LIBRARY

7 November 2019

Soldiers, military police and police have mobilised across Cambodia this week ahead of the planned return of former leaders of the Supreme Court-dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party. In many provinces this has included public processions of armed security forces down main thoroughfares, sometimes with children lining the streets to observe the armed forces, as organised by their public schools. Government-aligned media and official Facebook pages have shared videos of armed forces alongside machine gun turrets, grenade launchers, artillery, assault rifles and sniper rifles. LICADHO has confirmed that convoys of security forces have traveled through public streets in Banteay Meanchey, Battambang, Kampong Thom, Koh Kong, and Svay Rieng provinces.

This deployment of armed forces takes place amid an unprecedented wave of arrests of former opposition members, with at least 50 people arrested since August 2019.

4 November 2019

The Supreme Court issued a verdict this morning denying bail to Kong Raiya, who was arrested on 9 July 2019 after advertising in a Facebook post that he was selling t-shirts featuring the image of slain political analyst Kem Ley.

Raiya was charged with “incitement to commit felony”, along with Soung Neakpaon, who was arrested the day after Raiya at a memorial event for Kem Ley and faces the same charges. Both men are currently being held in CC1 prison in Phnom Penh.

Eighty-seven civil society groups, unions and grassroots communities, including LICADHO, issued a statement calling for the release of both Raiya and Neakpaon a few days after their arrest in July. The statement noted their arrests were arbitrary and a clear violation of the pair’s right to freedom of expression under the Cambodian Constitution. Five current human rights special rapporteurs from the United Nations (UN) also called for the dropping of all charges against both Raiya and Neakpaon and urged the Cambodian government to release both men. International human rights organization Amnesty International has labeled Raiya and Neakpaon “Prisoners of Conscience” and also called for their release, as has the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR).

23 October 2019

More than 500 people from land communities, civil society organisations, unions and independent analyst groups gathered in Phnom Penh on Wednesday morning to celebrate the 28th anniversary of the Paris Peace Accords.

The celebration occured at the relocated Freedom Park, and speeches were given praising the promises of peace, democracy, respect for human rights and development enshrined in the Paris Peace Accords. Representatives from the US and EU embassy joined participants to listen to speeches from independent analysts and union leaders, who discussed the importance of respect for human rights and pluralistic democracy. Dozens of plainclothes and uniformed security officers were also present.

Organisers were denied permission to march from The Council for the Development of Cambodia and instead held the event in the confines of Freedom Park. The government announced earlier this year that October 23, Paris Peace Accords Day, will no longer be an official holiday starting next year.

21 October 2019

More than 100 community members were blocked by mixed security forces in Tbong Khmum province today as they traveled to protest the arrest of two community representatives last week and observe a civil case filed by a rubber company seeking to deny them access to community land.

Community members posted on their community’s Facebook page this morning that the villagers from Dambe district were traveling to observe the court process at the Tbong Khmum provincial court, but their vehicles were stopped by authorities en route. After about 100 security forces halted the community and barricaded the roads about 20 kilometers from the court, the community members were forced to walk the remaining distance and, after arriving at the court, were observed by about 50 additional security forces.

Villagers went to monitor a civil case filed by a representative of Harmony Win Investment Co, a Chinese-owned rubber plantation that is involved in a long-standing conflict with the community over communal forest land. Villagers have repeatedly called for local and national authorities to resolve the conflict, which affects more than 600 families. They also called for the release of two community representatives involved in the dispute, Phon Chhoeun and Sem Sang, who were arrested last week and are currently being detained in Kampong Cham prison over charges related to the land dispute.

3 October 2019

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court this morning once again delayed a verdict announcement for two former Radio Free Asia journalists, Uon Chhin and Yeang Sothearin, who face charges of providing information to a foreign power that could undermine national defence. The judge ordered further investigation of the case, a judgement that came amidst a trial that has failed to provide any credible evidence substantiating the charges.

LICADHO calls for all charges against the two former journalists to be immediately dropped.

A Phnom Penh Municipal Court judge announced this morning that the court would not issue a verdict announcement in the case and instead would further investigate several key facts, including conducting further forensic analysis on hard drives that have been in the court’s possession for more than 18 months. No timeframe was given for such an investigation. This ongoing legal process means that the two former journalists could continue to face charges without any credible evidence indefinitely.

