LIBRARY

14 February 2006

Students (aged 11 to 17) participate in art contest to celebrate Child Rights in Cambodia.

6 February 2006

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC), a coalition of 18 NGO members, welcomes the Royal pardons granted to Sam Rainsy, president of Sam Rainsy Party (SRP), and the SRP parliamentarian Cheam Channy by His Majesty King Norodom Sihamoni on 5th February 2006.

CHRAC welcomes the peaceful settlement of the dispute between important Cambodian political figures is a positive act showing their mutual respect and putting the interests of the nation and the people first.

1 February 2006

The Alliance for Freedom of Expression in Cambodia (AFEC), a coalition of 27 member organizations, would like to express its deepest gratitude to all individuals, local and international NGOs, embassies, governments and international institutions who joined the recent struggle for Freedom of Expression in Cambodia. This timely and vehement support has constituted an effective influence on the Royal Government of Cambodia that led to the release on bail of five arrested individuals: journalist and radio manager Mam Sonando, unionist Rong Chhun and the NGO leaders Kem Sokha, Yeng Virak and Pa Nguon Teang.

AFEC regrets that the right to Freedom of Expression of civil rights activists has been violated. Therefore, AFEC welcomes that the Government withdraws its complaints against the above-mentioned persons, and urges that similar complaints against other individuals in Cambodia and abroad, namely Ear Channa, Men Nath, Chea Mony, Prince Sisowath Thomico, and Say Bory are also withdrawn. AFEC further hopes that all criminal defamation charges will be dropped speedily by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court.

26 January 2006

The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), a membership-based regional organization holding a consultative status with the UN ECOSOC, and in accord with its Cambodian member organizations ADHOC and LICADHO, welcomes the resolution of IPU on Mr. Cheam Channy, Member of National Assembly of Cambodia, adopted on October 19, 2005. However, we would like to express our deep concerns and draw your attention to continuing human rights violations of Members of Parliament of Cambodia and to comment on the IPU Resolution.

18 January 2006

A small album documenting events leading up to and following liberation of five silenced members of civil society.

17 January 2006

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC), a coalition of 18 NGO members, welcomes the release on bail of Mam Sonando, Rong Chhun, Kem Sokha and Pa Nguon Teang, which follows the similar release last week of Yeng Virak. We are pleased that all of them have been temporarily freed from prison and are able to be reunited with their families.

We hope that this positive and encouraging news will be followed by the withdrawal of the criminal complaints against these five men and other individuals by the government, and the dropping of all charges against them by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court. Such an action would be a further significant step toward ensuring the protection of freedom of expression, other human rights and future economic development in Cambodia.

16 January 2006

On January 14, 2006, more than 150 members of human rights organizations, unions and other groups gathered in front of Prey Sar prison to show support for Mam Sonando, Rong Chhun, Kem Sokha and Pa Nguon Teang, all all detained inside the prison on defamation or related charges. Community Legal Education Center executive director Yeng Virak, who until recently was also detained with the other four men in the prison, was present at the event.

16 January 2006

Freedom of expression and other democratic rights are under dire threat in Cambodia, as the government continues to use the judiciary to imprison its critics and political opponents. Prominent human rights activists, journalists and trade unionists, as well as opposition members of parliament, have been targeted in a series of government-initiated prosecutions.

12 January 2006

An independent United Nations body has ruled that the detention of Sam Rainsy Party MP Cheam Channy is in violation of both Cambodian and international law.

In a decision communicated to the Cambodian government on 25 November 2005 and now made public, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) found that the Cambodian Military Court had no jurisdiction over Cheam Channy, a civilian and Member of Parliament for Kampong Cham province.

12 January 2006

We, the under-signed members of Cambodian NGOs and civil society, deeply regret the arrest and detention of Cambodian Center for Human Rights president Kem Sokha, Community Legal Education Center director Yeng Virak, and Cambodian Center for Human Rights deputy president Pa Nguon Teang, on charges of defamation.

The arrests relate to the celebrations held in Phnom Penh to mark International Human Rights Day on December 10, 2005, which were attended by more than 10,000 people. This rare and important event was authorized by the government and organized by NGOs and other civil society organizations. The authorization and support for this mass gathering of people seemed to be a positive step to promote human rights in Cambodia. Therefore, we are deeply disappointed by the subsequent arrests of Kem Sokha, Yeng Virak, and Pa Nguon Teang, which have created fear within civil society and the public, restricted freedom of expression, and set back human rights in Cambodia.

1 January 2006

Whilst violence against women in Cambodia is a difficult issue to accurately quantify, it is clear that it is a serious problem and there are an increasing number of reports of domestic violence, rape and trafficking. Although Cambodia is beginning to recognize the significance of these issues the extent of the government's willingness to educate the judiciary, the police and the public on these issues is still very limited.

Cambodia ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1992 and since then there has been insufficient action undertaken by the government to implement the principles contained in the convention. Most notably the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) passed the Law on the Prevention of Domestic Violence and the Protection of Victims in September 2005 and a draft Law on Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation is currently being reviewed by law-makers. However the RGC's progress in reducing/eliminating violence against women since 1992 has been slow and often inadequate.

