LIBRARY

8 December 2006

The occasion of International Human Rights Day, December 10th, 2006
is the 58th anniversary of the universal declaration on Human Rights that was passed on December 10th, 1948. The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC), a coalition of 23 NGO members, extends its appreciation for the efforts of the Royal government for making a number of progresses for the respects for human rights. However, we have noticed a great deal of impediments in the application of principles of human rights, democracy and policy for reduction of poverty such as:

I. Land Issues: The Action Committee noted that land disputes which lead to human rights violation remain as a critical issue and as one of the reasons that affect seriously the livelihood of people such as right to life, right to appropriate shelter, and right to adequate food etc. The eviction of people from their households so as to claim land for powerful, private company and businesspersons without appropriate compensation for people made people become poor, in addition, they have lost their job or occupation in making income generation.

28 November 2006

On Monday, November 27, 2006 at 9:30am, more than 100 members of the Alliance for Freedom of Expression in Cambodia (AFEC) gathered in the park in front of Wat Botum, nearby the National Assembly. The AFEC members were attempting to fly 100 kites as part of a campaign to demand freedom of expression and assembly in Cambodia, and the abolition of disinformation as a criminal offence. The motto of the event was "Without wind a kite cannot fly. Without Freedom of Expression society cannot progress."

26 November 2006

On the night of October 16, 2006, police forces resorted to violent and brutal measures as they attempted to disperse 2,000 garment workers during a peaceful strike at the Singaporean-owned Bright Sky Garment Factory in Dangkor district, Phnom Penh. In the clash of riot police and shocked garment workers, police fired several shots over the heads of workers and beat them with their electric batons. The police were sent in to disperse the workers who had gathered in the factory's main compound in order to settle an ongoing dispute over working conditions.

The 2,000 night shift workers had gathered in the compound at around 6pm on Monday, October 16, 2006. During the previous week the workers had been on strike calling for the abolition of six month contracts and the adoption of clear probation periods and permanent contracts.

24 November 2006

A colorful march to Wat Phnom concluded the first ever meeting of Southeast Asian Human Rights Defenders on 18 November, with a surprise guest appearance by perhaps the 'biggest' supporter of human rights in Cambodia: Sambo the elephant. Draped in banners proclaiming "Solidarity to all human rights defenders", the elephant led more than 100 marchers from around Southeast Asia for a lap of Wat Phnom in the searing midday heat.

It was a fitting conclusion to the 1st Southeast Asian Human Rights Defenders forum, held in Phnom Penh from 14-18 November. 33 regional activists joined more than 50 Cambodian human rights defenders for the event, which was organized by FORUM-ASIA and LICADHO, in cooperation with ADHOC. Delegates came from Aceh, Burma, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, with a guest representative from Nepal.

21 November 2006

Domestic violence in Cambodia is an insidious problem that physically, mentally and emotionally scars its victims. Cambodian society holds many moral and traditional cultural codes that enforce the belief that women should keep their family problems private. As a consequence, Cambodian women suffering from domestic violence will normally not discuss their problems with outside parties, believing that problems within the marriage should stay private.

The endemic problem of domestic violence in Cambodia will be the focus of the international 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence 2006. The campaign will be launched at a press conference organized by the Cambodian Committee of Women (CAMBOW). The press conference will be held at the offices of the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO), on Friday, 24 November 2006, at 10:00am.

17 November 2006

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee is pleased to note that the Draft Internal Rules for the ECCC ("Rules") include a number of very positive developments that can set a good example for Cambodian law generally. CHRAC welcomes the opportunity to give comments and believes that involving civil society in this historic process will only make the Extraordinary Chambers stronger.

CHRAC has nine main areas of concern regarding the ECCC Draft Internal Rules: 1/The additional power of the Pre-Trial Chamber, 2/The nature of supermajority voting, 3/Protecting defence rights, 4/Ensuring meaningful victim participation, protection and reparations, 5/Providing widespread public access to reasoned decisions of the Court, 6/Preventing in absentia trials, 7/Clarifying the role of the Constitutional Council, 8/Guaranteeing high quality interpretation, 9/Protecting ECCC personnel, victims, witnesses, and accused from defamation and libel actions in the Cambodian courts.

