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Associated Press
Sophen Cheang and David Rising
Posted on: November 28, 2024 • 2 minute read
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Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet attends the East Asia Summit at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, September 7, 2023. Photo credit: Yasuyoshi Chiba /Associated Press
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PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – Six Cambodian activists accused of treason for posting comments critical of their country’s government on Facebook have been expelled from Thailand to await trial, a pro-democracy group said Thursday.
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The Khmer Movement for Democracy, formed by exiled opposition leaders, criticized the decision on November 24 to extradite the four women and two men, saying they suffered “inhumane and degrading treatment” in Cambodia’s overcrowded prison system. He said he would receive it.
Thailand and Cambodia have come under fire from human rights groups for effectively agreeing to extradite political dissidents they want.
Activists such as Pen Chan Sangkream, Hong An, Mean Chanthon, Yin Chanthou, Soeung Khunthea and Vorn Chanratana are linked to the opposition Cambodia National Salvation Party, which was disbanded ahead of the 2018 general elections as part of a crackdown on the opposition.
The Cambodian People’s Party later won all seats in the National Assembly in an election that restored authoritarian leader Hun Sen to power.
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Hun Sen ruled Cambodia for nearly four decades until 2023, when he stepped down to make way for his son Hun Mane, who was elected prime minister later that year in elections internationally criticized as neither free nor fair.
Am Sam Ath, operations director of local human rights group Licadho, said six activists were charged with treason by the Phnom Penh provincial court in August after they posted critical statements accusing the Cambodian government of interfering with decades-old regional development agreements with neighboring countries. said. He confirmed that six people had been deported by the Thai government.
The Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Development Triangle (CLV-DTA) Agreement was a development initiative to promote trade and migration cooperation in the four northeastern provinces of Cambodia and the border areas of Laos and Vietnam. It was signed in 1999 and formalized in 2004.
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Critics have focused on land concessions, accusing the agreement of privileging foreign interests and ceding land and sovereignty, particularly to Vietnam, a highly sensitive issue because of Cambodia’s historical hostility toward its eastern neighbor.
Last August, about 100 people were arrested in Cambodia while protesting the agreement.
Hun Mane defended the crackdown, saying authorities must protect social order and safety for all Cambodians, and accused protesters of trying to overthrow his government.
His government then withdrew from CLV-DTA in September, but charges against those who protested remain.
Cambodian prison spokesman Kheang Sonadin said all six activists were assigned to various prisons on November 25.
If found guilty, they could face up to 10 years in prison.
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