Court comes down on Sochua’s side [-Sorry to disappoint you Kep Chuk-yama]

Monday, 06 August 2012
Chhay Channyda
The Phnom Penh Post

The Appeal Court on Friday decided to restore prominent opposition party lawmaker Mu Sochua’s parliamentary immunity, despite it having received a report from Phnom Penh governor Kep Chuktema challenging Sochua’s “social morals”.

The hearing lasted about one hour, during which time she was interrogated by presiding judge Chuon Sunleng about her social morals since 2009, when her immunity was stripped to make way for Prime Minister Hun Sen to countersue her for defamation.

“Did [Sochua] make a disturbance to society under the penal code procedure?” the judge asked her.

The pointed questioning was in relation to a report from Chuktema the judge had received in which the governor said that in January this year, Sochua led opposition Sam Rainsy Party members to “incite 18 women being kept at Prey Speu centre to let them jump over the fence and have three vehicles to bring them out”.

“Mu Sochua always incites people to do any activity that is against the government despite having no immunity,” the judge read from Chuktema’s report.

Sochua challenged the relevance of Chuktema’s report.

“Having no immunity, I am still have a parliamentarian duty to protect my people,” the mother of three said.

Three years of struggle with Cambodia's justice

04 Aug 2012
By Mu Sochua

‎"I serve the people till the end of my mandate. I will seek re-election in 2013". Half-baked justice is not justice to protect constitutional rights of the people. Cambodian democrats stand together to rescue our nation and impartiality and independence of justice is our highest priority.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=As87ZOC1JeA

After Three Years, Mu Sochua’s Parliamentary Immunity Restored

Opposition lawmaker Mu Sochua in front of Phnom Penh airport, file photo.

Opposition lawmaker Mu Sochua, who has appealed for three years after losing a defamation suit to Prime Minister Hun Sen.

04 August 2012

Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer

“Because Mu Sochua is a member of the opposition party, the court took three years to provide her with her immunity”

PHNOM PENH - The Court of Appeals on Friday granted parliamentary immunity returned to opposition lawmaker Mu Sochua, who has appealed for three years after losing a defamation suit to Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Mu Sochua first sued the premier in 2009 over election comments he made during the previous year’s election campaign that she claimed were derogatory.

Hun Sen followed suit, accusing her of defamation for the accusations, and the National Assembly stripped Mu Sochua of her immunity so that she could face the suit in court. Mu Sochua did not win her case. Hun Sen won his.

But the National Assembly did not return her immunity immediately.

“Sometimes the court provides justice and sometimes not,” Mu Sochua told reporters Friday, saying Cambodia’s judiciary needs “help.”

Mu Sochua to receive her Parliamentary Immunity back!!!

លោកស្រី មូរ សុខ​ហួរ អ្នកតំណាងរាស្ត្រ មកពី​គណបក្ស សម រង្ស៊ី (រូបថត : ស៊ីវ ចាន់ណា)

ចៅក្រម​សាលាឧទ្ធរណ៍ ប្រគល់​នីតិសម្បទា​ឲ្យ​លោកស្រី មូរ សុខ​ហួរ ឡើងវិញ​ហើយ​

ថ្ងៃទី 3 សីហា 2012
ដោយ: លីនណា
Cambodia Express News

ភ្នំពេញ: ​លោកស្រី មូរ សុខ​ហួរ អ្នកតំណាងរាស្ត្រ មកពី​គណបក្ស សម រង្ស៊ី ត្រូវបាន​ចៅក្រម​របស់​តុលាការ​សាលាឧទ្ធរណ៍ សម្រេច​ប្រគល់​នីតិសម្បទា​ជូន​លោកស្រី ដែល​អាច​បើកផ្លូវ​ឲ្យ​លោកស្រី ទទួលបាន​អភ័យឯកសិទ្ធិ​ពេញលេញ​ឡើងវិញ​។ ក៏ប៉ុន្តែ​តាមច្បាប់ មួយខែ​ទៀតទើប​លោកស្រី មូរ សុខ​ហួរ ទទួលបាន​អភ័យឯកសិទ្ធិ ប្រសិនបើ​គ្មាន​បណ្តឹង​។​

