CCHR Press Release: CC​HR Publishes Map of Acid Attack Cases in Cambodia, 2009 to 2012

https://www.box.com/s/2f53e4bf43704959a953


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CCHR Release the report about the situation of Impunity that surrounds Acid Crimes in Cambodia

https://www.box.com/s/7d850cb810996a749601


https://www.box.com/s/1a5bdaa614019f8209ce


https://www.box.com/s/32cd31b5c92ffd7475ca


https://www.box.com/s/c0ae344ac6cf366bfdee

CCHR Media Comment: Latest Acid Attack Horrific Reminder That New Law Must Be Accompanie​d By Effective Implementa​tion

http://www.box.com/s/l348lvq2ezjn8l08gcjz


http://www.box.com/s/rvroc568g7k4n7rd3km5

Acid attack claims man’s life

Sim Yi was treated at Kosamak Hospital just hours before he succumbed to his wounds. (Heng Chivoan)

Monday, 12 March 2012
Mom Kunthear and Cassandra Yeap
The Phnom Penh Post

The victim of an acid attack on Friday morning in Kampong Cham province’s Pumron village died hours later that same day, making the incident the first acid-related death since the passage of the Kingdom’s new Acid Law.

Medical and legal manager for the Cambodian Acid Survivors Charity Horng Lairapo said yesterday that Sim Yi, 42, died from his injuries at 6pm on Friday at Preah Kosamak Hospital in Phnom Penh after being transferred there from the provincial hospital that afternoon.

“His body has been brought to his house in Kampong Cham province by his older brother,” he said.

About 50 per cent of Sim Yi’s body had been badly burned, he added.

ACID LAW – Debate Part 2

November 19, 2011
By Mu Sochua
Originally Posted at: http://sochua.wordpress.com/2011/11/19/acid-law-debate-part-2/

I continue to stay in touch with Tat Marina. Her pain of not finding justice still haunts her as well as the memories of the moment she was held down by the accomplices of the perpetrators.

She hopes to return to Cambodia to raise awareness and advocate for the rights of victims of acid attack victims.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=F8c96mCPMzk

ACID LAW - Debate in Parliament 2 December 2011 - Part 1

Part 1

Opinion by SRP MP Mu Sochua

Finding Face - Crying for Justice

Tat Marina (Photo: The Phnom Penh Post)

Justice will not end just because a draft law is debated and adopted.

Impunity- as a culture in Cambodia runs deep and takes every single hope for justice.

Koun Sophal, the perpetrator who has maimed Tat Marina for life ten years ago, was sentenced to 1 year in jail with 5 years suspended sentence. This act of brutal torture has never been condemned because the perpetrator is part of the ruling party. She is hiding her face but she still lives in total freedom.

Tat Marina, like other victims of acid attack live every single day finding justice.

These are the 8 points proposed by Tat Marina to amend the draft.

None of these which points I brought up when I took the floor , was added to the draft.

Recommendations:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bupCRxVJwM

1. In general, perpetrators should pay a greater price for their crimes. It seems that 5-10 years for crimes resulting in permanent disability is ridiculously low given the level of suffering and impairment and the fact that acid survivors live with permanent disfigurement for the rest of their lives long after potential sentences have been served. Given these factors, we feel prison sentences should be significantly longer.

2. Prior to sentencing, the perpetrator should be required to meet with the victim of the attack. This provides a safe, court-sanctioned forum for the survivor to address their attacker.

After the meeting, the survivor should have the right to make recommendations to the judge regarding the length of sentence to be handed down by the court. This recommendation should be carefully considered by the court (and would obviously fall within the sentencing guidelines allowed by law).

3. In addition to prison sentences, a mandatory parole system should be implemented for perpetrators of acid violence whereby perpetrators must serve as volunteer staff at CASC for a term of at least 5 years after being released from prison. This system would force perpetrators to fully confront the gravity of their crime even after they have spent time in prison and simultaneously ensure that they are supporting services that provide for acid violence survivors into the future.

4. It is crucial that perpetrators are financially responsible for providing permanently disabled survivors with a monthly survivors stipend if a survivor can't work for a living due to disability. This monthly stipend would exist through the parole period and would function on a sliding scale. If a perpetrator is deemed by the court as financially incapable of paying (and thus destitute) the government would become responsible for paying the monthly stipend - thus providing an additional incentive for the government to reduce and eventually eliminate acid violence in Cambodia.

