Freedom of Expression - Mapped
Cambodia took a step backwards on freedom of expression issues in 2010.
LICADHO's latest report, "Freedom of Expression Cambodia: The Illusion of Democracy", provides an overview of the damage: Community activists were murdered, beaten and arrested for speaking out. Opposition politicians were stripped of their immunity and prosecuted. Journalists were harassed. The government even tried to silence foreign diplomats and international organizations.
To accompany the report, LICADHO has created an online map of all violations covered in the report (at left). To use the map, simply drag your mouse around, zoom in and out, hover and click on a marker to get information on a specific case. The case data will appear in this window.
All told, the report and map document nearly 50 cases involving violations of expressive rights in Cambodia from April to September 2010. Cases are classified by the tactic used by authorities - interference with peaceful public assemblies; use of the legal system to silence critics; extrajudicial threats, attacks and killings; political intimidation. The list of cases is not necessarily comprehensive.
The map and report also include cases involving journalists arrested for alleged extortion from timber brokers and other businesses. These cases are placed in their own category because, in many cases, journalists do indeed engage in attempted extortion. Thus, their arrests are not strictly a freedom of expression issue. We collected these stories because we believe the timing of the journalist crackdown - just as the government began a campaign against illegal logging – was notable. Please see the report for more information on this topic.
