In June 2009, Khmer Machas Srok newspaper editor-in-chief Hang Chakra was accused of creating political instability and charged with disinformation after publishing articles about alleged corruption in the government. At a preliminary hearing, the court pressured Chakra to reveal his sources inside the government. He refused, explaining that the Press Law of 1995 guaranteed the protection of his sources.

"You are the court," he told the judge, "and you have to uphold the law."

On June 26, Chakra was tried in absentia, convicted and sentenced to one year in prison and a fine of nine million riel (USD $2,250).

The case of Hang Chakra was perhaps the most publicized threat to Cambodia's human rights defenders (HDRs) in 2008 and 2009. But it was by no means the only one. Chakra's case was one among 66 serious abuses against HRDs investigated and documented by The Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO). These cases are featured in LICADHO's latest report, "Attacks & Threats Against Human Rights Defenders in Cambodia January 1, 2008- December 31, 2009," which will be released on September 1, 2010.

Cambodian human rights defenders have faced an increasingly hostile environment over the past two years, enduring physical violence, illegal arrests, trumped-up criminal charges, obstructions to gatherings and movement, intimidation and forced evictions. As of July 15, 2010, 60 HRDs languish in Cambodia's prisons. Little has changed since LICADHO's last HRD report in 2007, which documented dramatic setbacks in press freedom, misuse of the justice system to silence government critics, and the imposition of harsh restrictions on peaceful protests.

"Despite Cambodia being a signatory to numerous international treaties, and the passage of national laws guaranteeing the protection of human rights defenders, the situation has worsened for many HRDs and civil society," said Dr. Pung Chhiv Kek, President of LICADHO.

Representatives and leaders of communities engaged in land disputes were threatened with violence, spurious legal action or imprisonment; trades union leaders were assaulted, arrested and persecuted for legitimate trade union activities; and journalists and human rights workers at NGOs were threatened, arrested and obstructed in carrying out their work. The Cambodian government, along with well connected companies and individuals, continue to employ repressive tactics in order to terrorize human rights defenders and undermine their ability to peacefully advocate for the rights of others.

Meanwhile, a number of disturbing trends have emerged:

First among these is the intensified use of the courts as a weapon to prevent the legitimate and lawful activities of human rights defenders. In 2008 and 2009 an alarmingly high number of grassroots HRDs were unlawfully arrested, prosecuted on false charges and detained. Many others were detained without being charged and often denied access to a lawyer or any information regarding the reasons for their arrest. This was accompanied by the use of bail as a mechanism to limit activism - authorities sometimes release human rights defenders in exchange for their promise to limit future human rights activities.

Human rights defenders released on bail were often ordered to cease their activities in land disputes, protests, demonstrations and marches, or indirectly discouraged from continuing their human rights work due to the lingering threat of their pending charges. Further complicating matters, the Code of Criminal Procedure is unclear as to any specific duration for bail. Article 249 simply states that a person can be kept under judicial supervision "until such time he is called to appear before the trial court". The only apparent time limit is the statute of limitations for the crime - 15 years for a felony and five years for a misdemeanor.

A typical example of this tactic occurred in May 2009, when four village representatives were detained by the Preah Sihanouk provincial court and accused of inciting and committing violence in connection with a land dispute. They were summoned and detained but were not tried in court. After two weeks of detention, they were released on bail, but the charges have never officially been dropped.

"Bail is an efficient way for the authorities to put a stop to a human rights defender's activities," said Naly Pilorge, Director of LICADHO. "Even if the charges are completely fabricated, the arrest allows authorities to place an individual under surveillance. The charges - and surveillance - can linger for up to 15 years, but in many cases the authorities don't even have to bother with a trial. Intimidation is enough."