5. We deem it critical to shift the stigma of acid violence from survivors to perpetrators. To shift public perception surrounding acid violence, perpetrators should be required (as part of their sentencing) to speak publicly (once released) on the topic of acid violence. These presentations would be held at public and private schools at the K-12 level both in rural and urban areas throughout Cambodia and at Universities. These talks would serve as both parole commitments for the perpetrators and as tools to shift public perception of acid violence in an attempt to shift blame and accountability where it rightly belongs - to the perpetrators of the attacks.

6. As CCHR recommends, it is important that both instigators and actual perpetrators are held responsible.

7. All trials and cases shall take place in a timely manner (within 3 months of the attack) in a courtroom open to both the public and the press.

8. I believe there should be an exceptional exclusion on the statute of limitations for acid violence in Cambodia, given the heinous nature of the crime.

Cambodian lawmakers approve law on acid attacks

PHNOM PENH, November 4, 2011 (AFP) - Cambodia's lower house of parliament on Friday approved a long-awaited law aimed at curbing acid attacks by imposing sentences ranging from two years to life in prison.

The legislation, expected to be approved by the senate and the king later this year, also regulates the licensing and sale of the caustic liquid, which is currently widely and cheaply available in the country.

"The law will prevent acid offences," Teng Savong, secretary of state at the interior ministry and director of the acid law committee, told AFP.

Acid attack laws passed in Cambodia

Fri, 4 Nov 2011
Robert Carmichael, Phnom Penh

The Cambodian parliament has passed a long-awaited law that hands down severe penalties for people guilty of acid attacks, including life-long jail sentences.

Lesser offences under the law carry terms of between two and 30 years in jail.

The Cambodian Acid Survivors Charity says at least 21 people have been burned with acid this year.

The charity's project coordinator, Ziad Samman, welcomed the news, but said the law must be properly implemented if it is to be effective.

Acid Attack Law Falls Short, Groups Say

Nov Rey, 50, an acid attack victim, looks on as she waits to sing during a performance by traditional Cambodian musicians, file photo. (Photo: AP)

Monday, 31 October 2011
Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh

“The law must have strong punishment for acid attackers to reduce acid attacks in Cambodia.”

Rights groups and other officials say the government has not gone far enough in drafting a law on acid attacks, by failing to include provisions for the treatment of victims or to ascribe punishments to those who hire attackers.

Acid attacks are a common form of retribution in Cambodia, often ordered by powerful men or women and carried out by hired assailants.

Rights groups say about half of the draft’s 27 articles need to be improved before the law is passed. The National Assembly expects to pass the law next week.

Cabinet Approves Draft Law To Counter Acid Attacks

Nov Rey, 50, an acid attack victim, looks on as she waits to sing during a performance by traditional Cambodian musicians (AP file photo)

Thursday, 01 September 2011
Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh

"Motives of such attacks center around love triangles, money disputes or drunken aggression."

The Council of Ministers on Thursday approved a draft law to regulate acid, which is used in a number of disfiguring assaults for both men and women each year.

The attacks make use of hydrochloric or sulfuric acid and can be devastating for those who survive them, causing deep, permanent scars to the head, face and body. They can also be lethal.

While many of the cases that make headlines involve women, Chhum Chenda Sophea, a project manager for the Cambodian Acid Survivor Charity, said about half of the 350 victims she works with are men.

CCHR offers condolence​s to the family of acid attack victim In Soklyda and calls for a holistic approach to acid violence

CCHR Media Comment, Phnom Penh, 23 June 2011

Media Comment: CCHR offers condolences to the family of acid attack victim In Soklda and calls for a holistic approach to acid violence

Acid attack victim Ya Sokhnim, the aunt of a prominent beauty queen In Soklyda, died in Phnom Penh yesterday (22 June 2011) of injuries resulting from a 2008 crime masterminded by her niece’s former lover Chea Ratha. On 8 May 2008, two men on a motorcycle accosted Ya Sokhnim in the capital and poured acid over her face and upper body. She suffered severe burns as a result, losing her right eye and her breast. In 2009 the Appeal Court found that Chea Ratha, a former deputy chief of staff of the military police and In Soklyda’s lover, had ordered the attack after In Soklyda fled a forced relationship. Four of the suspects including Chea Ratha remain at large and are thought to have fled Cambodia.

Commenting on the Ya Sokhnim case John Coughlan, Senior Legal Consultant at the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, a non-aligned, independent, non-governmental organization that works to promote and protect democracy and respect for human rights throughout Cambodia, said:

“I am both shocked and saddened to hear that Ya Sokhnim has succumbed to her injuries as a result of this horrific attack. My thoughts and condolences are with her family during this extremely difficult time. This wretched case reminds us of the need for a holistic approach to acid violence which goes beyond having a robust acid law, which hopefully the forthcoming law will be. The Royal Government of Cambodia needs to ensure that enforcement is effective which includes the putting in place of bilateral extradition arrangements that hold perpetrators to account for their crimes, irrespective of whether they have absconded or not. The likes of Chea Ratha should not be able to evade the justice that the victims deserve and that sadly Ya Sokhnim has now been deprived.”

