King tells voters to be strong

Thursday, 31 May 2012
Vong Sokheng
The Phnom Penh Post

An appeal by King Norodom Sihamoni to voters not to bow to intimidation from any political party or individual ahead of this Sunday’s commune council elections was released by the National Election Committee yesterday.

“I publicly appeal for compatriots, brothers and sisters, children and grandchildren not to be scared of oppression, intimidation or threats by any individual or political party,” the statement, signed March 9, said.

NEC secretary-general Tep Nytha said they have received 10 complaints of threats and another 10 related to insulting language this election season.

Woman threatened by the CPP for watching a SRP video

២៦-ឧសភា-២០១២៖ លោកស្រី អ៊ុក សាគុន ផ្តល់បទសម្ភាសន៍ ក្នុង​ហាង​លក់​បាយ​របស់​លោកស្រី។ (RFA/Soun Sophalmony)

ពលរដ្ឋ​​ម្នាក់ ត្រូវ​បេក្ខជន​បក្ស ប្រជាជន សម្លុត ព្រោះ​តែ​ចាក់​ឌីស សម រង្ស៊ី

2012-05-27
ដោយ សួន សុផល មុន្នី
RFA

គណៈកម្មការ​រៀបចំ​ការបោះឆ្នោត​ ក្នុង​ខេត្ត​បាត់ដំបង គ្រោង​កោះ​ហៅ​មន្ត្រី​គណបក្ស​ប្រជាជន​ កម្ពុជា​មួយ​រូប យក​ទៅ​សួរនាំ អំពី​ករណី​គំរាម​កំហែង​អ្នកភូមិ មិន​ឲ្យ​ទស្សនា​ខ្សែ​ភាព​ឯកសារ​របស់​ គណបក្ស​ប្រឆាំង​ក្នុង​ថ្ងៃ​យុទ្ធនាការ​ឃោសនា​បោះឆ្នោត។

មន្ត្រី​គណបក្ស​ប្រជាជន​កម្ពុជា​មួយ​រូប រង​ការ​ចោទ​ប្រកាន់​ថា បាន​គំរាម​សម្លុត និង​បិទ​សិទ្ធិ​សេរីភាព​ប្រជា​ពលរដ្ឋ មិន​ឲ្យ​យក​ឌីស​ខ្សែ​ភាព​យន្ត​ឯកសារ​របស់​គណបក្ស សម រង្ស៊ី ទៅ​ចាក់​ឲ្យ​អ្នក​ភូមិ​មើល​យល់​ដឹង​ពី​អត្ថន័យ និង​ខ្លឹមសារ​នៃ​គោល​នយោបាយ របស់​គណបក្ស ដើម្បី​ឲ្យ​ពួក​គាត់​មាន​មូលដ្ឋាន​គ្រប់គ្រាន់ ដើម្បី​ធ្វើ​ការ​សម្រេច​ចិត្ត​បោះឆ្នោត​ជ្រើសរើស​មេ​ដឹកនាំ​នៅ​ក្នុង​មូលដ្ឋាន។

លោកស្រី អ៊ុក សាគុន អាយុ ៥៥ ឆ្នាំ មាន​មុខរបរ​ជា​អ្នក​លក់​បាយ និង​កាហ្វេ នៅ​ភូមិ​បឹង​ព្រលិត ឃុំ​ សន្តិភាព ស្រុក​សំពៅលូន ខេត្ត​បាត់ដំបង។ លោក​ស្រី​ថ្លែង​នៅ​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​២៦ ឧសភា​ថា កាល​ពី​ល្ងាច​ថ្ងៃ​ទី២៣ ខែ​ឧសភា គណបក្ស សម រង្ស៊ី បាន​ដើរ​ឃោសនា​នៅ​តាម​ភូមិ។

Monitor pledges 5,000 observers for election

Thursday, 17 May 2012
Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post

The election monitoring organisation Comfrel yesterday announced it would deploy more than 5,000 observers to monitor every aspect of the campaign leading up to the June 3 commune elections and the final division of power among winning candidates.

But at a round-table organised by the Club of Cambodian Journalists, National Election Committee secretary-general Tep Nytha dismissed Comfrel’s efforts as “not up to international standards”.

Comfrel executive director Koul Panha said monitors would pay particular attention to political activity on “white day”, the one-day buffer between the end of the campaign season and the June 3 vote.

