The trial of Paris Peace Agreement activists, and more than 30 other activists charged with incitement for disturbing social security following their views on the regional development Cambodia-Lao-Vietnam, has commenced at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court.
However, all 37 defendants, including activist Srun Srorn of the Paris Peace Agreement were not present in court for Tuesday’s hearing when the prosecutor put in a request to split the case hearings into five as there were “a lot of defendants” and that the issues were “complicated” to the disagreement of defense lawyers.
“The splitting of cases does not impact [the defendants] because we have not yet tried the whole case,” deputy prosecutor Seng Heang said during the trial, noting that it was difficult to examine the evidence due to the number of defendants.
In reply, defense lawyer Lor Chunthy urged the judge to draw up a schedule for the trials rather than split them as it was “unnecessary” and “jeopardized the defendants’ right to a fair trial”.
“I ask the judge to consider not splitting the case,” Chunthy said.
However, Judge Nhem Pisal sided with the prosecution and decided to split the hearing into five incitement cases but did not provide a detailed reasoning, and that the next hearing will be informed later.
Activist Srorn and other defendants were arrested and charged for incitement in July after organizing a live broadcast regarding the Cambodia-Lao-Vietnam Development Triangle Area (CLV-DTA) issue, where they allegedly accused Cambodian leaders for ceding territories of four northern provinces to Vietnam.
Over 100 people have been arrested since late July with more 60 charged and imprisoned for protesting on social media, planning to assemble, or expressing their sentiments of involvement in a case of CLV-DTA.
The court warrants mentioned that the defendants created “distorted” and “fabricated” information with an ill-intention to incite anger against the leadership, causing serious damage to national security.
Some 50 supporters and relatives gathered outside the Phnom Penh Municipal Court to support the activists.
Another defense lawyer Son Chum Choun, who spoke to reporters outside the courtroom, said he was not agreeable with the judge’s decision to split the cases into five sessions.
“If we talk about the right of defendants, it has impacted their right to a fair and expeditious trial. We cannot accept [the decision],” he said.
“When the procedure has taken so long, their rights will be affected, particularly if the defendants are detained in prison,” Chum Choun said, adding that he will discuss with their clients whether to appeal the decision.
Choung Chou Ngy, a lawyer, said he would also discuss with his client whether to appeal the decision. He added that he would review the verdict to see if it benefits his client and if he will not file a complaint.
Defendant Pheung Sophea’s father, Pheung Sophat, who attended the trial, said he thinks that splitting the case into five separate cases might make it easier to manage it because of the large number of accused individuals. However, he believes that the approach could affect the rights of the accused.
“The accused will be detained too long, and it will affect their rights, as well as the rights of their parents who are responsible for them. This case happened a long time ago, and it will take even more time to resolve. That is our difficulty,” he said.
He has been thinking a lot about the case, he said, expressing his concerns over the relationship between him and his daughter.
“I think this minor issue should not have escalated this far, and this accusation seems to place a heavy burden on the citizens,” he said.
Srun Srorn’s wife, Soeng Sophina, told reporters outside court that she was “alright” with her husband not attending the trial as the case has not been heard yet. She also requested the court to “please consider his good deeds”.
Lam Kimthea, who studied with Srun Srorn, shared her thoughts on the accusation of incitement to disturb social security, expressing a different perspective.
“What they said [in the video] about CLV was only a discussion of its benefits, negative impacts, and solutions. It does not amount to an accusation of instigation,” she said.
Senior investigator at NGO rights group Adhoc Yi Soksan, opined that splitting the cases would prolong the procedure, while alleging that the arrest of the activists was “politically motivated”.
“We have seen no benefit to [splitting the case] of the defendants, which would only prolong the procedure,” he said.
“It has affected the rights of the activists who are being detained in prison when the trial is delayed,” Soksan said.
He called on the court to release the activists who were merely exercising their right to expression regarding the CLV-DTA. Furthermore, the government has withdrawn from the regional development agreement.
CLV-DTA was established in 1999 to promote social-economic development, economic cooperation and closer relationships with the heads of government of three countries. In Cambodia, border provinces Stung Treng, Ratanakiri, Mondulkiri and Kratie, were initially designated to benefit from the agreement.
Cambodia announced its withdrawal from the two-decade-old CLV-DTA, a regional development, on September 20 following protests and public criticism online.
General Prison Department spokesperson Kheang Sonadin declined to comment, and referred questions to the court.