The EU Parliament has passed a resolution urging Cambodia to end its crackdown on civil society, release political prisoners, and halt harassment of activists.
Environmental activist Chhorn Phalla was sentenced to five years in prison on Wednesday after being convicted of clearing state forest land in Ratanakkiri province. Civil society groups decried what they described as an attempt to silence an activist who had been working to protect Cambodia’s natural resources and indigenous land.
As Prime Minister Hun Sen urged out-of-court settlements for land disputes during a Monday address on the grounds of the Ministry of Land Management, a crowd of about 100 families waited outside hoping to beseech the country’s top leader for help in disputes of their own.
Late last month, 20 villagers from Lor Peang community traveled from Kampong Chhnang’s Kampong Tralach district to Phnom Penh to attend an Appeal Court hearing in a case that has dragged on for more than two decades. When they arrived, they learned the hearing would be delayed because one of the three judges is a relative of the company’s lawyer.
Five activists who were convicted with incitement and released from prison on Friday pledged that they would continue to advocate for human rights and democracy in line with the law. Although three more environmental activists already convicted in May had their sentences reduced and were also ordered to be released today, their families say they remain in prison.
A relative of three Cambodians allegedly trafficked for work in online gambling is sounding an alarm in another possible case of forced labor in the city of Sihanoukville.
“When more Chinese came to Sihanoukville, the price of property was going up. We faced more challenges, and when we protested, we were arrested and jailed,” she said.
“I am really exhausted and shocked about this forcible policy, and I really regret that we have spent a lot of time struggling for more than 10 years to protect our lands,” Sarin said.
