LIBRARY

4 December 2008

Open Letter by International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE), Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International Regarding
the Forced Eviction of Residents of Boeung Kak Lake in the Phnom Penh Municipality.

We write to you to express our deep concerns about recent developments affecting residents of the
Boeung Kak Lake area in central Phnom Penh. Some residents near the lake have been forcibly evicted,
while others are facing eviction amid rising water levels, and threats and harassment.

18 November 2008

LICADHO calls for the immediate suspension of an ongoing violent eviction led by Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) soldiers in Kampot province which has seen numerous homes burned down and at least three people injured by beatings.

Since yesterday, armed soldiers from RCAF Infantry Brigade 31, along with police, military police and Forestry Administration officers, have been trying to evict approximately 300 families from land in Anlong Kraom village, Taken commune, Chhuk district of Kampot. They burned down about 130 wooden shacks belonging to the families yesterday, and most of the remaining 170 homes today. They have instructed all the families to leave the area by tonight.

The evicted families are not being offered any alternative land but simply being told to leave the area. The people whose houses were destroyed yesterday spent last night sleeping in the ashes of their burned homes.

17 November 2008

We, representatives of Cambodian civil society, have grave concerns about the Cambodia-Thailand border dispute which has led to the fighting between the two countries, resulting in death and serious injury. This bloodshed is contrary to the principles of United Nations' human rights conventions which both countries have ratified.

9 November 2008

The Ministry of Social Affairs, in a statement dated November 4 and published in Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper on November 6, repeated its assertion that poor homeless people had stayed at the centers "on a voluntary basis" to receive vocational training and other services. The statement assured human rights and other civil society groups that there was no reason for concern about the centers.

On November 6, the day the statement was published, LICADHO staff were permitted to enter the Prey Speu center, in Phnom Penh's Chom Chao district, for the first time after months of being refused access. Inside, they found that center staff who have been implicated in grave abuses against detainees in the past - and whom LICADHO has asked the government to suspend pending a full investigation - continue to work there.

In addition, LICADHO found irrefutable evidence that people had been forcibly detained there. Scrawled on the walls of two rooms in one of the center’s buildings were messages written by former detainees, such as "Detained in a miserable prison" and "Pity me, help me". One detainee wrote of living "in terror [and] under oppression" there. Another etched the words "Hell life", in English, into a wall.

Click here to view photos of Prey Speu walls

29 October 2008

The filing of criminal charges against nine community representatives from around Cambodia in the past week highlight the widespread misuse of the law against communities who try to defend themselves in land disputes, LICADHO said today.

"Community representatives continue to be arrested, charged and imprisoned because of their efforts to assist fellow villagers to protect their land," said LICADHO president Kek Galabru. "Frequently, there is no justification whatsoever for the charges against them - the law is simply misused as a weapon to try to intimidate their communities into giving up land."

In the past week, nine community representatives from three provinces have been arrested and charged by the courts, and six of them sent to prison for pre-trial detention.

8 October 2008

Tomorrow, in a mark of solidarity amongst all the communities that are faced with eviction, land alienation and ongoing harassment, community representatives from 11 provinces will publicly present their land complaints, after having formally delivered the complaints to the authorities in Phnom Penh.

“Not only is our land being given away, we are facing increasing intimidation and violence. The problem is getting worse. We have no choice but to gather together and have a combined voice”. Community representatives from across Cambodia, Mr Som Chaing (Preah Vihear province) Mr. Sarine Kait (Kratie province) Mr. Rajom Tweng (Ratanakiri province) Ms. Laon Ceevy (Pursat province)

"Systematic threats, violence and intimidation continue to be targeted against human rights defenders, especially those working on land issues. Only through genuine consultation and engagement of the affected communities will there be any resolution." Kek Galabru, President of the Cambodia League for the Promotion and Defence of Human Rights (LICADHO)

In June 2008, communities from 5 of the provinces that had filed complaints against land concessions and alleged land grabbings were subjected to harassment by local authorities, including restrictions on their movement and ability to hold meetings, and police threats preventing the delivery of complaints to authorities in Phnom Penh. There have also been reports of physical violence and other threats and intimidation targeting community representatives who organized the filing of complaints.

25 September 2008

LICADHO calls for Cambodian authorities to take concrete steps to redress he persecution of human rights defenders, including by bringing the killers of trade unionist Hy Vuthy to justice and ensuring that Khmer Kampuchea Krom activist monk Tim Sakhorn is able to return to Cambodia from Vietnam.

