The Cambodian government may have timed the release of four imprisoned government critics — a union leader, a radio journalist and two social activists — to coincide with a visit by a diplomat of the United States which had condemned the arrests, but it is far from dropping defamation charges against them.
Prime Minister Hun Sen met Assistant US Secretary of State Christopher Hill before the four prominent activists were released Tuesday and promised to ask a Cambodian court to free them on bail. Hill, who was in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh for the opening of a new American Embassy, welcomed the release, according to Associated Press (AP).
Om Yentieng, an advisor to Hun Sen, quoted the prime minister as saying he had made the bail request as "a gift" for Christopher Hill on the inauguration of the new US Embassy. "He (Hun Sen) is doing this with his heart, as a Cambodian helping other Cambodians" like himself, Yentieng said after the meeting between the prime minister and the US envoy.
Om Yentieng said the release of the four on bail did not mean that the defamation charges would be dropped. "They will have to show up at court the day their trials begin," he said. The penalty for criminal defamation ranges from eight days to one year in jail with a fine of up to $2,440.
Later in the day, radio journalist Mom Sonando, union leader Rong Chhun, and human rights activists Kem Sokha and Pa Nguon Tieng, both of the US-funded Cambodian Centre for Human Rights, walked out of prison and were greeted by 100 supporters. "I thank the Cambodian people for supporting me," Kem Sokha said with a smile, raising his clenched fists in the air as the crowd responded with cries of "Long live democracy!"
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on Wednesday called on Hun Sen to drop all criminal defamation charges against Sonando, Sokha, and Pa. "Hun Sen's actions serve only to remind everyone that the Cambodian legal system is subservient to his will. The legal process becomes a charade when people are yanked in and out of jail to serve political interests," CPJ Executive Director Cooper said. "We call directly on the prime minister to end his concerted and specious legal assault on press freedom."
CPJ says Hun Sen's government has jailed a number of journalists and activists in recent months, undermining the legal safeguards for freedom of expression and press freedom enshrined in the country's 1993 constitution and 1994 Press Act. The journalists have been charged with violating criminal defamation laws that were in force before the passage of the more democratic 1993 charter and that are punishable by one-year prison terms and fines of up to 10 million riels (US$2,600).
Cambodian authorities jailed Sambok Khmum (Beehive Radio) 105 FM journalist Mam Sonando October 11, 2005 on criminal defamation charges for critical reports he aired about a controversial border demarcation treaty with Vietnam. On December 31, Kem Sokha was arrested on criminal defamation charges related to critical comments about the government written on a banner that the rights group publicly displayed during International Human Rights Day on December 10.
Journalist and human rights activist Pa Guon Tieng was arrested on January 4, by border police while reporting in northeastern Stung Treng province. On January 5, Pa was formally charged as an accomplice to criminal defamation because of his participation in a demonstration in Phnom Penh which criticised the government for the border agreement.
Another print journalist, Hang Sakhorn, was jailed in December on similar charges for reporting that a court official had accepted bribes which allegedly influenced his decision in a politically charged land dispute case. He remains in custody.
"Hun Sen appears to be following the Burmese model by imprisoning peaceful critics of his increasingly authoritarian government," said Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch, after Pa was arrested. "The arrest of human rights activists, as well as recent show trials of opposition politicians, is a throwback to the days when Hun Sen ran a one-party state."
Human Rights Watch pointed out that the arrests have already had a harmful effect on the human rights community in Cambodia, which is operating in a climate of fear and uncertainty, unsure of what speech is now allowed and what is prohibited. Human Rights Watch expressed concern that further arrests may be planned.
"The message is clear: If you criticise the government, you will be thrown in jail," said Adams. "Cambodia's international donors should warn the government to end this crackdown on its critics. They also need to make it clear that they will not continue to subsidise almost half the budget of an increasingly repressive government."
How far the Hun Sen government goes in mollifying international donors remains to be seen.
