LICADHO urges the Court of Appeal to provide justice to Chan Sopheak, the man convicted of the murder of trade unionist Ros Sovannareth despite a lack of credible evidence against him, by releasing him from prison as soon as possible. The Appeal Court held a hearing on the case this morning and will issue its verdict on February 18.

There are remarkable similitaries between the case of Chan Sopheak, who is also known as Thach Saveth, and that of Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun, the two men who were unjustly convicted of killing another trade unionist, Chea Vichea. The Supreme Court, acknowledging the lack of evidence against them and the need for further investigation, ordered the release on bail of Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun on December 31, 2008.

"The prosecution of Chan Sopheak was a mirror image of what happened to Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun, and like them he should be released so that he can return to his family," said LICADHO president Kek Galabru. "Chan Sopheak has already spent nearly five years in prison - it is long overdue that this injustice to him be ended.

"There is every reason to believe that the same police who framed Born Samnang and Sok Sam Ouen also fabricated the case against Chan Sopheak. Like them, he never should have been convicted based on the flimsy evidence against him," added Kek Galabru.

Ros Sovannareth, a Steering Committee member of the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC) and the union’s representative at the Trinuggal Komara factory in Phnom Penh, was shot dead by two men on a motorbike in Phnom Penh on May 7, 2004. His murder came less than four months after Chea Vichea, the FTUWKC's national president, was killed in a virtually identical manner.

Chan Sopheak was arrested by the same Toul Kork district police, led by deputy chief Hun Song, who arrested Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun. Hun Song was deeply involved in the framing of the two men for Chea Vichea's murder, including by allegedly forcing an initial confession to the killing by Born Samnang. More recently, in 2006, Hun Song was fired from his position after being accused of ordering the execution of a robbery suspect.

Chan Sopheak was convicted of Ros Sovannareth's murder, and sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment, in a February 2005 trial by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court which was grossly unfair - in much the same ways as Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun's trial six months later. In both trials, the convictions were based on prosecution witnesses who did not appear in court and therefore could not be cross-examined by defense lawyers, while defense witneses who provided alibi testimony were ignored. In Chan Sopheak's case, Municipal Court judge Sao Meach convicted him after a trial which lasted only one hour. The judge dismissed the evidence of defense witnesses who testified in court that Sopheak was not in Phnom Penh, but was traveling between Anlong Veng and Siem Reap, on the day of Ros Sovannareth's murder.

Chan Sopheak was convicted solely on the basis of written statements, prepared by the police, by four eyewitnesses to Ros Sovannareth's murder who allegedly identified him. None of these witnesses were interviewed by the court prosecutor or investigating judge who examined the case - meaning that nobody but the police ever talked to them - and none of them testified at Sopheak’s trial. The witnesses' written statements contained a glaring inconsistency: some of the witnesses reportedly said that Sopheak resembled the gunman, while others said he looked like the shooter’s accomplice, his motorcycle driver.

One of the four police witnesses came to this morning's Appeal Court hearing, at the request of the defense lawyer, but presiding judge Um Sarith refused to allow the witness to testify.

"This was the first time that any of these four witnesses had been to any court, and the Appeal Court simply refused to listen to him," said Kek Galabru. "This raises obvious questions about whether the Appeal Court is really interested in examining all the evidence, or merely wants to rubber-stamp Chan Sopheak's conviction."

LICADHO is concerned by the attitude of the judges and prosecutor during today's hearing, which lasted little more than an hour, and the lack of respect they showed for the presumption of innocence to which Chan Sopheak is entitled.

"Thoughout the hearing, the judges and prosecutor spoke as though Sopheak had to prove his innocence - to the contrary, the burden is on the prosecution to prove his guilt," said Kek Galabru.

"No evidence whatsoever was presented by the prosecution today, except for written statements taken by the police of witnesses who have never set foot in any court to testify - until today, when one of these witnesses was ready to testify, but the judge did not allow it."

LICADHO urges the Appeal Court judges to issue a verdict on February 18 which is based on an objective and impartial review all the evidence in this case.

"The Supreme Court's decision to release Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun on bail was a positive development for Cambodia's judiciary, but it is important that the same level of justice is provided by other courts in other cases," said Kek Galabru. "The Appeal Court has an opportunity to show that Cambodia's judiciary is not taking one step forward, two steps backwards."

For more information, please contact:
▪ Dr. Kek Galabru, LICADHO President, 012 940 645

PDF: Download full statement in English - Download full statement in Khmer