Gov’t critics receives death threat

Pen Puthsphea under government persecution?

05 August 2010
By Yun Samien
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Click here to read the article in Khmer

Pen Puthsphea, a reporter for the SRP’s Candle Light program and a young author who penned and published 2 books on general knowledge exam topics, fled for his personal safety.

The SRP announced on Thursday 05 August that Pen Puthsphea, a reporter for the SRP’s Candle Light program and author of books banned and confiscated by the minister of Education last July, is currently fleeing to a safe location after he received death threat warning over the phone by anonymous caller on 19 July.

Kampot SRP MP Mu Sochua told RFA on Thursday that Pen Puthsphea is currently in hidhing due to concerns over his safety after he received death threat. She said that the phone caller warned Pen Puthsphea against continuing his work.

She added that the threat and the confiscation of Pen Puthsphea’s book is a suppression of the freedom of expression in Cambodia.

The ministry of Education pointed out a section in the book that does not contain “appropriate” meaning such the following question: “In the future, will Cambodia be developed or not?”, as well as this other question: “What do you think about human rights issue in Cambodia?” The reply to the first question in the book includes: “The government cannot lead the country to prosperity due to corruption.”

The communiqué issued by the SRP indicated that Pen Puthsphea, “[a]s a reporter for
the opposition party, he is constantly under the government surveillance in order to intimidate and suppress the freedom of speech that publishes by the opposition party.”

A vendor of Pen Puthsphea’s book who declined to provide her name, indicated that the authority prevented her from continuing to sell Pen Puthsphea’s book anymore, otherwise she will face problem. She said the book sells for 1,000 riels ($0.25) each.

Khieu Sopheak, the mouthpiece of ministry of Interior, told RFA on Thursday that the authority did not receive any complaint from the opposition yet regarding this threat from the unknown person. He asked that the opposition cooperates with the authority to find the culprit.

In the past, the government arrested Tieng Narith, a former political university professor, and jailed him for 2 years in 2007 after he authored a book criticizing the government and Hun Xen, as well as other high-ranking government officials. That book which was published in 2006 and 2007, accused Hun Xen of being behind the 1997 grenade attack.