For more information please contact John Coughlan at +855 89 58 35 90 or 

johncoughlan@cchrcambodia.org

Please find this media comment attached in English. A Khmer version will follow shortly.

--

The Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) is a non-aligned, independent, non-governmental organization that works to promote and protect democracy and respect for human rights throughout Cambodia. For more information, please visit www.cchrcambodia.org.

Acid victim in notorious attack dies

Ya Soknim (R) with In Soklyda (L)

Thursday, 23 June 2011
Mom Kunthear
The Phnom Penh Post

Acid attack victim Ya Sokhnim, the aunt of prominent beauty queen In Soklyda, died in Phnom Penh yesterday morning of injuries stemming from a 2008 crime masterminded by her niece’s lesbian lover.

Ya Soknim’s husband Uong Vibol, 46, said yesterday his 39-year-old wife had passed away about 9am after being admitted to the Calmette Hospital a week ago.

“I really pity and mourn my wife. She died because she was injured very seriously by acid,” he said.

On May 8 , 2008, two men on a motorcycle accosted Ya Soknim in the capital and poured acid over her face and upper body. She suffered severe burns as a result, losing her right eye and breast.

Three arrested after Cambodia acid attack: police

Wed, Jan 19, 2011
AFP

PHNOM PENH - Three people have been arrested for an attack in which two women were splashed with acid, in the country's first such incident of the year, police said Wednesday.

One of the victims, a 27-year-old garment worker, remains in hospital with serious burns to her face, eyes and body, said Kong Sam Orn, a deputy police chief of Phnom Penh's Meanchey district.

The other woman, the driver of the motorcycle on which the two were riding at the time of the attack, suffered leg and arm injuries.

Police said Tuesday's attack was carried out by two brothers and came just one day after the older sibling's wife had a work-related argument with the 27-year-old victim.

Supreme Court Upholds Acid Attack Verdict

Chea Ratha (Photo: The Phnom Penh Post)

Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Wednesday, 06 October 2010

“I still worry about the safety of myself and my family because the offenders have not yet been arrested.”

The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the conviction of a former military police commander for the acid attack in retribution against a former lover.

Chea Ratha, the former deputy chief of military police, and five accomplices, were released by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court in August 2009, whose not guilty verdict was reversed by the Appeals Court in November that year.

The Appeals Court issued an 18-year prison sentence against the six suspects in absentia and fined $100,000. They all remain at large.

They were accused of attacking Ya Sok Nim, the aunt of beauty queen In Solida, the reported lover of Chea Ratha, in May 2008. In Solida, who was not harmed, has said she was forced into a relationship with Chea Ratha until she finally refused.

Ya Sok Nim, whose face was disfigured in the attack and who has gone into hiding since Chea Ratha's release, told VOA Khmer by phone the courts had “provided me and my family justice.”

“I still worry about the safety of myself and my family because the offenders have not yet been arrested,” she said.

Her lawyer, Huang Sopheak, said the verdict was right but the compensation was not enough. However, lawyer for the defense, Nach Try, said the courts had made their decision with insufficient evidence or witnesses.

Am Sam Ath, lead investigator for the rights group Licadho, said the conviction sent a positive message that could deter future attacks.

4 hurt in Cambodian acid attack

2010-08-18
By SOPHENG CHEANG
Associated Press

A jealous factory worker in Cambodia attacked his partner with acid Wednesday, also hurting three onlookers, police said.

The 22-year-old man poured a bottle of acid over his 23-year-old female partner because of problems with their romance, said police Maj. Born Sam Ath. It happened outside the garment factory where they both work on the outskirts of Phnom Penh as she was buying sugar cane juice.

The woman was hospitalized in a critical condition. Two vendors and another woman standing nearby was splashed and suffered minor injuries. Police are hunting for the attacker.

Acid attacks that inflict horrific disfigurement on victims are not uncommon in this Southeast Asian nation. A non-governmental group that assists victims reported 10 such assaults in 2009.

Cambodia's legislature this year began drafting a new law to deal with acid attacks. Perpetrators are currently tried under general criminal law, but it is believed specific legislation with heavy punishments is needed to curb the vicious practice.