“Cambodia is a dangerous place for human rights defenders and this will not change until some real action is taken to prevent and punish attacks against them,” said LICADHO president Kek Galabru. “The authorities cannot continue to commit or ignore serious abuses against people who try to defend or promote human rights.”

A LICADHO briefing paper issued today, entitled Attacks and Threats Against Human Rights Defenders in Cambodia 2007, records more than 50 incidents of intimidation or violence against rights defenders last year. They include the February murder of Hy Vuthy and the arbitrary deportation of monk Tim Sakhorn to Vietnam in June.

23 September 2008

Today marks the 1,700th day that Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun have spent in prison for a crime they did not commit.

Despite overwhelming evidence of their innocence, the two men continue to serve 20-year prison sentences for the murder of trade union leader Chea Vichea. They remain in Phnom Penh’s PJ prison, where they have been since their arrests on January 28, 2004.

“After more than four years and seven months in prison, it is long overdue that the gross injustice done to Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun be ended and that they be released,” said LICADHO director Naly Pilorge.

17 August 2008

The Association for Development and Human Rights in Cambodia (ADHOC) and the Cambodian League for Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (LICADHO) jointly condemn the police crackdown on an attempted peaceful gathering over the Preah Vihear temple dispute by factory workers and school teachers today.

The gathering was initially planned to be held in front of the old National Assembly but, when military police, national and municipal police blocked many participants from reaching the site, the organizers decided to relocate to the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia's (FTUWKC) office.

There, more than 50 intervention police surrounded the office, trapping some 100 workers and teachers inside to prevent them from marching on the street. Police violently pushed people back inside the office at least twice, as well as destroyed banners and confiscated Cambodian flags.

31 July 2008

LICADHO is deeply concerned that authorities are seeking to arrest a Cambodian election observer because of an unsubstantiated and politically-motivated allegation of physical assault.

LICADHO believes that Chea Som Borun, an observer with the Neutral and Impartial Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (NICFEC), is being targeted because he is the son of a Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) activist.

Police accuse Borun of assaulting a relative of a CPP-affiliated village chief on the night before the elections in his home village of Ta Kou, in Chrey Loas commune, Ponhea Leu district of Kandal. However, multiple witnesses interviewed by LICADHO say that the reverse is true - it was in fact the alleged victim who, while drunk, hit Borun.

21 July 2008

A coalition of a wide range of civil society organizations, namely the Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC, 21 NGO members), the Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (COMFREL, 10 NGO members), and the Neutral and Impartial Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (NICFEC, 7 NGO members), have great concern over the general political situation and the practice of democracy in the Kingdom of Cambodia, especially during the electoral campaign period of the 4th term of the National Assembly Elections, which will take place on July 27, 2008.

The above mentioned civil society organizations have noted that during this electoral campaign period, starting from 26 June 2008 up to now, political violence particularly against non-ruling party activists at both the national and the local level, has threatened the freedom to fully participate in the upcoming elections. The latter is an important element of our democracy, and it is guaranteed by the Constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia. We have identified numerous cases of political violence occurring during the past three-weeks of this election campaign period, such as political intimidation, and the killing of journalists as well as non-ruling party activists; leading to a deterioration of the general security situation in the country which in turn is creating fear among the general public.

28 June 2008

The government should order the immediate and complete closure of two Social Affairs centers in which men, women and children have been unlawfully detained, and ensure an end to any further arbitrary arrests and detentions, LICADHO said today.

"These two centers, and any others like them, must be closed because their main purpose is to detain people completely unlawfully," said LICADHO director Naly Pilorge. “This is an institutionalized program of unlawful detention by the government which is morally and legally indefensible."

One of the centers is in Prey Speu, Chom Chao commune of Phnom Penh and the other is on the site of a former Khmer Rouge prison and execution camp on Koh Kor, an island in Saang district of Kandal province. Both centers are run by the Phnom Penh Municipal Social Affairs Department.

9 June 2008

The Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC), the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR), and the Cambodian League for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (LICADHO) condemn the arrest and detention on Sunday of Moneaksekar Khmer editorin-chief Dam Sith, which we believe was politically-motivated.

On Sunday morning, June 8, national military police officers wearing civilian clothes arrested Dam Sith at a Phnom Penh car-washing shop. After several hours at the national military police headquarters, he was sent to Phnom Penh court where he was charged with defamation and disinformation and sent to Prey Sar prison for pre-trial detention.

