The timeline below offers a visual representation of some of the key human rights violations and restrictions which have occurred in the Kingdom of Cambodia from 2013-2023, and follows our previous timeline covering 1993-2012 which can still be accessed here. The incidents recorded on the timeline from 2013-2023 represent human rights violations by the Royal Government of Cambodia as well as third parties, cover a wide range of issues including extrajudicial killings, convictions of human rights defenders, land grabs, forced evictions, restrictions of the rights to peaceful assembly, association and expression, torture, arrests, arbitrary detention and legislative and institutional developments relevant to human rights. The information is gathered from the Khmer and English media, CCHR’s own Fundamental Freedoms Monitoring Project, and from the commentary and analysis of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) working on these issues. Each entry is accompanied by a short description and provides links to media articles reporting on the event or to the work of CSOs active in the field. It should not be forgotten that the cases included in the timeline are those that have garnered the attention of the media or CSOs, and are as such particularly emblematic or high-profile. The timeline is therefore only representative of a small fraction of the actual number of human rights violations occurring in Cambodia.
-
Phnom Penh
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
At around 8.30am, police and authorities from Chak Angre Leu Sangkat arrived at Prek Takong 60 Metre community and began to cancel the World Habitat Day (WHD) event being held by the community. Police informed the community that the event was illegal and a community representative was then arrested and taken to the Sangkat office. The community representative was forced to thumbprinted on a letter promissing to not organize this event in the future if there is no permission from the authority.
CCHR | Khmer Cheayden | PPP | RFI
-
Phnom Penh
Convictions of human rights defenders
The Phnom Penh Municipal Court handed out five-year suspended sentences to four human rights defenders and a National Election Committee official after they were found guilty of bribing a witness. Ny Sokha, Nay Vanda, Yi Soksan, Lim Mony, and Ny Chakrya, often referred to as the so-called “ADHOC 5”, were accused of bribing a hairdresser to lie about an alleged romantic relationship with jailed opposition leader Kem Sokha. The full-day hearing proceeded without two key witnesses – the hairdresser Khum Chandaraty, also known as Srey Mom, and her lawyer, Try Chhoun. The defendants constantly accused the two witnesses of acting with ill-intent and seeking to evade the hearing. The trial was widely decried as politcally motivated by rights groups.
VOD | VOA | Khmer Times | PPP
-
Phnom Penh
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
Ny Chakrya, a former human rights worker at human rights NGO ADHOC, and NEC official, was tried by the Supreme Court on charges of defamation, malicious denunciation and for comments intended to unlawfully coerce judicial authorities. On 1 October 2018, the Supreme Court referred back the case to the Appeal Court for a retrial, alleging that there was insufficient evidence. To date, there have been no further developments.
-
Pursat
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
The Pursat provincial police sent two journalists working for TNM online television to the provincial court over allegations of incitement and spreading fake news for their reporting on a land dispute between Thmor Da commune residents and the MDS Import Export Company. They were subsequently released.
PPP | Khmer Times | Khmer Times | Fresh News | PPP
-
Phnom Penh
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
The Ministry of Labour has asked the Ministry of Information and Ministry of Culture to ban a Khmer song, “Only True Love Remained”, that addresses poor working conditions for domestic workers in the Kingdom, arguing that it affected the dignity of domestic workers, whose working conditions had improved.
PPP | Khmer Times | RFA | Fresh News Asia | VOD Hot NEws | Fresh News | VOA | Khmer Times | Channel News Asia
-
Phnom Penh
Torture, arrests and illegal detentions
The Supreme Court rejected an appeal to nullify the detention of two former Radio Free Asia reporters, Chhin and Yeang Sothearin, who were charged with espionage. [see entries of 14 November 2017 and 15 February 2018 for more details] I've removed the brackets because we don't do this for any other entries.
-
Phnom Penh
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
Phnom Penh Municipal Court issued an arrest warrant for political analyst Kim Sok, who fled to Thailand after Prime Minister Hun Sen suggested he could be arrested for failing to pay compensation owed from a defamation conviction after he failed to appear for questioning over a separate defamation case. General Kieu Sopheak, spokesman for the Interior Ministry, said yesterday that police officials will carry out the court’s order. Kim Sok has been summonsed again and an arrest warrant was issued for court contempt
-
Svay Rieng
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
Police in Svay Rieng shut down a workshop on chicken farming held by a national farmers’ association on Monday morning claiming that it had not been approved by local authorities. The Coalition of Cambodian Farmer Community (CCFC) had organised the training workshop on ecological chicken-raising for 30 families in Romeas Hek district and said it had correctly informed commune and village authorities. Local authorities have shut down about a dozen gatherings organised by the CCFC over the last year, including training workshops, a community development forum and an International Womens’ Day celebration, claiming the group had failed to obtain permission. It was the second time a chicken-raising workshop was shut down in Romeas Hek district.