​ការសម្រេច​របស់​ចៅក្រម​បែបនេះ បានធ្វើ​ឡើងនៅក្នុង​សវនាការ កាលពី​ព្រឹក​ថ្ងៃទី​៣ ខែសីហា ឆ្នាំ​២០១២ នៅ​សភា​ស៊ើបសួរសាលាឧទ្ធរណ៍​។

​ក្រោយ​ការសម្រេច លោកស្រី មូរ សុខ​ហួរ បាន​ប្រាប់​អ្នកកាសែត​ថា​ ការសម្រេច​របស់​សភា​ស៊ើបសួរ​សាលាឧទ្ធរណ៍​នេះ គឺជា​ការសម្រេច​ដ៏​ត្រឹមត្រូវ ដែល​លោកស្រី ទទួលយកបាន​។ នៅក្នុង​រយៈពេល​មួយខែ​នេះ លោកស្រី​នៅតែ​បំពេញ​តួនាទី​ជា​អ្នក​តាំ​ណា​ង​រាស្ត្រ ព្រោះ​រាស្ត្រ​បោះឆ្នោត​ឲ្យ មិនមែន​ឲ្យ​មក​នៅ​ស្ងៀម​បិទមាត់​ទេ លោកស្រី​មិន​ស្តាប់​អ្នកណា​ក្រៅពី​រាស្ត្រ​ទេ​។

CCHR calls for clarificat​ion of legal basis for government refusal to restore Mu Sochua’s parliament​ary immunity (in Khmer)

Click on the statement in Khmer to zoom in

CCHR calls for clarificat​ion of legal basis for government refusal to restore Mu Sochua’s parliament​ary immunity

CCHR PRESS RELEASE, Phnom Penh - 30 March 2011

CCHR calls for clarification of legal basis for government refusal to restore Mu Sochua’s parliamentary immunity

The Cambodian Center for Human Rights (“CCHR”) calls on the government to clarify the legal basis for its refusal to restore Mu Sochua’s parliamentary immunity. In the opinion of CCHR, there is no legal justification for the government’s position with regard to the parliamentary immunity of Mu Sochua. In the absence of clear provisions expressly allowing for the refusal to restore parliamentary immunity to a member of the National Assembly who has been convicted of a crime but not sentenced to a term of imprisonment, CCHR calls on the government to restore Mu Sochua’s immunity with immediate effect.

Mu Sochua was stripped of her parliamentary immunity on 22 June 2009 thus clearing the way for defamation charges to be leveled against her by Prime Minister Hun Sen. She was convicted of defamation by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on 4 August 2009 and sentenced to pay a fine and compensation of 16.5 million riel ($4,4084US), a verdict that was upheld by the Appeal Court on 28 October 2009 and the Supreme Court on 2 June 2010. The fine and compensation was docked from Mu Sochua’s National Assembly wages and paid in full by November 2010. Cheam Yeap, a senior lawmaker for the Cambodian People’s Party, has stated that Mu Sochua’ s immunity would be restored in November 2011, a year after completion of her punishment.

Article 14 of the Law on the Status of Members of the National Assembly provides that a National Assembly member who is convicted of a crime and sentenced to a jail term loses his/her membership of the National Assembly and the rights and privileges that go with membership, while Article 16 provides for the automatic restoration of immunity and privileges to a National Assembly member who is acquitted. Article 15 provides that a convicted person has his/her parliamentary immunity restored upon pardon by His Majesty the King. The case of Mu Sochua therefore falls into a lacuna as the law is silent on cases where the National Assembly member is neither acquitted nor convicted to serve a jail term but is convicted and sentenced to pay a fine and not pardoned by His Majesty the King.

Lawmaker fights for immunity

Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Mu Sochua leads a demonstration in Phnom Penh in June last year.

(Photo by: Pha Lina)

Tuesday, 11 January 2011
Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post

Outspoken opposition lawmaker Mu Sochua has demanded a swift restoration of her parliamentary immunity now that her long-running spat with Prime Minister Hun Sen has come to a close.

Mu Sochua’s immunity was suspended in 2009 to allow her prosecution in a defamation case brought by Hun Sen.

Speaking Tuesday, the Sam Rainsy Party parliamentarian said she will hold a press conference later this week to demand that her immunity – a right under Cambodia’s Constitution – be restored.

Caught you telling fibs again, Mr. Hor 5 Hong!

