Press 'not free' in [Banana] Kingdom

Information Minister Khieu Kanharith speaks in Phnom Penh yesterday at an event to mark World Press Freedom Day. Press freedom has become worse in the Kingdom, according to a US watchdog. (Photo by: Heng Chivoan

Wednesday, 04 May 2011
Mary Kozlovski and Kim Yuthana
The Phnom Penh Post

The targeting of Cambodian journalists through defamation and disinformation legislation and the closure of an opposition newspaper were responsible for a decline in the Kingdom’s world ranking for press freedom last year, according to a report released yesterday.

According to the Freedom of the Press 2011 report, released by United States-based watchdog organisation Freedom House in conjunction with World Press Freedom Day, Cambodia’s press freedom ranking plunged to 141 for 2010 out of 196 countries and territories rated, compared with a ranking of 134 for 2009.

The report described Cambodia as “not free” and declared that the number of people worldwide with access to free and independent media had dropped to its lowest level in over a decade.

To celebrate internatio​nal press freedom day, CCHR announces launch of new official website

CCHR PRESS RELEASE - Phnom Penh, 3 May 2011

To celebrate international press freedom day, CCHR announces launch of new official website

The Cambodian Center for Human Rights (“CCHR”) is delighted to announce the official launch of our new website today, www.cchrcambodia.org. The launch coincides with World Press Freedom Day, which this year focuses on the theme of “21st Century Media: New Frontiers, New Barriers”. The new CCHR website is a prime example of how new media to promote and protect human rights and democracy around the world.

The new website contains information about the situation of human rights in Cambodia, and about CCHR and our activities in the furtherance of human rights and democracy. The site also provides links to all CCHR resources – press releases and reports – and news stories about our work. For example, you can access our briefing note released today to coincide with International World Press Freedom Day which is titled “21st Century: New Frontiers, Old Barriers” from the website. The website also includes live feeds from our Facebook and Twitter accounts, and podcasts and Youtube clips of CCHR’s public forums and hearings. In the two weeks since the website has been live, CCHR has received hits from over 40 countries around the world including China, France, Kenya, Laos, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Palestine, the United Kingdom and the United States, to name but a few. These hits demonstrate the reach of new media in obtaining a global audience and opening up new frontiers that can be fundamental in raising awareness of the human rights situation in Cambodia.

Since its establishment, CCHR has embraced new media and is using Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and Youtube together with other social media to promote our activities and to draw attention to local, and global, human rights issues. Currently CCHR has more than 3000 individuals following its work on Facebook and has made 844 tweets. In addition, Sithi.org, the Cambodian Human Rights Portal facilitated by CCHR, has had over 100,000 hits since going live in 2009. To continue our tradition of embracing new media, CCHR will shortly be launching an online database of the data collected by our Trial Monitoring Project team.

Examining events around the world, it is evident that new media has fostered dynamic change and opened the doors to new channels of dialogue particularly where human rights and democracy are concerned. In response to the advent of new media in Cambodia, Chak Sopheap, CCHR executive assistant and renowned “Clogger” (Cambodian blogger) notes, “The internet is an invaluable tool for linking individuals and organizations and for sharing information and ideas in the promotion of a better society. New media represents the new digital democracy in Cambodia and brings with it the possibility for positive development for the future of all Cambodians.” We hope that you will find the CCHR website and CCHR’s other new media initiatives useful and we encourage the Royal Government of Cambodia, Cambodia’s internet users and others to continue to open up new frontiers to allow for new areas of debate and discussion.

For more information, please contact Ou Virak via telephone at +855 (0) 12 40 40 51 or e-mail at ouvirak@cchrcambodia.org

Please find this release attached in Khmer and English.

Thank you and kind regards

--

The Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) is a non-political, 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.

Provisional Agenda for the World Press Freedom Day 2011 on 03 May 2011

Publisher calls for arrests to stop

Hang Chakra (Photo: Zakariya, RFA)

Tuesday, 04 May 2010
Cameron Wells and Khouth Sophak Chakrya
The Phnom Penh Post

AN opposition-aligned publisher who was recently released from prison after being convicted of disinformation was among those who marked World Press Freedom Day on Monday by calling for a moratorium on journalist arrests and condemning the government for a spike in such arrests over the last 12 months.