19 August 2019

Farmers often take microfinance debt, but then struggle to repay it due to falling crop prices or crop failures. Selling their land is sometimes the only way they can repay their microfinance loans.

13 August 2019

Many Cambodians have had family members migrate to pay off microfinance debts. A report by the IOM in 2016 found that more than 40% of Cambodians who migrated abroad did so to pay debts. End debt-driven migration.

8 August 2019

The average size of a microloan in Cambodia is now the highest in the world. Many farmers are trapped in a cycle of debt, forced to get larger and larger loans to survive. Watch the video below to learn one man's story.

7 August 2019

More than 2 million Cambodians currently have a loan with a microfinance institution, or MFI. Levels of debt have skyrocketed in recent years, leading to a number of human rights abuses, including coerced land sales, child labour, debt-driven migration, and bonded labour, according to a joint report from the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO) and Sahmakum Teang Tnaut (STT), two Cambodian human rights NGOs.

Collateral Damage: Land Losses and Abuses in Cambodia’s Microfinance Sector details the size and scope of Cambodia’s MFI sector and seeks to highlight the human rights abuses that researchers discovered. The research spans 10 communes in 4 provinces as well as Phnom Penh and features seven detailed case studies of abuses, chosen from the 28 MFI clients who suffered human rights abuses that were interviewed by researchers.

7 August 2019

More than 2 million Cambodians currently have a loan with a microfinance institution, or MFI. Levels of debt have skyrocketed in recent years, leading to a number of human rights abuses, including coerced land sales, child labour, debt-driven migration, and bonded labour, according to a joint report from the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO) and Sahmakum Teang Tnaut (STT).

Collateral Damage: Land Losses and Abuses in Cambodia’s Microfinance Sector details the size and scope of Cambodia’s MFI sector and seeks to highlight the human rights abuses that researchers discovered. The research spans 10 communes in 4 provinces as well as Phnom Penh and features seven detailed case studies of abuses, chosen from the 28 MFI clients who suffered human rights abuses that were interviewed by researchers.

25 July 2019

Kong Raiya and Soung Neakpaon, two activists arrested on 9 and 10 July 2019 while peacefully commemorating the anniversary of political analyst Kem Ley’s murder, were denied bail by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Wednesday afternoon.

Both men were arrested after peacefully exercising their freedom of expression and were charged with criminal incitement. Raiya, 28, was arrested on 9 July 2019 after he posted on Facebook that he was selling t-shirts featuring the image of Kem Ley, and also posted the phone number of a taxi driver who could bring people to Phnom Penh to commemorate the slain analyst. Neakpaon, 29, was arrested the day after Raiya outside of the Caltex Bokor petrol station where Kem Ley was murdered three years earlier. Neakpaon, a former member of Kem Ley’s youth group, was holding a sign that read “End extrajudicial killings” prior to his arrest.

Neither of these men should be in prison for exercising their freedom of expression, which is guaranteed under Cambodian and international law. LICADHO reiterates the call from 87 civil society groups for authorities to immediately release both men and drop all charges against them.

12 July 2019

We, the undersigned civil society groups, denounce the unjustified use of security personnel during the third anniversary of political commentator Kem Ley’s death and call for the immediate and unconditional release of two activists, Kong Raiya and Soung Neakpaon, from detention and the dropping of all charges against them.

Both men were arrested for peacefully exercising their freedom of expression while commemorating the anniversary of the death of political commentator Kem Ley, who was murdered on 10 July 2016. Shortly after their arrests, both men were charged with criminal incitement under Articles 494 and 495 of the Criminal Code and are being detained at Phnom Penh’s Correctional Center 1.

10 July 2019

Authorities detained seven people on July 9 and July 10 for expressing their condolences and support for murdered political commentator Kem Ley, while people marking the third anniversary of his killing at the site of his murder in Phnom Penh were surrounded by police. These detentions mark the continuation of a heavy-handed crackdown by authorities on Cambodians’ right to free expression and assembly.

This morning, three activists were detained outside Caltex Bokor petrol station in Phnom Penh – the location of Kem Ley’s murder on July 10, 2016 – after they joined other youth activists, union leaders and civil society members to mark the anniversary. The detainees included environmental activists Chum Hout and Chum Hour.