“[Previously] we observed that the white day . . . is a very important opportunity for politicians to influence voters, such as vote-buying and intimidation,” he said, citing examples of candidates or party representatives going door to door to pressure voters.

Koul Panha accused some ruling CPP officials of using scare tactics such as observing people as they voted at an election office.

You know the election is near when … CPP officials threaten to kill anybody who joins the SRP

CPP official threatens to kill opposition activist

27 August 2011
By Ratha Visal
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Soch
Click here to read the original article in Khmer

A report from Ratanakiri indicated that a CPP provincial official threatened to kill anybody who would join the opposition SRP party.

A resident of Norng Hay village, Seda commune, Lumphat district, Ratanakiri province, had accused Thom Bun Thong, the principal of the Norng Hay elementary school and a local CPP official, of discrimination and of violating the villagers’ rights to choose their political party.

The resident added that, in the past, he did not yet join any political party, but that he has a good relationship with another village resident who is a SRP activist. Because of that, Thom Bun Thong, the school principal, accused him and threatened him. The resident indicated that he was concerned for his safety: “I am reporting this so that everybody hear about it, so that there are arrangements made for me, so that there is a resolution for me. I am afraid that one day in the future, somebody could sneak and kill me…”

On Saturday 27 August, Thom Bun Thong confirmed that it was his unintentional mistake because he was too drunk: “He was my student, that’s why I said that [to him]. I was wrong in what I said, I admit that. I did not threaten him at all. I know that he joins the SRP, I did not threaten him and I was not angry with him, I ask for an arrangement, there is nothing wrong.”

Teachers joining CITA's meeting threatened by local authority in Pusat province

Click on the statement in Khmer to zoom in

Immunity Question Hurts Assembly’s Fairness: Expert

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Washington
27 November 2009

The National Assembly should be a place of justice and fairness, with serious weight given the suspended immunities of its members, a democracy advocate said Thursday.

“What is important is that there should be a place to find right and wrong and what is just in the National Assembly, and if immunity is removed, it should not be done very quickly like this,” said Hang Chhaya, executive director of the Khmer Institute for Democracy, as a guest on “Hello VOA.”

Hang Chhaya was referring to the Nov. 16 suspension of opposition leader Sam Rainsy’s parliamentary immunity, the third opposition suspension this year.

Sam Rainsy is facing charges in Svay Rieng of incitement and destruction of property, after villagers reportedly angered by Vietnamese encroachment allegedly pulled border markets out of the ground in Chantrea district.

Hang Chhaya echoed concerns of US congressman Chris Smith, a Republican from New Jersey, who said this week that such court cases and the removal of parliamentary immunity could hurt democratic debate in the nation’s legislative body.

Callers to “Hello VOA” Thursday showed wide condemnation for the suspension, which occurred with only members of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party present.

“Sam Rainsy is a member of parliament, and he has the right to serve the people,” said a caller named Un.

“What the government has done to strip [his] immunity is a clear threat not only to Sam Rainsy but other MPs,” said a caller named Ma. “That’s not respectful of freedom and people’s confidentiality, because those are representatives of the people.”

Defamation suits heard in PP court

Friday, 08 May 2009
Written by Meas Sokchea and Robbie Corey-Boulet
The Phnom Penh Post

Public row between PM and SRP lawmaker Mu Sochua goes to judge’s chambers

Phnom Penh Municipal Court heard arguments Thursday from the lawyers for opposition lawmaker Mu Sochua and Prime Minister Hun Sen, as it opened the first hearings in a very public defamation row that has drawn increasing attention from Cambodian and international observers.

Mu Sochua said Thursday evening that her lawyer, Kong Sam Onn, presented prosecutor Hing Bun Chea with evidence detailing every aspect of her case, which she argues stems from an April 4 speech in Kampot during which Hun Sen called her a cheung klang, or "strong leg", a term viewed by some as particularly offensive to women.

She said the evidence included a transcript of the speech, as well as all documents pertaining to an altercation that occurred during last year's election in which she claimed an army general tore a button from her blouse and exposed her bra.

During the speech, Hun Sen referred to a "strong female MP from the opposition party in Kampot" who lost a button on her shirt while running around embracing people. He did not name Mu Sochua.

Hun Sen has repeatedly denied that the April 4 comments referred to Mu Sochua.

On the same day that Mu Sochua filed her suit, April 27, he filed a countersuit claiming that Mu Sochua had defamed him by saying the comments he made referred to her.