Breaking the Silence: Addressing Acid Attacks in Cambodia

Released Date : 01 May 2010
Originally Posted at Sithi.org

The Cambodian Acid Survivors Charity (the “CASC” hereinafter) was established in 2006 in direct response to the lack of services and the limited options for medical treatment made available to acid burn survivors in Cambodia. CASC serves as the primary organization in Cambodia for acid burn survivors, dedicating its services exclusively to survivors of acid burns. This report on acid attacks in Cambodia - written for CASC by the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) - considers the underlying causes of acid attacks and makes recommendations for improving the situation.

Click here to read/download this report at Sithi.org

Cambodia acid attack law set for passage in coming weeks

Fri, 19 Feb 2010
DPA

Phnom Penh - The Cambodian authorities are finalizing a law to criminalize acid attacks and expect to send it to parliament by April local media reported Friday. The deputy head of a government committee drafting the law said the government had recorded eight acid attacks this year alone.

Ouk Kimlek told the Phnom Penh Post newspaper that those found guilty of carrying out the most serious acid attacks should face life in jail, as should those who help them.

"We are trying to do our best to create an acid [attack] law in order to protect people and society," he said.

The announcement comes after the government had earlier refused to regulate the sale of acid to combat an apparent surge in attacks in which people are injured or killed after being doused with strong acids such as sulphuric acid.

Currently, attackers are charged with generic criminal offences such as attempted murder or lesser charges.

Many acid attacks, which cause substantial disfigurement and sometimes death, involve assaults on women perceived as love rivals.

Human rights groups said the proposed law must be implemented impartially in order to combat an ongoing record of impunity of the powerful involved in acid attacks.

"I want to see equal practice between people in power and poor people," said Kek Pung, the president of Cambodian human rights organization Licadho.

Kek Pung told the newspaper that the government should also ensure there is sufficient money available to provide specialized in-country care for victims.

At present the worst-affected are taken to neighbouring Vietnam. That was the case in December when a 16-year-old contestant in a beauty pageant was doused with acid by her cousins, who felt she was condescending and arrogant towards them.

Ouk Kimlek said the law would also regulate the transport, production and sale of acid, and require anyone purchasing acid to be at least 20 years old. Vendors would need to be licensed with the government.

The Cambodian Acid Survivors' Charity said at least 194 people were victims of acid attacks between 1985 and 2009, although the actual number of victims is thought to be higher.

Strong acids are widely available in Cambodia, where they are used in the processing of rubber and for domestic purposes.

Acid Attack Appeal Scheduled

10/26/2009
ShortNews.com

Cambodia - In May 2008, Ya Sokhim had acid poured all over her face and upper body. She claimed that it was because she had helped Soklyda, her niece, escape the wrath of Chea, Soklyda´s lesbian lover and former Chief of Staff of the military police.

Last month, the municipal court acquitted Chea and five other suspects in a ruling that was condemned by rights groups.

The appeal will be heard at the end of October. Chea is out of the country and was not available for comment.

Source: www.phnompenhpost.com

Court Lambasted for Dropping Acid Attack Case

Chea Ratha (Photo: Heng Chivoan, The Phnom Penh Post)

By Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
02 September 2009

The victim of a 2008 acid attack victim jointed local human rights groups on Wednesday in decrying a court decision to drop charges against a former military police woman and her subordinates.

Ya Soknim, 39, told reporters at Licadho’s office Wednesday she suffered for injustice, and worried for her safety and revenge after they were freed from charges.

“For people without money, it is not necessary to complain,” she said. The court “sees the poor and vulnerable people and lets them live in misfortune.”

Ya Soknim was assaulted in May 2008, after her niece, In Soklyda, a former beauty queen, had an allegedly forced love affair with Chea Ratha, a former military police deputy chief of staff.

Chea Ratha was not available for comment.

In Soklyda told reporters Wednesday she would have “remorse my whole life,” seeing the scars of her aunt’s acid attack. She claims Chea Ratha “told me she loved me and forced me to live with her for more than two years…after I refused to love her.”

“When I open my eyes, I see my aunt’s scar from the acid attack,” she said.

“How can I live, if the court has no trial, dropped the charge and there’s no justice because of no evidence?” she said. “In fact we have evidence. My family cannot live in this country if the offenders go free.”

Naly Pilorge, director of the rights group Licadho, called the court’s decision “yet another blatant display of Cambodia’s rampant impunity and culture of brutal violence.”

“What is so shocking in the case is the judges’ apparent total disregard of the evidence against Chea Ratha and her alleged accomplices,” she said. “Court rulings like this only ensure that acid attacks will continue, because the perpetrators are not brought to justice.”