France criticizes the political climate in Cambodia

08 Feb 2010
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Tola Ek
Click here to read the article in French

KI-Media Note: Recently, Mr. Hor 5 Hong, the Cambodian minister of Foreign Affairs, boasted that not a single foreign country intervened with the Phnom Penh regime about the case of opposition leader Sam Rainsy. The following report seems to totally contradict Mr. Hor's tall tale claim once again.

The President of the France-Cambodia Friendship group at the French National Assembly questioned the French government on the condition of Cambodia’s opposition MPs.

At 10,045-km from Phnom Penh, the French government did not mince its words towards Cambodia. At the end of January, under questioning at the French National Assembly from Ms. Chantal Brunel, a MP from France’s UMP party, regarding the loss of their parliamentary immunity by three SRP MPs, Pierre Lellouche, the French State Secretary in charge of European Affairs, couldn’t be clearer.

“At each of these episodes, we expressed our concerns and our worries regarding the recurring defamation lawsuits aimed at lifting the immunity of [Cambodian] opposition MPs. We cannot accept this practice which is nothing more than intimidation. Our embassy in Phnom Penh, in liaison with our EU partners, had taken all the opportunities to remind the Cambodian authority our attachment to the respect of democratic debate,” Pierre Lellouche explained while citing also the lawsuits launched by the government “against civil society and media representatives.”

In her question, Ms. Chantal Brunel, the President of the France-Cambodia Friendship group, underscored the fact that Cambodia, following China, is “the Asian country which receives from France the largest amount of development aid,” and that the French financial aids were all aimed “to the benefit of the democratization of the country.”

This exchange was taking place while France and Cambodia are opening discussions on a new phase of cooperation aimed at economic development which should be concluded by the visit to Cambodia by the French minister of Foreign Affairs at the end of the first semester of 2010.

Mu Sochua’s immunity will not be affected by the law but it could be difficult for her to get it back

Mu Sochua speaking to a newspaper vendor (Photo: Jarred Ferrie, The National)

29 July 2009
Rasmei Kampuchea
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

A high-ranking official from the National Election Committee (NEC) said in the afternoon of 28 July that, if the court finds Mrs. Mu Sochua guilty of defaming Hun Xen, this sentence will not affect her political rights once she pays off the fine imposed by the court. Nevertheless, political analysts said that, most likely, there is little chance for Mu Sochua to receive back her parliamentary immunity according to the law and the explanation provided by Cheam Yeap, the CPP chairman of the National Assembly (NA) finance committee and a member of the NA permanent committee.

Tep Nitha, NEC secretary-general, told Rasmei Kampuchea yesterday that: “In the event the court finds Mrs. Mu Sochua guilty in this defamation lawsuit case, her sentence will not affect her right to receive her immunity back.” Tep Nitha added: “This is a light sentence. It’s only a sentence with a fine. It is not a sentence with jail time.” According to Tep Nitha’s explanation, the law only prevents those who are sentenced to jail from voting. This means that people who are not sentenced to jail time, have the right to vote and to present their candidacy during the elections.

Cheam Yeap claimed that when Mrs. Mu Sochua will be done paying her fine, and the court will send a letter to the minister of Justice so that the latter informs the NA about the fine payment, then the NA will move according the rule to decide on Mrs. Mu Sochua’s immunity. However, he also claimed that: “It’s like the case of Mr. Sam Rainsy, whichever way it came in, it will go back out the same way.”

Political analysts said that if they comment on Cheam Yeap’s claim, Mrs. Mu Sochua will have great difficulty to get her immunity back without the support from CPP MPs. Mrs. Mu Sochua saw her immunity lifted with the vote of 2/3 of the MPs. Therefore, [based on Cheam Yeap’s claim that] whichever way the case came in, it will go back out the same way, then Mrs. Mu Sochua must find 2/3 of the 123 MPs’ vote to get her immunity back.

Hun Xen also issued a warning to CPP MPs ordering them to reject their support. Therefore, Mrs. Mu Sochua’s case is different from that of Sam Rainsy because the latter’s immunity was suspended by the NA’s permanent committee and it was re-instated back by the permanent committee.

As for Mrs. Mu Sochua, she claimed that she will go to court to listen to the announcement of her sentence on 04 August, she believes that a fine sentence should not lead to a [permanent] loss of her immunity.