In an interview after the hearing, Ky Tech, Hun Sen's lawyer, declined to comment in detail about the evidence he presented to the prosecutors.

"This is the first step," he said. "They asked me what reason I had for pressing the case and I explained."

The duelling defamation cases continued to draw international attention this week, with Human Rights Watch issuing a statement Tuesday criticising Hun Sen's threat to have Mu Sochua's parliamentary immunity lifted.

Om Yentieng, one of Hun Sen's advisers and president of the Cambodian Human Rights Committee, told Cambodian media April 24 that ruling party MPs might meet to discuss suspending her parliamentary immunity.

Hun Sen said in an April 29 speech that lifting Mu Sochua's immunity would be "easier than peeling a banana".

"This is yet another blatant attempt to silence the political opposition," said HRW Asia director Brad Adams. "By threatening to prosecute opposition members of parliament on bogus charges, Hun Sen shows once again that his goal is elective dictatorship, not a genuinely pluralistic democracy."

The Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) issued a statement Thursday that also decried threats made to lift Mu Sochua's parliamentary immunity.

"CALD upholds respect for the rule of law and urges that Mr Hun Sen and the majority bloc in the parliament refrain from lifting any member of parliament's immunity unless there is compelling evidence cited for damages," the statement reads.

Kong Sam Onn said after the hearings Thursday that he had requested the court ask the National Assembly to hold a vote on whether to lift Prime Minister Hun Sen's parliamentary immunity.

Mu Sochua described this move as an attempt to "make the process equal", saying, "If immunity is being lifted, it should be done on an equal basis."

Looking ahead

Reached Thursday evening, Hing Bun Chea said he did not know when the next meetings related to the case would be held.

Sok Roeun, the prosecutor in the case filed by Hun Sen, declined on Thursday to comment about the hearings and future proceedings.

Sam Rainsy counter-attacks to preserve his parliament immunity

(Photo: Cambodge Soir Hebdo)

25 Feb 2008
By A.N.
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Tola Ek
Click here to read the article in French

The Kampong Cham MP contested the constitutionality of the NEC’s decision to condemn him to pay a 10 million riels ($2,500) fine for disparaging the CPP leaders during the 2008 legislative campaign.

Threatened by Hun Sen to lift his parliamentary immunity, opposition leader Sam Rainsy does not intent to be intimidated by it.

Sam Rainsy’s office just reacted through a communiqué: Sam Rainsy lodged a complaint with the Constitutional Council regarding “the unconstitutionality/illegality” of the NEC’s decision which was subsequently validated by the same Constitutional Council. “Those decisions are pertaining to a "criminal offence" that is under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Tribunal under the Supreme Court,” the SRP communiqué stated.

As stipulated by the law, 17 MPs wrote to the Constitutional Council to support Sam Rainsy’s procedure. Finally, Sam Rainsy also wrote to Heng Samrin, the president of the National Assembly, to inform him about his procedural steps.

Sam Rainsy was fined by 10 million riels ($2,500) by the NEC for disparaging the CPP leaders during the 2008 election campaign.

Election Observer in Hiding After Threat

By Seng Ratana, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
01 August 2008

A provincial election observer has been in hiding for nearly a week, fearing arrest after an argument with a relative of a ruling party village chief in Kampot province.

Police say they are seeking the arrest of Chea Som Borun, 25, an observer for the Neutral and Impartial Committee for Free and Fair Elections and the son of a Sam Rainsy Party activist, for assault.

Human rights officials say the threat of his arrest is political.

Police allege Chea Som Borun struck Phan Sophear, the relative of a Cambodian People's Party village chief, in an altercation the night before the national election.

Witnesses told the human rights group Licadho Phan Sophear was not hurt.

"If Chea Som Borun is arrested, it will only further highlight the level of intimidation surrounding these elections and the continuing misuse of the courts for political reasons by the government," Licadho Director Naly Pilorge said in a statement.

Hang Puthea, executive directior of Nicfec, said Chea Som Borun he was seeking to find a way to bring him out of hiding without arrest.

Chea Som Borun's father has asked other villagers to file a complaint against their village chief over an alleged land sale. This may be one reason Chea Som Borun was threatened with his arrest, Chea Pov, his father, said.

The case was not related to politics, but Chea Som Borun was being sought for assault, Tem Savuth, police chief of Ponhea Leu district, Kandal province.

Om Sam Arth, an investigator for the rights group Licadho, said the argument came a day before the election and stemmed from politics.