Human rights

NagaWorld union leader Chhim Sithar and eight co-defendants appeared for their first day of trial in Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Tuesday. Sithar and all her colleagues, except for one, denied the incitement charges against them. ...

More than 20 former employees of shuttered radio station VOD – closed by order of the Prime Minister last week – have now applied for government jobs in ministries and institutions. ...

The Phnom Penh Post’s weekend editorial about a recent BBC report that included an interview with former staff Mech Dara has drawn heated reactions from across the board among journalists, civil society organisations and members of the public. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen has reaffirmed his position that online news outlet VOD, which published in both Khmer and English and also produced radio programmes, will never be reopened. ...

Germany, the European Union and the international community have been observing former opposition leader Kem Sokha’s court case to monitor Cambodia’s human rights and democratic practices. ...

Senior officials have brushed off concerns raised by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) over the annulment of the licence for online news outlet VOD, saying this would “improve” the professional ethics of the media in Cambodia. ...

The Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation and several partner organisations held a February 15 workshop to share details of a circular which described procedures for dealing with the victims of human trafficking. ...

In a gesture of goodwill, Prime Minister Hun Sen offered government positions to unemployed Voice of Democracy (VOD) journalists. ...

Despite a wave of international concern over the shutdown of independent media Voice of Democracy (VOD), Prime Minister Hun Sen said that the outlet’s license will not be restored and offered VOD reporters government jobs instead in a Facebook post Tuesday. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen has announced that roles within the state framework will be made available for any former employees of online media outlet VOD who wish to engage in public affairs. ...

Both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday dismissed concerns from the international community and foreign embassies over the decision to revoke the licence of the Voice of Democracy (VOD) radio. ...

Cambodia said on Tuesday that the shutdown of the foreign-funded VOD (Voice of Democracy) radio over broadcasting “intentionally slanderous” information does not undermine the vibrant press freedom in the Southeast Asian country. ...

There were tears at Cambodia’s Voice of Democracy on Monday as journalist Khan Leakhena reacted to the sudden order to close the news website. ...

International embassies and other organisations in Cambodia have raised grave concerns about the government’s snap decision to shutter independent media Voice of Democracy (VOD) after revoking its license. ...

After the government shuttered independent media Voice of Democracy (VOD) on Monday, dozens of civil society groups decried the decision and numerous embassies warned the loss of the publication seriously damaged Cambodia’s dwindling press freedom in the run-up to the July national election. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen announced the government will revoke the license for media outlet VOD in a Facebook post Sunday evening, after he previously demanded an apology for an article he claimed was inaccurate. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen has ordered the Ministry of Information to revoke the licence of VOD, after the online media outlet failed to apologise for publishing an “intentionally slanderous” article regarding Cambodia’s recent relief assistance to quake-hit Turkiye. ...

Police claim 19 Japanese nationals who were removed from a Sihanoukville compound last week were not held against their will and are being investigated for alleged criminal activity, according to National Police spokesperson Chhay Kim Khoeun. ...

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Dith Tina recommended that the Technical Secretariat on Economic Land Concessions maintain a database of the companies which received economic land concessions. Regular inter-ministerial meetings should be held to deliver updates on the progress of each of the companies.​ ...

A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said a US State Department human rights award should be given to a person who advocates for peace, national harmony and reconciliation, not a lawbreaker. ...

A crowd of around 30 activists gathered at the base of Phnom Penh’s namesake Wat Phnom hill Wednesday before embarking down National Road 5 on a more than 200 kilometer journey by foot to Pursat province to promote social justice and morality. ...

The Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) on January 29 concluded its two-day extraordinary congress, setting the party’s priority goals for 2023-2028. ...

Several government institutions are working together to improve the effectiveness of the media, as they understand that access to information is vital to the well-being of the population.​ ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen urged the Information Ministry to finalize the long-delayed Law on Access to Information during a Saturday press gala in Phnom Penh. He claimed the draft law would be adopted in the next two years after the July national elections.  ...