Human rights

A memorandum of understanding between Cambodia and the United Nations has been stalled for almost 10 months thanks to the government’s insistence that an updated version include pointed references to the concept of “non-interference” lifted from the UN charter, the Post has learned. ...

A new paper from the International Criminal Court laying out a shift in focus to crimes linked to environmental destruction and the unlawful dispossession of land has rekindled the debate over whether the court will launch an investigation into a case highlighting land-grabbing in Cambodia. ...

Cambodia’s ambassador to the United Nations pulled no punches in his response to a joint statement from almost 40 countries condemning the government’s recent actions and threats against peaceful protests, implying in his own letter that the opposition party was participating in “unlawful and anarchic ...

In a joint statement released yesterday, 38 nations came together to express their concern about the political situation in Cambodia and demanded the government ensure a safe environment for human rights defenders and civil society groups. The statement, delivered by United States Ambassador to the UN ...

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 ...

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.” ...

With rebuke raining down on the ruling CPP for its judicial assault, arrests and intimidation of the political opposition and other critics, Cambodia’s annual assessment by the U.N. Human Rights Council will be held next week in Geneva. ...

Ethnic Vietnamese residents of Tonle Sap Lake are continuing to head back to Vietnam in droves due to overbearing and costly rules being strictly enforced by local authorities, robbing many of them of the only homeland they have ever known. Minority Rights Organization (MIRO) official Seorn ...

The agency tasked with investigating abuse by Malaysia’s security forces said that claims of fatal abuse against foreign maids—including Cambodians—at a detention center were untrue, though it said the center where the abuse allegedly occurred was in urgent need of attention. ...

Four Boeung Kak lake activists, including recently jailed community leader Tep Vanny, will face trial next month for a five-year-old case of insulting and obstructing public officials during a 2011 protest at City Hall. ...

Twelve NGOs have issued an open letter to the UN Human Rights Council urging it to adopt a strong resolution on what they term the grave deterioration of the human rights situation in Cambodia. ...

Cham Muslims are not fully integrated into Cambodian society and many Cambodian people continue to think Chams are practitioners of “black magic,” according to a report on religious freedom released last week by the US State Department. ...

The abuse of Cambodians employed in Thailand’s fishing industry was raised yesterday in a letter from the government’s Cambodian Human Rights Committee (CHRC) to their Thai counterparts, calling for improved monitoring of the much criticized and troubled industry. ...

President Trần Đại Quang hosted a reception in Hà Nội yesterday for Cambodia’s Senior Minister and Minister of Cults and Religion, Him Chhem, during which he stressed the need for the two countries to boost religious cooperation in bilateral and multilateral frameworks. ...

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.   ...

Families living next to Phnom Penh International Airport filed a petition with the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) on Wednesday to find out why City Hall has not yet issued them land titles now that Prime Minister Hun Sen had promised to protect them from eviction.   ...

An annual reporting requirement under the contentious Law on Associations and NGOs, or LANGO, is being intentionally misinterpreted by local police, according to a group of NGOs in Oddar Meanchey province. ...

The roar of engines from tourist buses and cars drowns out the nearby sounds of crickets and flowing water as 39-year-old souvenir seller Touy Samoeurn spoke about the situation plaguing her. Ms. Samoeurn has spent more than 10 years calling Kulen Mountain home, residing in ...

UN Special Rapporteur Rhona Smith has responded to growing concerns among the human rights community that she is not fulfilling her mandate. ...

An international human rights umbrella says the Southeast Asian region faces the threat of growing conflicts over land between investors and local people unless legal and institutional reforms are put in place. ...

Cambodian police say they are investigating the declaration of a coup against the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen, but have laughed off any suggestion of the threat being serious.   ...

A visiting U.S. human rights envoy on Tuesday urged the government to release and drop charges against five current and former rights workers arrested in April amid what he called a deteriorating political situation in which the courts have disproportionately targeted state critics. ...

International media advocacy group Reporters Without Borders said in a statement released on Tuesday that it was concerned by what it characterized as a “surge” in threats against journalists and news organizations in Cambodia in recent weeks.   ...

Justice Ministry spokesman Chin Malin sang the praises of UN Special Rapporteur Rhona Smith on Saturday, following a report in the Post on Friday that she had lost the confidence of many in the human rights community.   ...