News

Following a marathon treason trial that first commenced in January 2020, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on March 3 sentenced former opposition leader Kem Sokha to 27 years in prison – in a much-anticipated verdict that has drawn a barrage of mixed reactions from national ...

The Ministry of Economy and Finance is reviewing the draft new tax law with the Ministry of Justice articles about the criminal code and clauses that go along with other relevant laws, a senior official said. ...

Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a statement on Wednesday urging Cambodian authorities to drop espionage charges which it deemed politically motivated against two former Radio Free Asia (RFA) journalists and free them of court supervision. But Ministry of Justice spokesman Chin Malin dismissed the statement ...

The Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training has urged all relevant departments to use the Criminal Code to prosecute brick kiln owners who use child labour. And the owner of a Kandal facility at which a young girl lost her arm will be among the ...

The number of people being held in Cambodian prisons has reached epidemic proportions, leading to overcrowding and corruption, and causing families to suffer unnecessarily, claims a report by local NGO Licadho. However, Ministry of Justice spokesman Chin Malin rejected the findings, saying the rise in ...

The Grassroots Democratic Party (GDP) held its first major rally of the campaign period in the capital on Tuesday while pushing a platform that included a promise to eliminate treason charges from the Criminal Code. ...

UN special Rapporteur Rhona Smith officially commenced her latest visit to the Kingdom yesterday, meeting with the Ministry of Justice to raise concerns over a slew of legislative and constitutional amendments undertaken as part of the government’s recent crackdown on political dissent. ...

A set of controversial laws and constitutional amendments was quietly signed by Senate President Say Chhum in place of the King last week, going into effect immediately despite the Justice Ministry previously claiming there would be a promulgation period. ...

The National Assembly’s spokesman yesterday dismissed a statement released by the dissolved opposition CNRP criticising an extraordinary session of parliament called this week to pass amendments to the Penal Code and constitution. An extraordinary session was held on Wednesday to discuss and then approve the Penal ...

The National Assembly unanimously passed amendments to the Constitution and Criminal Code Wednesday that will impose restrictions on political rights and make it illegal to disrespect the King – changes that observers called a “disaster” for civil liberties in the Kingdom. In a full plenary session, ...

The Ministry of Justice today confirmed that a proposed lèse majesté law would be among a series of legal amendments considered by the Constitutional Council on Friday. ...

The chief of the Banteay Meanchey provincial prison has denied allegations of inmate torture, amid calls from a local rights official for an investigation. Prison director Oung Siphan, through a clarification letter issued on Monday, challenged a foreign radio broadcast that alleged provincial prison officials tortured ...

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court charged two officials from the Preah Vihear mines and energy department with corruption yesterday, with a former colleague linking the charges to an illicit 2014 land sale. ...

After her third UN fact-finding mission to Cambodia, special rapporteur Rhona Smith issued a searing review of the human rights situation in the country, stating that the days of the government evoking the troubles of the past century as an excuse for its present shortcomings ...

Well-known timber trafficker Heng Samneang was charged on Sunday with illegal logging and interfering with the work of public officials, according to a Phnom Penh Municipal Court officer, days after she allegedly tried to retrieve some of her ill-gotten timber with the help of a ...

Rhona Smith, the UN special rapporteur for human rights in Cambodia, who is on a three-day trip to the Kingdom, yesterday voiced her concern about overcrowding in prisons caused by an increase in temporary detentions before trials. Ms. Smith, on her third visit to Cambodia, raised ...

Cambodia on Thursday rejected four recommendations for improving its human rights situation that it initially accepted earlier this year during its second universal periodic review at the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva. It also “noted” 38 recommendations—meaning it has not committed to implementing them—some relating ...

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court charged two more alleged members of the hacking group Anonymous Cambodia on Monday, as other members of Anonymous claimed to hack at least four government websites, including that of the National Police. The two men, Keo Sipheng, 26, and Hok Ratana, ...

The deputy director of the Preah Sihanouk provincial tax branch who was arrested for corruption last week was on Friday charged with the misappropriation of public funds, an official confirmed Sunday. Phy Rith, who was arrested by the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) on Wednesday, was charged by ...