Dam Sith was charged following a complaint against him by Minister of Foreign Affairs Hor Namhong, regarding an article published in Moneaksekar Khmer on April 18. The article reported on a speech made by Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) president Sam Rainsy, at a Khmer Rouge victims' commemoration on April 17, in which he made comments about several government ministers. Hor Namhong subsequently filed a court complaint against both Sam Rainsy and Dam Sith.

5 June 2008

LICADHO appeals to the government to allow the immediate reopening of radio FM 105.25 in Kratie province, without any censorship or other restrictions on its broadcasts.

The Ministry of Information last week closed down the new radio station, which had broadcasted for only 13 days, because it sold air time to political parties.

"The abrupt closure of this radio station reflects very poorly on the government's commitment to allowing democratic debate prior to the July national elections," said Kek Galabru, LICADHO’s president. "It also highlights how freedom of expression and information is tightly controlled on Cambodia's radio and television stations, particularly in rural areas."

29 May 2008

The number of villagers coming to Phnom Penh to highlight land grievances - with people from five provinces arriving in the capital within the past 48 hours - shows the continuing dire situation of land-grabbing in Cambodia.

"People are still coming to Phnom Penh from all over the country, desperate for government officials to listen to their land problems and resolve them," said Kek Galabru, LICADHO’s president. "This shows that land-grabbing is still rampant and that villagers are unable to get their grievances heard anywhere else."

1 May 2008

Cambodia's media is often described as one of the freest in the region, but in reality journalists describe an environment in which the pursuit of truth is undermined by political bias, fear and corruption.

Most of Cambodia's media outlets are aligned to a political party and most favor the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP). Bribes are so commonplace they are not even considered corruption. Formal censorship exists and self-censorship is widespread through Cambodia's media.

A new survey shows that many Cambodian journalists have been attacked - physically or legally - and most feel vulnerable. Threats and fear have a direct influence on their work, and their reporting has a direct influence on the public's perception of their country, especially around election periods.

27 March 2008

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC), a coalition of 21 NGO members, the Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (CMFREL) and the Neutral and Impartial Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (NICFEC) are very concerned over the ongoing politically motivated arrests by using court system as a political tool for intimidation, amid the forthcoming national elections to be held on 27 July 2008.

On 18 March 2008 at around 9 am, Mr. Tuot Sarorn, Tuol Pong Ro Commune Chief, Baray district, Kampong Thom province was arrested by a group of police officers led by Baray District Police Inspector without an arrest warrant although police officials affirmed that the arrest was based on a warrant issued by the Kampong Thom provincial court.

On 19 March 2008, Mr. Tout Sarorn was sent to Kampong Thom provincial police commissariat and to the court. Additionally, three other members of Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) Mr. Thorn Rithy (Deputy Chief of SRP Kampong Thom provincial office), Mr. Men Vannak and Mr. Hour Sarak, are also searched for arrest.

25 March 2008

Pring Pov, the Kep policeman who has been unlawfully detained for more than one month by the Ministry of Interior, was sent by police to Monivong Hospital yesterday. The Cambodia Human Rights and Development Organization (ADHOC) and the Cambodian League for Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (LICADHO) are deeply concerned for his health and once more call for his immediate release.

Pring Pov, a district police officer in Kep municipality, was arrested without court warrant on February 18, 2008, and has subsequently been detained in a cell by the Order Police at a Ministry of Interior compound in Phnom Penh. He has been beaten and kept in handcuffs for at least some of that time, according to credible information received by ADHOC and LICADHO.

11 March 2008

The Cambodian League for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (LICADHO) is gravely concerned by the unlawful detention and alleged torture of a man in the custody of the Ministry of Interior.

Mr Priep Pov, a Damnak Chang’aeur district policeman from Kep Municipality, was arrested without court warrant in Kep on February 18. Transferred to Phnom Penh on the same day, he has since been detained for three weeks at a compound used by the Ministry of Interior's Order Police and the Intervention Police units. He has been beaten and kept shackled with handcuffs by foot and hand for at least some of that time, and is in poor health, according to credible information received by LICADHO.

6 March 2008

My name is Lina and I live in prison with my daughter, Maly in a prison cell with twenty-five other women. I had no other choice but to bring my daughter with me into prison. Maly was very young at the time. My husband had died and I didn’t have any family living near that could take care of Maly.

Lina is one of over 640 female prisoners living in prison and one of the 43 women who currently live with their children in prison - her daughter is one of those 50 children. Their story is told in the LICADHO report, entitled Prison Conditions in Cambodia 2007: The Story of a Mother and Child, which is being released to mark International Women's Day, March 8 2008.