“Hopefully after the World Press Freedom Day, no journalist will be arrested or imprisoned due to reporting the critical inaction of government and law enforcement,” Hang Chakra, publisher of Khmer Machas Srok, said during a ceremony marking the inauguration of a new office for the Press Council of Cambodia.

Hang Chakra was imprisoned in June of last year after the paper published a series of stories alleging corruption on the part of officials in the cabinet of Deputy Prime Miniser Sok An. He was released last month after being given a Royal pardon.

A report released Monday by the Club of Cambodian Journalists stated that 24 journalists have been arrested in the past 12 months, up from 10 arrests reported during the same period a year earlier.

In a statement Monday, Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights, condemned what he described as “the gag on Cambodian journalists”, saying it was “stifling democracy and human rights in Cambodia”.

Speaking at the same ceremony as Hang Chakra, Information Minister Khieu Kanharith said the government stood behind all journalists, even those who are critical of its policies.

“We want to see journalists join together to develop journalism in Cambodia and report the facts of each story to help the government eliminate corrupt people from our country,” he said.

Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Press Free in Cambodia

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

The US would be better off teaching press freedom to Hun Sen's gov't instead

US Brings Media Training to Cambodia

By Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
05 May 2009

The US Embassy will provide journalism training to Cambodian media in June, to improve coverage of economics and the environment, a US official said Monday.

The program is part of an American commitment to global press freedom, said US Charge D’affaires Theodore Allegra, marking World Press Freedom Day.

“In June, we will sponsor a course designed for journalists reporting on economic and environmental topics,” he said, noting that both issues were important now to Cambodia and nations worldwide.

The embassy will also provide training for public information officers and government media officers in July, Allegra said.

“This is designed to increase the dialogue between ministries and journalists so that the public is kept better informed about government policies and action,” he said.

Cambodia saw its press freedom ranking fall to “not free” this year, in an annual report by US-based Freedom Watch, and the international watchdog Reporters Without Borders counts Cambodia among countries that “waver between repression and liberalization.”

Both organizations marked a slip in press freedoms for Cambodia.

Pen Samithy, president of the Club of Cambodian Journalists, said that the poorer rankings were caused by the murder of opposition journalist Khim Sambo, along with his son, two weeks before the July 2008 national election, among other threats.

“The arrests and threats against journalists increased from 2008 to 2009,” he said. Threats against journalists jumped to 14 in 2008, compared to seven the year before, and the number of journalists arrested went from six in 2007 to 10 the following year.

Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith said Cambodia’s media environment was better than any of its Asean neighbors.

Sacrava's Political Cartoon: World Press Freedom Day

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

Organization Ranks Cambodia Media ‘Not Free’

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original report from Washington
04 May 2009

Harassment of Cambodian journalists and the murder of an opposition reporter during 2008’s national election period contributed to Cambodia’s “not free” press status by the organization Freedom House, an official said.

The “not free” status is shared by countries such as Burma, China, Cuba, Iran and North Korea, and was issued by Freedom House in its annual report.

“It was actually the impact of the election last year and greater harassment and the murder of the journalist in Cambodia,” said Karin Karlekar, managing editor for freedom of the press at Freedom House. She spoke at a ceremony in Washington marking the release of the report.

Opposition journalist Khim Sambo was shot dead along with his son in July 2008, just two weeks before Cambodians went to the polls to elect National Assembly representatives. That murder, for which no arrests have been made, followed the detention of Dam Sith, the editor of the same opposition paper, Moneaksekar Khmer.

The “not free” rating was a slide for Cambodia, which was given “partly free” status the previous year.

Phay Siphan, a spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said by phone the murder was under investigation and Freedom House’s rating did not accurately reflect Cambodia’s media environment.

Cambodian journalists “can write whatever, even criticizing the prime minister, which does not happen in other countries,” he said, adding that the “effectiveness and quality are another matter.”