24 October 2006

"We demand a lot from children when we ask them to be participants in the court system, therefore, in a system designed for adults, we need to adapt practices to make them sensitive to children caught up, through no fault of their own, in the system."

A slideshow presentation on the best interest of the child in court.

23 October 2006

On the 1000-day anniversary of the arrests of Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun, LICADHO urges the Court of Appeal to promptly consider the two men's case and to release them.

Today, October 23, is the 1000th day that Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun have spent in custody since their arrests on January 28, 2004 for allegedly killing prominent trade unionist Chea Vichea. They are currently serving 20-year prison sentences for the murder, despite extensive evidence of their innocence. Many individuals - including former King Norodom Sihanouk, Chea Vichea's family and the prime witness to the murder - have declared that they are innocent.

23 October 2006

The Alliance for Freedom of Expression in Cambodia (AFEC) is deeply concerned about forceful removal of the General Manager Noranarith Anandayath and other staff of the radio station Ta Prohm FM 90.5 on October 19, 2006.

Noranarith Anandayath was formerly the Cabinet chief of Prince Norodom Ranariddh who had been ousted as Funcinpec President at an extraordinary party congress on Wednesday, October 18, which was staged by Funcinpec's Secretary-General Nhiek Bun Chay in a coup-like manner. Already on Tuesday at 2:30pm, four armed body guards of Nhiek Bun Chay had taken control of the office of the radio station in Phnom Penh.

17 October 2006

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC), a coalition of 23 NGO members, strongly condemns the armed forces for cracking down on a peaceful strike made by garment factory workers while they were asserting their rights for better working conditions at Bright Sky Garment Factory, located along Veng Sreng Street, Dangkor District, Phnom Penh on October 16, 2006 at around 8.30pm.

At the scene, the armed forces violently cracked down on the strike, during which serious abdominal firearm injuries were sustained by a female employee from the factory named Muth Ravy, 24, while she was walking into Rainbow Factory, close to Bright Sky factory. Due to further action by the armed forces, two other workers named Neang Sovannaroth, 21 and his wife Nget Bora, 20, were physically beaten and arrested and brought to the Police station at Dangkor District Office.

12 October 2006

The Alliance for Freedom of Expression in Cambodia (AFEC) demands for abolishing Article 62 of the UNTAC law on criminal disinformation. The network of 28 Cambodian civil society organizations holds that this legal provision contradicts the Cambodian Constitution and the international human rights law by imposing unjustifiable restrictions to the human right to Freedom of Expression. In the view of AFEC, there are other and much more adequate legal ways how to protect public peace than a law against disinformation. The AFEC is convinced that the mere publication of false statement of facts should not be criminalized at all.

In an open society there are many mechanisms that finally lead to the revelation of truth. The recent cases where high-ranking government officials brought criminal disinformation complaints against two journalists, a dismissed university teacher and three people who distributed a leaflet are demonstrating how Article 62 can be abused for silencing criticism. The fact that some of these persons are still arrested is a gross violation of Freedom of Expression.

4 October 2006

In addition to the noticeable impact of Phnom Penh's evictions, land disputes have also become disturbingly problematic in the provinces. What Phnom Penh has been witnessing is the new phenomenon of increasing numbers of communities traveling into the city from their home provinces - some as far as Banteay Meanchey province 350km from Phnom Penh. The villagers, camped under the shade of a tree nearby the National Assembly, make the journey to Phnom Penh to lobby the government in the hope that they will address the land disputes in their home villages.

4 October 2006

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC) a coalition of 21 NGO members, petitions the Appeal Court to release Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun in their upcoming Appeal Court hearing on October 6, 2006.

