Cambodia’s repressive Covid-19 Law has resulted in serious rights violations against human rights defenders, land rights demonstrators, unionists, and other citizens over the past year due to authorities’ discriminatory application of the law’s overly broad scope and powers, and the imposition of excessive penalties. Authorities can charge individuals under the law effectively at any time, despite decreasing case numbers. The potential misuse of the law to suppress criticism and fundamental freedoms is an ongoing threat, and serves as an example of harms caused by rushed legislation granting new, unfettered powers to the government.

The Covid-19 Law, officially titled the Law on Preventive Measures Against the Spread of Covid-19 and Other Severe and Dangerous Contagious Diseases, was hurriedly passed on 11 March 2021 without consultation with civil society and other stakeholders, and took immediate effect. The law, reinforced by two hastily drafted sub-decrees on health and administrative measures, grants the government extraordinarily broad powers and discretion to significantly interfere with fundamental social, political and economic rights. There are inadequate provisions for independent oversight of authorities’ measures, and a lack of meaningful limits on the duration and scope of oppressive restrictions. Over half the text of the Covid-19 Law is devoted to penalties, including prison sentences of up to 20 years for vaguely phrased violations.

Local and international stakeholders immediately raised concerns regarding the potential for abuse written into the poorly drafted law, noting mandatory and excessive prison sentences and fines for violating administrative measures and other ambiguously-worded offences.

Concerns about the Covid-19 Law were quickly realised when it was immediately used to authorise sweeping restrictions, including repressive lockdowns and the arrests of journalists and other public critics of the government’s Covid-19 response. Employed measures created disproportionate and unnecessary restrictions on the rights to freedom of movement, peaceful assembly, association and expression. The UN Secretary-General’s 2021 report to the UN Human Rights Council stated that at least 729 people were arrested under the Covid-19 Law between mid-April and end of May 2021, and more than 100 were detained, figures the Cambodian government disputes. In later months, as case numbers began to decline, the law was strategically used against land rights demonstrators and labour rights activists, among other human rights defenders.

LICADHO’s legal brief provides a sharp warning of the dangers of codifying sweeping and unchecked government powers during a public health crisis. This brief outlines some of the major concerns regarding the law and reports on instances of how the law was in fact applied between 11 March 2021 and 31 July 2022.

In consideration of reported instances of how the law has been applied to infringe on fundamental human rights, LICADHO calls on the Cambodian authorities to:
▪ Amend Articles, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15 following consultations with local and international stakeholders to ensure that all human rights are respected and protected in the amended law and as the law is applied, and that authorised measures are the least restrictive measures deemed necessary and proportionate
▪ Amend the Sub-Decree on Health Measures for Preventing the Spread of Covid-19 and Other Severe and Dangerous Contagious Diseases to comply with national and international legal standards
▪ Amend the Sub-Decree on Administrative Measures for Preventing the Spread of Covid-19 and Other Severe and Dangerous Contagious Diseases to comply with national and international legal standards
▪ End discriminatory application of existing laws

Read the full briefing paper here.

For more information, please contact:
▪ Am Sam Ath, Operations Director of LICADHO, on Signal at (+855) 10 327 770 (Khmer)
▪ Pilorge Naly, Outreach Director of LICADHO, on Signal at (+855) 12 214 454 (English)

PDF: Download full statement in English - Download full statement in Khmer
MP3: Listen to audio version in Khmer