The UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) has called on the Cambodia government to end impunity for crimes against journalists, while also raising concern over the authorities’ use of incitement charges to target media workers, citing formerly jailed journalist Mech Dara.
The calls came during the last day of a UN-sponsored conference in Phnom Penh leading up to the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists on November 2.
Addressing a room of media workers and a few government officials, Roueida El Hage, the OHCHR country representative in Cambodia, highlighted the intimidation tactics faced by journalists worldwide, noting that 320 journalists were imprisoned and 151 were killed in the past year, making it one of the deadliest years on record.
“We must not forget the misuse of laws like cyber security laws, anti-terroirism law, lese-majesty law, defamation, or counter-incitement law which is often used to suppress freedom of the press,” she added.
Cynthia Veliko, the OHCHR regional representative in Bangkok, echoed the use of these legislative tactics throughout Southeast Asia to suppress journalistic freedoms.
“We have seen similar patterns in how activists, human rights defenders and journalists are targeted across the region,” she said.
Speaking to the panel, Sreang Chenda, a member of the government’s Cambodia Human Rights Committee, emphasized the need to end impunity for crimes against journalists, including violence and harassment. Chenda claimed that no journalists have been killed in Cambodia in recent years, though cases of law enforcement officials breaking laws have occurred.
However, records from the Cambodian Center for Human Rights show that at least 15 journalists have been killed in Cambodia since 1994, with the most recent case in 2020. Twelve of those journalists were reporting on sensitive issues at the time of their deaths.
Addressing the use of incitement charges against journalists—charges that Mech Dara still faces despite being released on bail—Chenda urged all parties to adhere to court procedures in gathering evidence for exoneration, rather than calling for charges to be dropped.
“If there are journalists who have been charged with incitement […] I think we should engage in the court proceedings. Given the broad interpretation of incitement, there may be legal avenues to counter these charges,” Chenda told reporters after the event.
Dara told CamboJA News on Friday that he supports efforts to end impunity for crimes against journalists and called for an end to the use of criminal incitement charges against them.
“If they [journalists] have committed mistakes we should consider whether they did so intentionally or unintentionally because their jobs serve social public interest,” he said.
Phnom Penh Municipal court granted Dara bail on October 24 following his public apology for making social media posts deemed to have “incited disruption of social security.”
Dara said his legal troubles have deterred him from continuing his decade-long journalism career.
“I’ve decided to stop my journalism job because it has affected my physical and emotional health and after my experiences being imprisoned it has – more or less – broken my courage,” he said.
Outside of criminal charges Cambodian journalists have faced, various forms of harassment have been documented.
According to a monitoring report from the Cambodian Journalists Alliance (CamboJA), 46 journalists have encountered various forms of harassment, ranging from court summons and detainment to physical abuse.
As a result, Reporters Without Borders ranked Cambodia 151 out of 180 countries in its World Press Freedom Index 2024, categorizing it among nations where the situation is deemed “very serious.
Luong Phearin, one of three reporters from Samneang Hot News in Banteay Meanchey who were assaulted while covering gambling activities in Poipet town, expressed disappointment over the lack of legal action against the perpetrators.
“As a victim, I can say that it is injustice for journalists that we have never won [case] when something happened to us,” he said.
“Yes, we are still challenged because police officials have ignored the claims for justice by journalists. I filed a complaint [with the police] but they did not resolve it.”
At the conclusion of Friday’s event, the Cambodia Center for Human Rights, along with 20 other civil society groups, unions, and journalist associations, released a joint statement urging the government to take immediate action and prosecute crimes against media workers and human rights defenders.
“We demand justice for all those whose rights have been disregarded. The Royal Government of Cambodia must condemn and end the impunity shown towards perpetrators of crimes against journalists and human rights defenders,” the group stated.