CHRAC has made investigations into the Chea Vichea assassination, which occurred on January 22, 2004 and continues to believe that Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun have nothing to do with the assassination. CHRAC considers the Phnom Penh Municipal Court's verdict to have been politically motivated. Furthermore, its appears that the police investigation into the assassination involved several now disgraced police officers, some who have now been arrested for criminal activity.

18 September 2006

The deteriorating human rights situation in Cambodia demands firmer action from the United Nations and the country's biggest foreign donors, according to three rights NGOs.

The Cambodian government's failure to meet its human rights obligations is highlighted by the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC), the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO), and the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), in a submission to the highest UN rights body, the Human Rights Council. The Council is holding its second session in Geneva from 18 September till 6 October, 2006.

"Impunity and corruption continue to be rampant, thousands of poor Cambodians are losing their homes to land-grabbing, and free speech has deteriorated to the extent that Members of Parliament can face criminal charges for expressing their opinions," said Kek Galabru, President of LICADHO. "The human rights situation just seems to go from bad to worse."

18 September 2006

The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), together with its member organizations, the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC) and the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO), wish to draw the Human Rights Council's attention to the Cambodian government's severe lack of commitment to and fulfillment of its human rights obligations.

This paper covers warning signs of abuses prior to upcoming elections, repressive new laws and lack of meaningful legal and judicial reforms, forced evictions, and lack of transparency, independence and competence in the judicial system.

14 September 2006

In the Cambodian context, any NGO law - regardless of its particular content - poses a threat to the work of human rights defenders and other NGOs. While human rights defenders are most at risk because of their role in criticizing government actions, the objectives of all NGOs and development agents - both foreign and domestic - can be compromised.

This paper highlights the experience of six Asian countries with laws similar to the proposed Cambodian NGO law is outlined below.

7 September 2006

Wednesday September 6, 2006 marked the three-month anniversary of the detention of two villagers - Chan Ra and Chhen Sovan - from Sambok Chab village and Hem Chhun, a journalist from Khmer newspaper Samrek Yuthetor (Scream for Justice). The three had been arrested and detained in connection to the Sambok Chab eviction which, on June 6 2006, culminated in an excessive display of force by the authorities to empty the village.

Assembling inside a pagoda nearby Phnom Penh's Prey Sar prison, family members of the three men, surrounded by over 200 supporters, spoke to the media and the crowd.

5 September 2006

Two of the villagers, Mr. Chhen Sovan, and Mr. Chan Ra, were arrested during the eviction of the residents of Sambok Chab, Sangkat Tonle Bassac, on June 6, by hundreds of armed policemen. The third person, Mr. Hem Chhun, who worked as a reporter for the newspaper Samrek Yuthetor, was arrested on July 7 close to the site in Dangkao District of Phnom Penh where the villagers were relocated. The three persons have been accused by the Phnom Penh authorities of having incited a riot at Sambok Chab Village on May 30 that lead to the destruction of private and public property. The authorities have accused the journalist of being the "mastermind" behind this violent event.

The AFEC rejects violence as a means of expressing opinions. However, the alliance points out that the riot was a spontaneous act by about 100 desperate villagers facing eviction and the destruction of their homes. The event took place after the dismantling of some of their houses had started and a girl had been wounded by falling debris. There is little indication of any kind of an organized plan or premeditation on the part of the villagers who participated in the riot.

11 August 2006

A slideshow presentation on Human Rights situation in Cambodia 2006.

4 August 2006

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC), a coalition of 21 NGO members, regrets the decision made by Kandal Provincial Court to charge and detain three garment factory workers; Lach Sambo, Sal Kimsan and Yin Khun who have been working for Genuine garment factory since 4 July 2006.

From 23 to 29 June 2006, 1000 workers at the Genuine garment factory, located in Kantok commune, Angsnuol district, Kandal province, held a strike to demand for the factory boss to withdraw complaints and allow to return union leader Lach Sambo and other two workers; Sal Kimsan and Yin Khun. All three were terminated by the boss in relation to a non-existent criminal case.