9 July 2019

Today, on the third anniversary of the killing of prominent political commentator and human rights defender Kem Ley, the 24 undersigned organizations renew calls on the Cambodian government to establish an independent and impartial Commission of Inquiry to conduct a thorough and effective investigation into his killing.

On 10 July 2016, Kem Ley was shot and killed while having a morning coffee at a gas station located on Monivong Boulevard in central Phnom Penh. This killing occurred amidst a backdrop of attacks on human rights defenders and members of the political opposition, and a documented history of killings of human rights defenders with impunity in Cambodia.

2 July 2019

We, as workers, communities, associations, trade unions, civil society organisations and human rights defenders working for the promotion of human and labour rights in Cambodia, extend our heartfelt condolences to the families of those who lost loved ones in the tragic deadly collapse of an under-construction seven-storey building in Village 3, Sangkat 4, Sihanoukville Province on 22 June 2019 at 4:00 a.m. We are grateful to the mixed rescue team for their persistent efforts to locate victims during the critical sixty hours of searching.

As of 27 June 2019, at least 28 construction workers were confirmed dead, including five women and rescue teams had pulled out another 26 injured. Amongst the injured were two 16-year-olds, a girl and a boy. All victims are now at Preah Sihanouk Referral Hospital. The victims were migrant workers from other Cambodian provinces.

12 June 2019

Today, LICADHO marked World Day Against Child Labour by organising community events in two brick factories in Kandal province: Tboung Pich in Mukh Kampul district and Kheng Hok in Ksach Kandal district. Around 200 people attended the events, including brick factory owners, workers, and children. The events sought to raise awareness in the brick production sector about the criminality and consequences of employing child labour and debt bondage, and the importance of prioritising workplace safety.

The events were organised at the two brick factories to ensure that both factory owners and their employees were brought together to have a better understanding of the risks of employing child labour and the use of debt-bonded labour. Presentations were made and leaflets were handed out to the owners and workers about the legal provisions in the Labour Law and Cambodia’s commitments to the International Labour Organisation’s Convention 182 to stop the worst forms of child labour.

1 June 2019

We, the undersigned civil society groups, express serious concern regarding the recent and ongoing judicial harassment of former Cambodia National Rescue Party (“CNRP”) elected officials and members through baseless arrests, summonses, and detentions across multiple provinces. We urge the Royal Government of Cambodia to immediately cease the harassment of members of the political opposition and instead take concrete measures to restore civic space and enable all individuals to exercise their rights to free expression, association, assembly and political participation.

1 May 2019

More than 2,000 people in at least five provinces across the country marked International Labour Day over the last week, often in the presence of security forces. In Phnom Penh, around 500 mixed security forces were deployed, and workers and civil society members gathered at both Freedom Park and the Council for the Development of Cambodia. Municipal authorities stopped workers from marching to the National Assembly and instead allowed for a limited march around Wat Phnom in the presence of security officials.

8 April 2019

On 18 February 2019, Prime Minister Hun Sen urged the Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Women’s Affairs to review the situation of women detainees in pre-trial detention. Through a speech and a post on his official Facebook account, the prime minister said women detainees face many challenges, such as having children living outside of prisons with no support and being abandoned by their husbands.

LICADHO agrees with prime minister’s call for urgent action to address the needs of women in prison, specifically the situation of vulnerable populations – mothers with children and pregnant women in prison. This issue should be resolved through the use of existing legal measures, such as prioritising trials for women in pre-trial detention and expediting the processing of bail applications.

1 April 2019

Sum Meun, a Preah Vihear community representative who was missing for more than two months, has been located by his family in Sihanoukville.

Sum Meun disappeared from the Koulen Promtep Wildlife Sanctuary Headquarters on January 21, a day after being arrested and beaten by soldiers who were hired as security guards for a land concession granted to Metrei Pheap Kase-Ousahakam Co. Ltd, in Choam Khsant district’s Yeang commune. The concession has links to tycoon An Mady.

The community representative was last seen by his son, Meun Mean, who was arrested along with Sum Meun. He left the province in January due to fears for his safety. Preah Vihear provincial authorities released a statement on 31 March confirming that they met with Sum Meun in Phnom Penh over the weekend.