The second trend observed in 2008 and 2009 was the increased use of defamation and disinformation laws to restrict freedom of expression. While the prison sentence for criminal defamation under UNTAC was removed in 2006 after public advocacy, the new criminal code reintroduces imprisonment for a number of defamation related offences. For example "slanderous denunciation" (articles 311- 313) is punishable by up to one year of imprisonment. The substantive portions of the new criminal code will come into force in November 2010. In the meantime, both disinformation and defamation in the UNTAC code are often employed to stifle freedom of speech and expression through the use or threat of legal action, exposing government critics to hefty fines and prison sentences. Moreover, the failure to pay a criminal fine can result in a sentence of up to two years imprisonment.

In 2009 alone, at least 25 complaints were filed against journalists for defamation, disinformation and related offences. Among those convicted were four journalists, including opposition editor Hang Chakra.

Another notable development in 2008 and 2009 was the increased restriction on freedom of association and assembly, marked by the violent disruption of peaceful protests, demonstrations, marches and strikes. People wishing to participate in such events and activities must now obtain permission from municipal authorities, and requests are often denied. Restrictions on freedom of assembly were increased following the passage of the new Law on Peaceful Demonstrations, enacted on December 5, 2009, which bans public protests involving more than 200 people. As a result, a growing number of peaceful protests in land disputes and evictions by communities throughout the country have been forcibly dispersed by police, citing
the need to safeguard public order and security. Leaders and organizers involved were often arrested on charges of incitement or disrupting the peace.

In June 2009, for example, local rights groups (CCHR, ADHOC, CLEC and LICADHO) were informed they needed to request permission to hold a forum entitled "Human Rights and Development". The meeting was set to be a platform for the discussion and education of Boeung Kak Lake residents on their rights when facing eviction. The Phnom Penh Municipal Authority denied permission for the forum on the grounds that it could create instability in the city.

"The right to protest is carefully controlled by the government," said Am Sam Ath, Technical Supervisor for LICADHO. "And their actions are in turn controlled by fear of allowing people too much space to raise legitimate concerns. They are afraid of the truth."

LICADHO's report is by no means a comprehensive examination of all of the attacks and threats against human rights defenders in Cambodia in the last two years, as many instances go unreported. Instead the report aims to provide a concise overview of the human rights abuses that LICADHO observed and investigated in 2008 and 2009.

A new addition to this year's report is the inclusion of three "Portraits of Human Rights Defenders," extended feature stories based on interviews with three human rights defenders: Hang Chakra, Siem Reap monk Venerable Loun Sovath, and Kampong Speu community leader You Tho.

To improve the situation of human rights defenders, LICADHO believes that the Royal Government of Cambodia should take the following steps, among others detailed in the report:

- Combat the culture of impunity and corruption by prosecuting government officials - including court officials, police, military police and the RCAF - responsible for or complicit in attacks and threats against human rights defenders. Specifically, LICADHO demands a serious and thorough inquiry into the unresolved assassinations or disappearances of 10 journalists since the 1990s.
- Cease arresting and detaining human rights defenders in the course of their activities, whether without charges or using spurious legal accusations such as disinformation or incitement.
- Allow peaceful protests to proceed unhindered by police obstruction or violence, as guaranteed by Cambodia's Constitution.
- Cease using bail as a way of threatening human rights defenders. Bail is meant to avoid unnecessary pretrial detention, not as a probation mechanism to intimidate or control the activities of human rights defenders. Also, amend the Code of Criminal Procedure to include a specific timeframe for the length of judicial supervision, and stop holding criminally-charged human rights defenders under "perpetual bail".
- Halt the enactment plans of an NGO law, which would most likely be used to intimidate and restrict the activities of human rights defenders in NGOs.

For more information, please contact:
▪ Dr. Pung Chhiv Kek, President of LICADHO Tel: (+855) 012-802-506 [English, French, Khmer]
▪ Mr. Am Sam Ath, Technical Supervisor Tel: (+855) 012-327-770 [Khmer]
▪ Ms. Naly Pilorge, Director of LICADHO Tel: (+855) 012-803-650 [English, French]

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