Statements
Statement | LICADHO Condemns the Violent Crackdown of a Peaceful March by Lor Peang Villagers
12 August 2014
LICADHO condemns the violent dispersal of more than 50 villagers from Lor Peang community who had begun their 60km-long peaceful march from Kampong Chhnang province to Phnom Penh, calling for a resolution to their long-standing land dispute. Amid the violent dispersal, three villagers – including the husband of the main Lor Peang community representative Um Sophy – were arrested and sent to the provincial court.
Statement | Abuse of the Court to Suit Political Agenda Must Cease and Charges against CNRP Members Should be Dropped
7 August 2014
We, the undersigned organizations, condemn the flagrant abuse of the Cambodian legal system and the trumped up charges that have been used to manipulate the outcome of political negotiations between the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) and the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), following the latest arrests of three CNRP youth members, and urges all charges to be dropped.
Statement | Seven Opposition MPs Detained Amid Ongoing Restrictions on Peaceful Assembly
18 July 2014
The Cambodian government must release all seven Members of Parliament (MPs) and one official of Cambodia’s main opposition party, the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), and immediately lift the ban on public gatherings of more than 10 people, FIDH and its member organizations the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC) and the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO) said today.
Statement | Civil Society Groups Condemn Baseless Charges and Call for an End to Violence and Repression
17 July 2014
We the undersigned civil society groups condemn the unfounded charges against seven Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) MPs-elect and one CNRP grassroots leader. We call for their immediate and unconditional release and for all charges to be dropped.
All eight were arrested in connection with the violence of July 15 in Freedom Park and charged under Cambodia’s Criminal Code articles 28 and 218 (instigating aggravated, intentional violence), 495 (inciting others to commit a felony) and 459 (leading an insurrectional movement). The latter charge carries a sentence of up to 30 years’ imprisonment.
Statement | LICADHO Condemns this Morning’s Violence at Phnom Penh's Freedom Park
15 July 2014
LICADHO condemns this morning’s violence by protesters and authorities at a gathering at Phnom Penh’s Freedom Park. The event which was organized by the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) descended very quickly into violence following interference by authorities and resulted in a number of serious injuries, the worst of which were suffered by district security guards who had been mobilized to prevent the event from taking place.
Statement | LICADHO Report: Torture & Ill-Treatment, Testimony from Inside Cambodia's Police Stations and Prisons
26 June 2014
On June 26, International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, LICADHO releases new testimony and analysis of torture and ill-treatment in Cambodia’s police stations and prisons, including the abuse of females and juveniles and those experiencing mental health problems.
Statement | Unconstitutional Draft Laws on the Judiciary should be Rejected
15 June 2014
On the anniversary of Cambodia’s Constitutional Council, LICADHO urges the Council to reject the three new laws affecting the judiciary in their current form. The Cambodian Constitution mandates that “Judicial power shall be an independent power,” and necessary implementing legislation has long been called for to strengthen the rule of law. However, passage of these laws in their current form will codify and indefinitely prolong the lack of independence currently undermining the Cambodian justice system.
Statement | On World Day Against Child Labour, LICADHO Urges Authorities To End Root Causes of Child Labour
11 June 2014
LICADHO will mark World Day Against Child Labour 2014 by organizing community events in two locations: Sangkat Dang Tung, Koh Kong; and Stung Haov district, Preah Sihanouk. The aim of these events is to raise awareness of child labour in various sectors and to encourage communities to raise critical questions, and offer suggestions to local authorities on how to end child labour. World Day Against Child Labour officially falls on June 12.
Statement | Phnom Penh Court orders Conviction with Suspended Sentences for 25 Workers and Activists
30 May 2014
We the undersigned civil society groups welcome the decision this morning of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court to suspend the sentences of the 23 men and two minors arrested on November 12 2013 and January 2 and 3 2014, thereby releasing the remaining 22 detainees. However, we express our extreme disappointment at the convictions of all 25 and the heavy fines imposed on some of them, following what was to all independent observers a deeply flawed trial process.