LICADHO | PPP | VOA | Fresh News | Thmey Thmey
-
Phnom Penh
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
The Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts imposed a ban on actress Seng Sona from taking part in any artistic acts for one year for being too sexy
PPP | Khmer Times | Fresh News | VOD
-
Phnom Penh
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
Phnom Penh governor reportedly told the newly appointed municipal police chief to continue preventing protests and crimes of all kinds in the capital.
-
Phnom Penh
Torture, arrests and illegal detentions
Former opposition leader Kem Sokha was released on bail after spending over a year in pre-trial detention for treason charges widely believed to be politically motivated. However, the court restricted his movement to a four-block radius around his Phnom Penh home, and banned him from meeting ex-Cambodia National Rescue Party officials or other individuals seemingly linked to his treason case. One of his lawyers said the conditions were so strict that they amounted to house arrest. To date, a trial date has not been set.
LICADHO | Fresh News | VOD | RFA | LICADHO | HRW | CSO | VOA
-
Phnom Penh
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
Officials from Phnom Penh’s culture department, in collaboration with police, yesterday seized copies of an unauthorised book written by former opposition lawmaker Yem Ponhearith. The book “Vision to National Reconciliation and Social Arrangement” was written in Khmer by Mr Ponhearith and published without permission from the Culture Ministry, officials said.
PPP | Khmer Times | Fresh News | NEC
-
Phnom Penh
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
Australian filmmaker James Ricketson was sentenced to six years in prison for espionage and collecting information considered prejudicial to the national defence, for flying a drone above a political rally organized by the now-dissolved opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP). He had been held in pretrial detention for more than a year since his arrest on 3 June 2017. He was given royal pardon on 24 September 2018.
VOA | Khmer Times | PPP | PPP | Khmer Times | NEC
-
Phnom Penh
Land rights and forced evictions
Boeung Kak Lake activist Tep Vanny and five other members of the community were found guilty of making a “death threat” against a former community member, despite this community member having dropped the complaint. They were each given six-month suspended sentences. Another charge of “public insult” was dropped by Phnom Penh Municipal Court.
Khmer Times | Fresh News | PPP | Khmer Times | VOA KH
-
Phnom Penh
Torture, arrests and illegal detentions
Supreme Court upheld the Appeal Court decision to reject bail for Kem Sokha. He was eventually released on bail and put under house arrest in September 2018.
Fresh News ENG | VOA | Khmer Times | VOA | AI Jazeera | Thmey Thmey | PPP
-
Phnom Penh
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
Activists involved in the Borei Keila and former Boeung Kak communities claimed this morning that the authorities prevented them not to meet Prime Minister Hun Sen for handling of their land.
PPP | VOA | Fresh News ENG | Thmey Thmey | Fresh News ENG | Fresh News | VOA | PPP | Freh News ENG
-
Koh Kong
Land rights and forced evictions
The Koh Kong provincial court sentenced citizen Heng Sok, a community representative to families locked in a land dispute, to jail after a complaint was filed by representatives of tycoon Ly Yong Phat.
LICADHA | PPP | Fresh News ENG | NEC
-
Kampong Speu
Land rights and forced evictions
A group of conservation NGOs and officials from the Ministry of Environment were prevented from inspecting 51 hectares of land in Kampong Speu province’s Phnom O’ral Wildlife Sanctuary that is said to have been illegally grabbed.
VOD | Khmer Times | PPP
-
Phnom Penh
Land rights and forced evictions
On this date, Tep Vanny had spent two years behind bars on politically motivated charges aimed to silence her. She was arrested on 15 August 2016 and charged following her participation in a peaceful protest, supporting five jailed human rights defenders.
-
Kampot
Restrictions on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association
The National Election Committee overturned the Kampot Electoral Commission decision, to convict five former opposition members, Kov Yitlay, Suong Saran, So Seng, Pen Chhem and Morm Sothy for obstructing the election process. They had been fined $2,500 each for their involvement in the “clean finger campaign”, calling for people to boycott the 29 July 2018 national elections in Kampot province.