Licadho and KI-Media earn the ire of gov't mouthpiece Tith Sothea

Gov’t official reacts to Licadho’s statement [in KI-Media and Seng Kunakar’s case]

21 Dec. 2010
Kampuchea Thmei
Translated from Khmer by Soch

One government official reacted to the critical statement issued by Licadho regarding the sentence delivered to the security chief of the WFP who was accused of distributing leaflets insulting the government leaders.

Seng Kunakar, the security chief for the WFP warehouse, was sentenced to 6 months in jail and fined 1 million riels (~$250) by the Phnom Penh municipal court after he was charged with criminal incitation as stipulated in Articles 494 and 495 of the new criminal code because he allegedly distributed leaflets wrongly insulting government leaders. Following the court decision in the morning of 19 December 2010, Licadho issued a statement claiming that the rushed court hearing is an attack on freedom of expression in Cambodia, and that it worsens the freedom of expression in Cambodia.

Tith Sothea, a government advisor and mouthpiece of the Press and Quick Reaction Unit (PQRU) of the Council of Ministers, said that if Mrs. Pun Chiv Kek’s Licadho organization believes that the court decision on Seng Kunakar is a restriction on freedoms, then this is tantamount to raising a wrong issue because all decisions made by the court were done to guarantee political stability and social order, and that it was done to avoid disorder.

Tith Sothea added that the freedom of expression should be done under the law, therefore, if there is any legal measure taken, then it is correct. He claimed that everything that was raised in Licadho’s statement, is merely the views of a puny NGO only, and that it was not the opinion of the entire people at all.

Tith Sothea declared that the court is an independent institution [KI-Media note: Now we know that you are lying, Mr. Tith Sothea] that has the right to take legal measures on anybody who commit a crime, and that this court decision is a warning to anybody who do no respect the law.

It should be noted that, recently, the KI-Media website published pictures of the government leaders and insulted them, this website can be considered ignorant and they are not professional reporters at all.

Later on, Seng Kunakar printed this article and redistributed them, that was why he was arrested and sent to court for sentencing.

Tith Sothea said that the accusation [made by KI-Media] is wrong and false, and it is a complete twisting on the current government leaders who are famous heroes who lead the country toward peace, development, true respect of the constitution, therefore what KI-Media raised was done because of this website is drunk with its subservience to the opposition party policy, and it is done to confuse the national and international opinion. Therefore, [since KI-Media is at fault,] the measure taken against Seng Kunakar is not a restriction on freedom of expression, it was in fact an application of the law [sic!].