Most of Cambodia’s media, especially broadcast, provide favorable coverage of the ruling party, and critics say biased coverage affects the outcomes of elections.

The opposition Sam Rainsy Party, responding to a recent story about land grabbing, called one of the largest papers, Reaksmey Kampuchea, a mouthpiece for the ruling Cambodian People’s Party.

Cambodia ranked 61st of 132 countries in the Freedom House report, in a year where the organization said press freedom had declined in every region for the first time.

Cambodian media group calls on government to promote freedom of expression

4 May 2009
Source: CAPJ

The following is a statement from the Cambodian Association for the Protection of Journalists (CAPJ), a SEAPA partner based in Phnom Penh:

Long live the spirit of World Press Freedom Day

On the occasion of the observance of World Press Freedom Day 2009, the Cambodian Association for the Protection of Journalists (CAPJ) wishes all the Cambodian journalists great health and success in their noble mission to serve their audiences and readers both inside and outside of Cambodia.

CAPJ noted that the press freedom situation in Cambodia in the year 2008 slightly improved compared to 2007 and still maintained a good score among countries in Southeast Asia in spite of the existing negative points such as the arrests of journalists, the threats ad lawsuits brought forward against them, the denial of access to information to media workers and the numerous pending and unsolved cases ating back to 1993.

CAPJ recorded 32 violations of press freedom in 2008. These include 14 arrests, six incidents of threat, two lawsuits, three cases involving the temporary halt of publication and broadcast, three cases of camera and recorder seizures, three duty-related injuries and road accidents and one case of killing.

Along with the above-mentioned incidents, CAPJ deplores the lack of freedom to freely operate the electronic media as this type of platform continues to be dominated by the ruling party thus giving an unfair opportunity for other parties to make their messages heard to the grassroots people. CAPJ insists on a change of this trend.

CAPJ appeals to the judiciary system to refer to the 1994 Press Law when passing judgment to an accused Cambodian journalist. It also expresses its full endorsement of the recent statement of donor countries' representatives dated April 28, 2009 which called on the Cambodian government to speed up the process of adopting the Anti-Corruption Law and to guarantee the public in general, and the Cambodian press in particular, the right to access information.

CAPJ also would like to make an appeal to the media owners to help upgrade the journalists' living condition by ensuring a decent salary and other benefits for their employees in order to help curb corruption among Cambodian journalsists. Furthermore, it expects the journalists to strictly abide by the media code of ethics in order to place a high value on their profession and avoid a breach of professional ethics.

Last but not the least, CAPJ calls on the government to take a firm stand to put an end to violence against journalists and permanently end the culture of impunity in Cambodia.

Issued by

Mr. Um Sarin
President of CAPJ

umsarin59@yahoo.com
umsarin@hotmail.com

World Press Freedom Day

03 May 2009
By Im Navin
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Luc Sâr
Click here to read the article in French

On 03 May, to mark the World Press Freedom Day, Licadho publishes a report on the situation in Cambodia.

According to France-based Reporters Without Borders, Cambodia dropped dramatically in the press freedom ranking: ranked 85th in 2007, Cambodia ranked 126th in 2008. Even though Cambodia’s ranking is better than that in neighboring countries (Vietnam, Laos, Burma, China), the press situation in Cambodia seems to be degrading.

In July 2008, two weeks before the general election, Khim Sambo, a reporter close to the opposition party, was assassinated with his son in Phnom Penh. The police still has not found the killers yet. According to Licadho’s report, 14 reporters were threatened in 2008, as compared to 7 in 2007; 10 reporters were arrested, as compared to 6 in 2007. A Cambodia journalist even received asylum in Norway in 2008 following death threats he received.

Licadho, the human rights NGO, selected to underscore the fact that Cambodian journalists continue to be threatened, attacked, and censored. “The continued intimidation of the media through physical attacks, threats, charges of defamation and disinformation and murder ensure the lack of an environment free from political pressures for media to cover sensitive and important issues affecting Cambodians,” Naly Pilorge, Licadho’s director, declared.

The NGO recalled also that the majority of newspapers and TV stations are attached or aligned with one political party. The majority of them support the ruling CPP: all TV channels, half of the radio stations and 13 out of 24 main publications in Khmer.