Statement | On International Children’s Day, LICADHO calls for Improved Protection of Children in Prison
30 May 2014
LICADHO will mark International Children’s Day 2014 by distributing food and materials to juvenile prisoners, small children living with their incarcerated mothers in prison and pregnant women in eight of Cambodia’s prisons . International Children’s Day officially falls on June 1.
Statement | 2014 Brings a New Wave of Cambodian Land Conflicts
1 April 2014
The number of people affected by state-involved land conflicts in Cambodia since 2000 passed the half-million mark in March, according to data collected by LICADHO.
To mark this somber milestone, LICADHO has published a new video and map which together illustrate the wide distribution of conflicts and the rapid growth of land grabbing as an issue over the past 13 years. The first few months of 2014 have seen a renewed wave of violent land grabbing that has affected 2,246 families across the provinces monitored by LICADHO.
Statement | Public Letter Urging an Immediate Investigation into the Disappearance of Khem Sophath
23 March 2014
We, the undersigned civil society groups, express our deep concern over the disappearance of Khem Sophath, a 16-year-old boy missing since the violent crackdown by Cambodian security forces against striking garment workers on 3 January 2014 near the Canadia Industrial area on Veng Sreng road, Phnom Penh. We call on the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) to take all appropriate measures to immediately, thoroughly and impartially investigate Khem Sophath’s disappearance and inform his family of his fate or whereabouts.
Statement | LICADHO Calls for More Rehabilitation Opportunities for Female Prisoners
8 March 2014
On International Women’s Day, LICADHO calls on prison authorities to offer female prisoners, particularly female juvenile prisoners, a broader range of rehabilitation opportunities to build confidence and provide them with appropriate skills to find suitable employment once released.
Statement | Latest Crackdown on Peaceful Dissent Further Perpetuates Impunity and Fuels Tensions
28 January 2014
The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), a Bangkok-based regional human rights NGO representing 47 member organisations from 16 countries across Asia, registered its strongest condemnation of the Cambodian government’s violent suppression of demonstrators, rights observers and media personnel at a mass rally held in Phnom Penh on 26 January 2014 which left at least 8 people injured.
Statement | Universal Periodic Review: Address Cambodia’s Human Rights Crisis
26 January 2014
Ahead of the UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR) hearing for Cambodia on 28 January 2014, the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO) and Amnesty International call on UN member states to address the country’s current human rights crisis.
Statement | Cambodia: Harassment, Arrest, and Detention of Human Rights Defenders Continue
22 January 2014
FIDH and the OMCT, within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC), the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO), and the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) express their concern over the Cambodian authorities’ ongoing harassment, arbitrary arrest, and detention of human rights defenders.
Statement | Cambodian Authorities must Reveal Whereabouts of Detainees Immediately
6 January 2014
Family members, lawyers and independent medical professionals have been denied information about the location of detention of 23 people arrested during recent brutal crackdowns in Phnom Penh. Those arrested include at least three human rights defenders, Vorn Pao, Theng Soveoun and Chan Putisak.
Statement | Peaceful Protesters Expelled from Freedom Park as Military Mobilization Escalates
4 January 2014
This morning state forces put a violent end to CNRP supporters’ long-standing occupation of Freedom Park, also known as Democracy Plaza, an area in central Phnom Penh specifically designated for protest.
This action follows two days of violence, which included the shooting yesterday at the Canadia industrial zone which left at least four civilians dead and dozens wounded.
Statement | Civilians killed and injured by security forces amid civil unrest in Phnom Penh
3 January 2014
LICADHO has confirmed that at least four civilians were shot dead and 21 injured in the worst state violence against civilians to hit Cambodia in fifteen years.
Amid risks of growing civil unrest in Phnom Penh in the aftermath of the shootings, the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO) and the Community Legal Education Centre (CLEC) call on security forces and protestors to exercise urgent restraint on both sides to avoid any further bloodshed.
Statement | Military Special Command Unit Deployed to Crackdown on Striking Workers
2 January 2014
The Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO) and the Community Legal Education Centre (CLEC) are outraged by today’s violent crackdown on striking workers by a military special command unit and the consequent violent arrest of union leaders, garment workers and monks.
