Senior Adhoc official Ny Chakrya to be charged.

Anchor Moy · Post by **Anchor Moy** » Tue Jul 21, 2015 12:59 am

Don't know why the authorities feel they need heavier laws to control NGOs - they seem to be managing fine at the moment.

A Phnom Penh Municipal Court deputy prosecutor said yesterday that he has decided to charge prominent human rights monitor Ny Chakrya in a case that rights groups have described as a bald-faced attempt to suppress criticism of the Kingdom’s judiciary.

The case stems from two Siem Reap Provincial Court officials – investigating judge Ky Rithy and deputy prosecutor Sok Keo Bandith – who filed a complaint against Chakrya, accusing him of public defamation, acts of slanderous defamation and putting pressure on the court’s jurisdiction after Chakrya conducted two press conferences speaking out on what he characterised as the court’s illegal detention of two villagers involved in a land dispute.
...
A probe into the land dispute led by the Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee also found the two were wrongly imprisoned, and blamed the dispute on “local and provincial maladministration”.

Chakrya’s fellow rights monitor Am Sam Ath, technical supervisor at Licadho, yesterday said Chakrya had been within his rights in criticising the conduct of the court.

“If the court is still working against him, it shows clearly the risks and the dangers of NGO officials that [make] demands of law enforcement, and that respect for democracy in this country is being threatened gradually,” he said.

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/p ... ny-chakrya

vladimir · Post by **vladimir** » Tue Jul 21, 2015 8:08 am

It's an interesting situation, because as everyone knows, many NGOs are only cash-cows, and there is no love lost if the government cracks down/eliminates these.

There are also many people who think that foreigners should not get involved in local politics.

I'm sure some of the dodgy ones are more concerned about ensuring their income than commenting on politics, but are nevertheless involved in protesting this law because they want NGOs to be sacred cows.

Anchor Moy · Post by **Anchor Moy** » Tue Jul 21, 2015 10:16 am

vladimir wrote:It's an interesting situation, because as everyone knows, many NGOs are only cash-cows, and there is no love lost if the government cracks down/eliminates these.

It seems that the new laws will heavily impact small and local NGOs.
The defamation laws are already draconian. As we see in this case, they can be used effectly to shut down any discussion that doesn't not please the powers that be. Criticism = defamation.

Anchor Moy wrote:.
The case stems from two Siem Reap Provincial Court officials – investigating judge Ky Rithy and deputy prosecutor Sok Keo Bandith – who filed a complaint against Chakrya, accusing him of public defamation, acts of slanderous defamation and putting pressure on the court’s jurisdiction...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/p ... ny-chakrya

[/quote]

Very ironic for the judiciary to be charging Ny Chakrya with "putting pressure on the court's jurisdiction", while everyone knows that Cambodian justice is totally independent, transparent and not at all under the influence by those on in power.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-30324424

Anti-corruption monitor Transparency International reported in 2013 that Cambodia's judiciary "was perceived to be the most corrupt institution out of 12 public institutions reviewed".