Input on NGO law over: gov’t

The government will not consult civil society groups on the latest iteration of a draft law that will regulate non-governmental organisations and associations, a senior Interior Ministry official said yesterday. Meas Sarim, deputy director-general of the General Department of Local Administration at the Ministry of Interior (MOI), said that the Council of Ministers had sent the law back to the MOI last year with orders that certain changes recommended by civil society groups be made. … A major concern when the fourth draft of the law was released in 2011 was that its vague definitions of NGOs and associations would allow the government to restrict certain groups, such as land rights protesters, by forcing them to register. …

Chhay Channyda and Kevin Ponniah
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/input-ngo-law-over-gov%E2%80%99t