intercon School yesterday, more than 200 people, including ...

Pech Sotheary
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/29659/call-for-better-handling-of-land-disputes/

CNRP talks mass protests after Sokha conviction

Opposition leaders on Sunday called on supporters to consider mass demonstrations after the conviction on Friday of CNRP Vice President Kem Sokha, while a government spokesman warned that those who attempted to heed the call to action would pay a “very high price.” ...

Khuon Narim and George Wright
https://www.cambodiadaily.com/second/cnrp-talks-mass-protests-sokha-conviction-117862/

Australian ex-peace broker calls for sanctions

The international community should put “maximum pressure” on the Cambodian government to improve the country’s human rights situation, including possible sanctions on top officials, former Australian Foreign Minister Gareth Evans said on Friday.   ...

Ben Paviour
https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/australian-ex-peace-broker-calls-for-sanctions-116081/

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