Ou Virak, executive director of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, said the court had shown a lack of independence in prosecuting high-ranking officials.

“As long as the courts operate at the direction of the Cambodian government, rule of law will remain an empty slogan at donor conferences,” he said.

"Beauty Is A Burden," Tat Marina's Mother Says

By Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer
Video Editor: Manilene Ek
18 March 2009

A message from Ms. Tat Marina's family:

Sure you can attack anyone you desire, but you must pay for what you had done. If the government cannot provide justice to the people throughout the country, then domestic violence and revenge will occur daily.

I myself always blame my sister for having an affair with Svay Sitha. This matter should be solved peacefully without violence. If you take matter into your own hand then you must face the law. If the law is protecting the CPP only then I assume that I should take matter into my own hand [as well].

Next time LOCK your husband in your bedroom. So that he won't go around lying to other people that he was this and that. I don't know what your husband did to you. Perhaps he is just like Svay Sitha, who physically divorced his wife, but still have some emotions for her. He considered his wife more like a sister than a sex partner.

People have different quality of life, opportunity and different level of education. There are people who can't be a star, and there some people who can only find work in the factory, but we all can respects each others as the same quality, because we are human.

"An investigating judge who once told reporters an arrest warrant had been issued for Khun Sophal now says he can’t remember whether he handled the case."

A new documentary exploring the impact of acid attacks premiered Wednesday, March 11, 2009, at a film festival and human rights forum in Geneva, raising questions of impunity that persist in Cambodia.

“Finding Face” investigates acid attacks through the story of victim Tat Marina, a karaoke star who was doused with a liter of nitric acid allegedly by the jealous wife of a senior government official.

Tat Marina was attacked on December 5, 1999, while she was having porridge with her niece at a Phnom Penh market.

Nearly 10 years have passed, but her older brother, Tat Sequndo, continues to encourage his sister to seek justice for the attack.

“I asked her to come forward to find justice for herself, because she is the victim, not me. I always told her to find justice for the country, the people, and for herself," Tat Sequndo says in the documentary.

Tat Marina appears more calm and mature in the film, a contrast to the mischievous face she put on in her performances some 10 years ago. Despite several reconstructive surgeries, scars are visible on her face and chest. These are what she has to live with for the rest of her life.

In the documentary, Tat Marina’s family expressed disappointment when they saw video footage shown to them by Tat Sequndo. It is the first time they have seen her picture in the more than eight years since Tat Marina was given asylum and received treatment in the US.

The footage left her older sister, Srey Pou, speechless and in shock. Meanwhile, Tat Marina's mother believes that beauty is a curse.

“She was a beautiful girl. She was too beautiful. It’s a burden. Mom feels so sorry for you, it’s breaking my heart,” she said.

Tat Marina says in the documentary she is coming to terms with what happened to her.

“My family, I don't want anything to happen to them. Right now, I’m not scared no more, because she already got what she wanted,” she says.

The film features Tat Marina and her child at about four years of age, though the identity of the father is not revealed.

“If I could make it, we will have a family life. The mummy and the son together in a happy family. Everyone wish for (a) happy ending. I know that it is only a dream, but sometime dreams do come true,” she says.

The acid attack topic caught producer Skye Fitzgerald’s attention while he worked on another film in Cambodia. When he and his team started working on the movie, he saw a mixture of fear and reluctance. For instance, it took Tat Marina and her brother a while before they agreed to participate, fearing reprisal.

In the documentary, Tat Sequndo is heard telling family members to watch for their safety, and he gives them phone numbers of international organizations in case of possible threats.

“This is who we met with. When there is a problem, contact these places: UN Center for Human Rights, the US Embassy, the Cambodia Daily and LICADHO. When there is a problem with threats, because they may know what we are doing,” he says.

Tat Marina’s former lover, Svay Sitha, has now been promoted from the rank of undersecretary of state at the Council of Ministers. He could not be reached for comment on the film.

Tat Marina with her son, says he givers her courage to move on with her life.
His two telephone numbers were answered by two different females saying they did not know him; a third number went unanswered.

Svay Sitha’s wife, Khun Sophal, identified by witnesses at the scene of the 1999 attack, remains at large, despite police affirmation that the case is not yet closed.

An investigating judge who once told reporters an arrest warrant had been issued for Khun Sophal now says he can’t remember whether he handled the case.

This documentary, "Finding Face", confronts us with injustice, despair, and sympathetic to Tat Marina's, who is now just beginning to pick up the broken pieces, while trying to leave her history behind, and moving forward into the future of her life with her son.