Kong Saron and his family (Credit: Facebook/Em Chan Thy) (22 November 2023)

The Supreme Court today upheld the conviction and three-year prison sentence of social activist Kong Saron, who was arrested for a Facebook livestream video in which he expressed political opinions shortly before the July 2023 National Election.

Saron was arrested a few hours after posting his Facebook video and detained for 10 days before being released on bail on 11 July. On 22 November 2023, the Banteay Meanchey Provincial Court convicted Saron of incitement to commit a felony, public insult, and insulting the King under Articles 495, 307, and 437 bis of the Criminal Code. Saron was arrested several days later and has been in prison since. The lower court’s decision was upheld by the Battambang Appeal Court in February 2024.

In December 2023, six police officers arrested four people, including members of Saron’s family, while they were seeking legal advice at LICADHO’s Banteay Meanchey office. The police officers did not produce any relevant documents at the time. The four were released and returned to their homes a few hours later.