Chhay Channyda
The Phnom Penh Post
Three years after the passage of the Penal Code, judges still “misinterpret” many key articles, including defamation, disinformation and public insult, the UN and justice officials said yesterday.
Speaking at a two-day workshop, officials from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and Ministry of Justice offered an outline of the most frequently misapplied articles to provincial judges, prosecutors and police.
“Cases of misinterpretation or misapplication of the Penal Code can lead to people being unfairly punished or unfairly left unpunished, and to possible violations of human rights,” said OHCHR representative James Heenan.
Passed in 2009, the Penal Code has at times been criticised by rights groups, who point to its defamation and incitement articles as thinly veiled attempts to criminalise freedom of expression.
But those attending the workshop remained diplomatic, insisting a lack of understanding was the sole explanation for convictions that could be considered human-rights violations.
“The difficulty for compliance is because this new code has more than 200 articles,” Meas Chan Pisith, deputy prosecutor of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, explained.
3 comments:
Many of these judges were educated in Hanoi. Its a fact, that during the Sihanouk Reign, many Khmer were sent to Europe to study law, while many Khmer were sent to Hanoi then later join the Khmer Rouge.
Hor Nam Hong was in Europe then went to study in Hanoi and during the Khmer Rouge rising, Hor Nam Hong joined Khmer Rouge.
You are absolutely correct, bro @3:02 PM
If you can't go through 200 articles to due diligence in application of the law, then you probably shouldn't sit on the bench and judge.
Post a Comment