Vitit Muntarbhorn, United Nations special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, said the civic and political space, and rights of indigenous people were still restricted, although the new government was now led by the new generation. He also said the elections were “far from being free and fair”.
Speaking in a press conference following his meeting with human rights defenders, and civil society organizations, Vitit highlighted nine concerns and recommendations regarding issues related to the election process, indigenous people, prison system, and civic and political space.
Responding to a question on the arrest of activists during his six-day visit in Cambodia, he said: “It is not about the cases, it is the system. We need to drop the charges, no procedures and open up civic and political space.”
In May, UN member states urged the Cambodian government to restore civic and political space and the rights to freedom of expression, and release those who were “unjustly detained” for exercising their fundamental right to freedom. They include Kem Sokha, former opposition leader, who was found guilty and sentenced to 27 years’ imprisonment, with a lifetime ban from politics.
Vitit said several indigenous communities have not been registered by the authorities and the “waiting period was long”. The registration process was onerous and needed to be expedited. Indigenous people were faced with the negative impact of economic land concessions and encroachments on their land by people with vested interests, often businessmen, and outsiders, at times in “collusion with officials”.
Many communities suffered from debts, partly caused by “predatory lenders and loan sharks who preyed on them”, Vitit said.
The special rapporteur expressed concern that in one location, a company had erected pillars around an indigenous people’s land, fencing it without the latter’s knowledge. The company threatened to take action against the community if they tried to remove the pillars.
In another case, he learned that “the community was told to accept a smaller area of community land for collective titling in exchange for the termination of criminal charges against its members”.
With regards to the emergence of a new land law, he hoped that indigenous people and their rights would be clearly defined.
With the formation of the new government in 2023, there was still “no liberalization” of the civic and political space, Vitit said.
Political detainees continued to be detained, and human rights advocates and environmentalists faced prosecution for incitement and related offenses in exercising their right to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and their quest for justice.
He said there were reports of groups being intimidated and their rights violated while he was in the country.
“Thus, it’s hoped that the new generation can leave that cliché behind and opt for a more inspiring dictum, namely everything must be done according to the national law which complies with international law,” he added.
Cambodia was moving towards its vision to be a developed country by 2050, so the duty of the state was to protect. The business sector’s duty was to respect and ensure shared responsibility to remedy harm, which was the UN’s guiding principle on business and human rights.
On the prison system, Vitit said “much of the bottleneck was due to the tendency to hold pre-trial detainees” when the preferred option should be to allow bail and ensure non-custodial measures.
The “heavy hand of law and order” often resulted in people being arrested “all too easily” under the “morass of laws” with the poor and less educated subjected to quick or summary justice, sending them to “long prison terms without full access to legal aid and safeguards in their right to a fair trial and appeal”.
He urged the government to improve the quality of the judiciary and law enforcement.
Meanwhile, Vitit noted that the National Election Committee (NEC) disqualified two leading opposition parties, including Candlelight Party, just before the election. At the time, the telecoms regulator ordered internet service providers to block the social media accounts of three media organizations deemed critical of the government.
He continued that the new government should address the issue openly and effectively. “Another clock is ticking […] there are [about] three years until the next commune elections in 2027 to prove whether it [government] can pluralize in keeping with the democratic imperative,” Vitit said.
He also observed that in the capital/provincial councils, women only made up 17% of 559 councilors. In the district/Khan councils, 19.22% of 3,641 councilors were women. “Much work needs to be done to augment women’s substantive participation in all walks of life, especially in the political domain.”
Following Vitit’s press conference, the Cambodian Human Rights Committee (CHRC) issued a clarification dismissing his concerns, stating that they lacked basis and verification of information.
CHRC said the elections are held regularly in accordance with the law and conducted “freely, justly and fairly at all times”. For example, it said, 18 political parties went to the polls in a “calm, safe, secure and orderly fashion without violence and threats” during the seventh National Assembly election in 2023.
More than 84% of registered voters cast their votes, with the participation of 422 international observers, who represented 65 nationalities from 61 institutions, as well as some 60,000 political party agents and 90,000 independent national observers.
“Concerns over the application of the law to activists or political party members in Cambodia are an elimination of efforts to ensure rule of law, which is the aspiration of all human beings,” it said.
In addition, concerns about law enforcement may compel the population, including activists, to disobey the law and use the label of human rights to commit crimes that will lead to instability and serious human rights violations in society.
CHRC spokesperson Sreang Chenda told CamboJA News that they “only clarified a few points” as the UN special rapporteur had acknowledged the progress made by the government, especially in the economic, social and cultural spheres.
In relation to the civic and political spheres, Chenda said Vitit had revealed his concerns before arriving in Cambodia, including the recent enforcement on activists, especially environmental activists. “He [Vitit] mentioned that it was inconsistent with international human rights standards.”
Chenda said Cambodia needed to reaffirm to Vitit that the enforcement was not a disrespect to human rights, but an implementation of the law.
On prison conditions, CHRC said, “Prison conditions across the country have been consistently enhanced to align with Cambodia’s socio-economic context.”
This includes the promotion of rights including right to exercise, healthcare, religious beliefs, as well as access to education and training, improved nutrition, and regular visits by stakeholders.
CHRC also urged institutions and relevant parties to conduct comprehensive research and verify information thoroughly “before forming conclusions or opinions” related to the human rights situation in Cambodia.
NGO rights group Licadho operations director Am Sam Ath said although the UN special rapporteur was in Cambodia for a short period, he had already received some information as the UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner was present in Cambodia and the direct visit was a “verification” process with parties involved.
“[Vitit] verified [the issues] with parties involved, including the government, civil society, community and other parties, and gathered [further] information. Thus, what he raised was his vision and a valid argument,” he said.
Sam Ath said in the past, there was a lot of discussion about the decline of human rights and democratic rights in Cambodia.
Regarding the clarification by CHRC to Vitit, Sam Ath said Cambodia should review the findings by the UN and its recommendations and if there were gaps that should be addressed so that Cambodia will benefit from it, instead of rejecting or reacting.