31 December 2005

Since 1997, LICADHO has issued reports on human rights in Cambodian prisons, highlighting the most serious human rights concerns and recommending avenues of change. As an independent non-governmental organization, LICADHO has several key aims: 1/Monitor Cambodian prisons and prisoners' rights 2/Disseminate relevant high-quality non-partisan information. 3/Lobby for positive reform.

It is our hope that this report will be used by government and prison officials, human rights advocates, researchers, media, aid donors and legal professionals as a tool to identify existing problems, improve prison conditions and to promote prisoners' rights.

23 December 2005

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC), a coalition of 18 NGOs, is deeply concerned on resulting effects to democratic process and freedom of expression in Cambodia after seeing a series of government critics successively charged with criminal defamation under Article 63 of the 1992 UNTAC Criminal law.

CHRAC notes that, despite the government's "iron fist" policy in respect of alleged corrupted judicial system, it still remains weak and lacks the independence necessary for genuine rule of law to apply in Cambodia. CHRAC also notes that national and international organizations have expressed serious concern on the use of criminal defamation to silence critics and weaken freedom of expression guaranteed in the Constitution of Cambodia.

11 December 2005

The Cambodian government continues to maintain strict measures to suppress demonstrations or public gatherings of all kinds in the country. From January to November 2005, the authorities made attempts to prevent or disperse at least 40 public gatherings, including rallies and demonstrations, street marches, public discussion forums, labor strikes and protests over land disputes. Police and authorities have refused permission for public gatherings to be held, or otherwise tried to discourage them including by threatening to arrest participants, and have at times forcibly broken up gatherings.

1 December 2005

Following the arrests of Mr Mam Sonando and Mr Rong Chhun and the issuing of warrants for 3 other members of the Cambodian Watchdog Council, the Royal Government of Cambodia has continued its actions of silencing civil society and the monarchy in the wake of the signing of the Supplemental Document on the 1985 Border Treaty with Vietnam.

Most recently, on 21 November 2005, a summons was issued for Mr Say Bory, an advisor to retired King Sihanouk, to answer questions relating to allegedly defamatory comments made by the advisor in relation to the Border Treaty. Mr Say Bory is currently residing in France and was asked by the retired King not to return to Cambodia.

30 November 2005

"(...)I urge the Royal Government of Cambodia to follow the United Nation's example and release the names of the Cambodian candidates under consideration and the selection criteria far enough in advance of the final decision. This would allow civil society organizations and international community to comment on the Cambodian candidates. By doing so, the government will improve the credibility and transparency of the selection process. Even if civil society finds no new information about the candidates, the government will strengthen public confidence in the process by allowing civil society participation. Moreover, civil society might turn up new information - after all, when looking for something, many pairs of eyes are better than one pair of eyes. This too would strengthen the selection process.(...)"

Open letter by Dr. Kek Galabru, President of LICADHO

25 November 2005

(...) Making the criteria for selection and the list of recommended candidates public prior to final appointment are important steps to increase public participation and confidence in the outcome of the tribunal. In addition, publicizing the criteria and the candidates under consideration decreases the risk that the public will view the selection process as the result of political influence. The appointment of fair, impartial, independent, and experienced judges to the Extraordinary Chambers is critical to ensuring that the Extraordinary Chambers operates independently and consistently with international standards.

20 November 2005

In 2001, the Cambodian government instituted a new land law in part to standardize the awarding of economic land concessions which, hitherto, were governed by little legislation which, in any event, was mostly ignored. Economic land concessions in Cambodia normally involve very large tracts of land and are similar to long leases; they are usually for 70 years with a right of extension. The land law provided a general framework for economic land concessions and called for adopting administrative rules which the government is nearly finished preparing. It is doubtful, though, that the government and concessionaires will respect this greatly improved framework, and therefore doubtful that the well-documented abuses of the past will cease. These abuses had important social, economic, cultural and environmental consequences involving the dispossession and impoverishment of local populations. They also led to many conflicts.

21 October 2005

On 11 October, 2005 at approximately 7 am, Mr Mam Sonando, director of Beehive Radio FM 105, was removed from his house in Kean Svay Districtm Kandal Province. He was arrested without warrant by Kandal Police and was witnessed by media representatives and NGO workers.

On the same morning Mr Mam Sonando was brought before the Phnom Penh Municipal Court where he was charged with defamation under Article 63 of the UNTAC Law. The charges related to the broadcasting on 20 September 2005 of a radio interview between Mr Mam Sonando and Mr Sean Pengse, the former President of the Paris-based Cambodia's Border Committee.

22 September 2005

Recently, CHRAC has learned about severe draughts in several provinces in Cambodia due to lack of rain, particularly in Kampong Speu Province, which has caused some Cambodian farmers to suffer from lack of food. In addition we have also heard poor people appealing to their leaders, without consideration of political loyalties, for immediate food assistance, as well as for water support to their rice fields and plantations. These calls follow a promise made by the head of government who claimed that he would not allow any Cambodian to die of hunger or to have violated his/her right to food and life.