Lawmaker Calls on UN to Help Prey Speu Detainees Get Home

Following an inspection of Phnom Penh’s Pur Senchey Vocational Training Center on Tuesday, opposition lawmaker Ke Sovannaroth on Wednesday said she was seeking the U.N.’s help in transporting home dozens of detainees at the notorious holding facility who begged to be set free during her visit.

Cambodia: Gov't holds forum on controversial law

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – About 350 people attended a forum at Phnom Penh’s National Assembly on Wednesday in an effort to put questions to lawmakers about the imminent passage of a controversial law on the regulation of the NGO sector. Officially, the law is expected to pass during an extraordinary session of parliament Friday, although rights group Licadho said in a live blog that it was in possession of another document that appeared to show a delay until July 13, next week.

Pursat Farmer, Kratie Man Arrested in Separate Child Rape Cases

In two separate cases on Tuesday, police arrested a 61-year-old farmer in Pursat province after a couple accused him of raping their 12-year-old daughter, while authorities in Kratie province apprehended a 28-year-old man for allegedly raping an 8-year-old boy, officials said Wednesday.

NGOs Firm Against Draft Law Before Meeting With Lawmakers

NGOs remained united Tuesday in their staunch opposition to a draft law that would force all non-government groups in the country to register with the state, but were split on whether to take up the ruling CPP on its offer for an 11th-hour consultation ahead of an imminent vote.

NGOs/CSOs, Not Content with Detente, Up The Regime Change Ante

PHNOM PENH (Khmer Times) – An analysis of “color revolutions” as a means of regime change reveals that geopolitical dynamics have changed dramatically over the past 30 years. These revolutions, called “color and flower” revolutions, have caused the overthrow of governments in countries that had formerly been stable. In Cambodia, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society organizations (CSOs), aided by opposition politicians, fuel the debate over the Law on Organizations and Nongovernmental Organizations (LANGO). There may be a relation to a new video: the “12 Steps to Regime Change.”

ASEAN Parliamentarians call on Cambodia to abandon restrictive, undemocratic NGO law

ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) today called on the Cambodian government to abandon its proposed Law on Associations and Non-governmental Organizations (LANGO), arguing that the ruling party has pursued a fundamentally undemocratic course in attempting to secure the passage of a law that threatens freedom of association and expression in Cambodia.

Land disputant freed on bail in B Meanchey

A community representative was released on bail by Banteay Meanchey Provincial Court on Tuesday, after he was arrested and charged with disturbing private property. Sean Vy, 51, was arrested in Poipet’s Nimeth commune on July 4, after he was deemed the ringleader of a group building cottages on disputed land, said Soum Chankea, provincial coordinator at rights group Adhoc.

Police accused of abuse

The deputy police chief of Bavet commune in Svay Rieng province’s Chantrea district is accused of stripping two men naked and beating them, according to a complaint filed with rights group Licadho. Ek Sareoun, 49, one of the two alleged victims’ father, who filed the complaint, yesterday said that his son was trying to break up a fight between his friend and a group of other people, when police arrested the two of them, and brought them to deputy police chief Sek Sotheanoseth for questioning.

New charge sought for 2011 acid attack

The Supreme Court yesterday heard the appeal of a woman accused of dousing another woman with acid four years ago, with the prosecution seeking a weightier charge, and the defence maintaining that the accused hadn’t been present at all. Victim Kong Touch, 50, told the court that in 2011 she had been walking to work in Tbong Khmum province’s Ponhea Krek district at about 4am when the defendant, Tep Kolab, 24, called out to her.

NGO law tweaks mulled

Government officials yesterday agreed to reconsider elements of a proposed NGO law, but ruled out further public consultation on the widely criticised legislation, signalling a final vote would be held next week. The promise to review some provisions came during the government’s first public workshop on the proposed bill since 2011 – held yesterday morning – and was later backed at a meeting between three parliamentary commissions in the afternoon, according to a government official.

Opposition Walks Out of NGO Law Workshop

CPP lawmakers and officials continued to defend their controversial draft of a proposed law aiming to regulate the country’s non-government groups at a workshop at the National Assembly on Wednesday, despite a boycott from some NGOs and the opposition, which dismissed the event as “rubbish.”

Traffic Law fines set

A sub-decree being drafted by the Interior Ministry is adding teeth in the form of markedly heavier fines to the Kingdom’s nearly 6-month-old, still yet-to-be enforced, Traffic Law. Under the sub-decree’s terms, motorcyclists and motorcycle passengers who fail to wear a helmet will have to pay 15,000 riel ($3.75) – a five-fold increase on the 3,000 riel ($0.75) fine currently only levied against the vehicle’s drivers.

Farmer Charged, Jailed for Rape of Girls, 10 and 11, in Takeo

A 31-year-old farmer who was arrested in Takeo province over the weekend for allegedly raping three young girls in his village—one of them over the course of six months—was charged Tuesday by the provincial court and jailed, police officials said.

NGOs Protest LANGO at National Assembly

PHNOM PENH (Khmer Times) – Ahead of the potentially contentious meeting between NGO representatives and government officials today about the proposed draft law on associations and NGOs (LANGO), some groups say they have been denied entry. At a NGO forum yesterday, many civil society organizations claimed the government did not give them enough time to study or examine the law before today’s workshop, while others said they could not even get an invitation.

Gov’t Silent After First Day of Border Meeting

Var Kimhong, the CPP government’s minister in charge of border affairs, declined to speak with reporters Tuesday after hosting Vietnam’s deputy foreign minister for the first Joint Border Committee meeting since the opposition CNRP began a campaign to uncover Vietnamese territorial encroachments.

Monitors discuss elections

A group of electoral monitoring NGOs under the banner of the Electoral Reform Alliance yesterday gathered to express their concern over current regulations that govern Cambodia’s voter registration process. Koul Panha, the executive director of democracy watchdog Comfrel, addressed a discussion panel at Phnom Penh’s Imperial Garden Villa Hotel and outlined his proposed vision for a more inclusive and pluralistic registration system.

Cambodian Homeless Detainees Beg Opposition Lawmaker for Help

Crowds ‘Say No’ to LANGO

More than 300 civil society representatives, diplomats and opposition members yesterday attended a consultation to voice concerns over the controversial draft NGO law, a parliamentary vote on which was reportedly delayed until next week. The national consultation, organised by the Cooperation Committee for Cambodia (CCC) and held at the Cambodiana Hotel, coincided with yet another march on parliament by hundreds of opponents of the legislation.

ASEAN Parliamentarians call on Cambodia to abandon restrictive, undemocratic NGO law

JAKARTA – ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) today called on the Cambodian government to abandon its proposed Law on Associations and Non-governmental Organizations (LANGO), arguing that the ruling party has pursued a fundamentally undemocratic course in attempting to secure the passage of a law that threatens freedom of association and expression in Cambodia. “Barring major revisions, this law constitutes a clear threat to the fundamental rights of all Cambodians, in direct violation of Cambodia’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” said APHR Chairperson Charles Santiago, a member of parliament in Malaysia. “It further jeopardizes the ability of civil society to operate freely and effectively in the country.”

NGOs Firm Against Draft Law Before Meeting With Lawmakers

NGOs remained united Tuesday in their staunch opposition to a draft law that would force all non-government groups in the country to register with the state, but were split on whether to take up the ruling CPP on its offer for an 11th-hour consultation ahead of an imminent vote.