On the other hand, the Club of Cambodian Journalists chose to focus on the border conflict with Thailand. It assures that reporters in the disputed area could help resolve this conflict. It also underscores that the authorities let reporters do their work on the spot and that soldiers assure their security. However, on the Thai side, Thai army upholds information and prevents reporters from moving freely.

Press Freedom in Cambodia is seriously under threat: CCHR

Source: CCHR

Media Statement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Phnom Penh, May 02, 2009
Press Freedom in Cambodia is seriously under threat

The Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) is very concerned with the high number of cases of human rights abuses against journalists and other media workers in Cambodia. Press freedom in Cambodia is seriously under threat.

In 2008 alone, the CCHR has documented and monitored at least 61 human rights abuses against journalists and media workers. Of this figure, there were 15 threats including death threats, threats to commence legal action, and threats to withhold licenses to operate,; 14 arrests made for spurious reasons; and 5 cases of law suits claiming defamation and disinformation being used to silence the media.

The arrest of Mr. Dam Sith, editor in chief of the pro-opposition Moneasika Khmer newspaper and a Sam Rainsy Party candidate for the parliamentary election, was a good example of how political motivations often lie behind charges of defamation and disinformation brought against journalists.

Even worse was the murder of Mr. Khim Sambo, reporter of Moneasika Khmer, along with his son in the run-up to the general election in July 2008. No perpetrator has been brought to justice.

In 2009, as of today, we have observed 8 human rights abuses against journalists including killing, death threats, physical assault, lawsuits, and arrests for alleged extortion.

Given the high figure of human rights violations involving journalist and the media in general, the CCHR calls upon the Royal Government of Cambodia to take appropriate action and follow the recommendations recently made by more than 20 non-governmental organisations in a joint report on freedom of expression and assembly to guarantee press freedom in Cambodia and bring the perpetrators of criminal acts against journalists to justice.

For more information, please contact:
Mr. Ou Virak, President, CCHR
Tel: +855 12 404051
Email: ouvirak@cchrcambodia.org

Political Cartoon: World Press Freedom Day

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

Cambodian gov't calls on media to respect press ethics [-Mussomeli announces $10,000 award for invetigative journalism competition]

May 04, 2007

Cambodian government on Thursday called on the media to respect the ethics of press at a ceremony here to mark the World Press Freedom Day.

Thieng Vandarong, under-secretary of state of the Information Ministry, appealed to all veteran journalists "to try to be good models and train young generations to have professional qualification for great honor for our country," at a gathering of about 130 local journalists, foreign journalists, government officials, political parties' delegates and diplomats.

He said the ministry has seen most journalists respect the code of conducts of journalism and the press law of Cambodia, but a small number of journalists don't and they are usually criticized by public or even go to court for defamation.

On the occasion, United States Ambassador to Cambodia Joseph A. Mussomeli announced that the embassy will award 10,000 U.S. dollars grant to the Cambodian Club of Journalists to conduct a competition to recognize outstanding achievements in the field of investigative journalism.

According to official figures, there are now in Cambodia 296 national newspapers, 90 magazines, 30 bulletins, 15 journalist associations, 41 foreign media institutions, nine foreign newspapers imported to sell here, 22 radio stations, and seven television stations.

Source: Xinhua

Khieu Kanharith Defends Stance on Press

Information Minister Defends Stance on Press

Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
03/05/2007

Information Minister Khieu Kanharith said Thursday press freedom in Cambodia was the best in Southeast Asia and reminded journalists they were under an obligation to follow professional ethics.

Speaking to VOA Khmer on World Press Freedom Day and responding to a call Wednesday from a leading rights group for the government to close his ministry, Khieu Kanharith said Cambodia had an extremely liberal press environment.

"Not only can reporters write a story, but they can invent stories as well. That's unique to Cambodia," he said.

"Cambodia is worried about certain reporters that might be using their press freedoms in the wrong direction, and what all the press have to be concerned with is concentrating on the ethics of their profession," Khieu Kanharith said. "They can say anything they want after that."