Chea Mony, Cambodia

In January, the killing of the trade union leader, Chea Vichea, stirred wide-spread public condemnation after the government initially failed to accept that the murder had been politically motivated. A few days after the killing, the authorities published a description of suspects, disregarding information received from eyewitnesses. Arrests followed, but human rights groups claimed that the real perpetrators were not targeted. Investigations by human rights groups have indicated that the suspects were subjected to torture and forced to confess to the crime. Relatives and villagers who claim the suspects’ innocence have been threatened and forced into hiding. To date, the government has failed to prove the guilt of the suspects, and killings and attacks against trade union leaders continues.

Poor working conditions, low wages and benefits, unsecured tenure for work and redundancies, only serve to intensify the struggle of trade unions. Coupled with food shortages, drought, and gasoline prices; people have resorted to protests and demonstrations to call the government to action. However, since the riots against Thai embassy and businesses in January 2003, the authorities have imposed strict restrictions on the Cambodian people’s right to peaceful demonstration. The government has denied almost all requests and it has resorted to violence to stop those who defied the “no permit, no demonstration” policy. Many civilians have been reported injured following violent dispersals and forced arrests.

Civil and political rights have been persistently violated by law enforcement officers who abuse their authority. Many cases have been reported of police, military police and soldiers continuing to use torture, physical violence and threats against criminal suspects to force them to admit to crimes which they have not committed. Arrests without warrant, ill-treatment and detentions exceeding the legally allowed duration are common. In many of these cases, corrupt officers demand money from arrested persons in exchange for their release or for offering not to bring their case to court. Conversely, in other instances, police pay victims not to pursue their complaints in court.

Government bodies responsible for protecting and promoting human rights remain ineffective. The court system remains weak. The lack of independence, incompetent judges, and corruption, plus weak law enforcement and impunity, ensures that justice remains entirely denied, or at best, delayed. Laws which can be used against rights offenders have many loopholes and inconsistencies. Similarly, some provisions which protect defendant’s rights are not applied. Desperate people who have lost faith in law enforcement and the justice system have resorted to mob killings and violence against those who are caught red-handed committing criminal acts. In some cases, police officers are almost helpless to prevent the people from doing so.

Despite signing international human rights laws, the government has still generally failed to respect and protect the civil and political rights of the Cambodian people, and in particular, of human rights defenders who openly criticize. Incidents of violations, such as summary killings, physical assaults, unlawful arrests and detentions, torture and physical abuse of arrested persons, neglect of the rights of defendants, intimidation, unlawful destruction of properties, violent evictions and dispersals of demonstrators, continue to occur. Since the elections in 1993, there have been numerous incidents of human rights violations, especially in the run-up to local and national elections.

In 2003, Monk Sam Bunthorun, President of the Country Buddhist Meditation Center of Oudong and Om Rathsady, Senior Advisor with FUNCINPEC were both shot. In 2004, Lay Kong, Meas Ret and Nget Sokly, together with two other Sam Rainsy Party members, were killed. Similarly, Ros Sovannareth, trade union leader, and Prak Choeun, FUNCINPEC activist, were shot. In addition, Sam Srey Mom, Vice-president of FTUWKC, and other members and representatives were threatened. At several factories throughout the country, trade union leaders were assaulted and/or threatened.

Human rights groups have repeatedly produced recommendations to improve the situation of human rights in Cambodia. Apparently, these recommendations fall on deaf ears. Since 2004, FTUWKC has filed 60 complaints of serious violations by factory owners of labour laws and of various ILO conventions but no government action has been taken. Police continue to clash violently with peaceful strikes.