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Phnom Penh, Cambodia – A Cambodian court on Wednesday has launched a treason case against opposition leader Kem Sokha after a nearly two-year delay in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kem Sokha was a former outlawed leader of the Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP). Arrested in 2017 and charged with treason, Cambodia One year before the 2018 national elections.
Sokha, 68, was accused of trying to overthrow the government with the help of the United States. The lawsuit led to the forced dissolution of the CNRP, the government’s main electoral threat to the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP).
The CPP is headed by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and has been in power for more than three decades.
The international community and many in the country have condemned the case against Soka, saying it was “politically motivated”.
“He didn’t have to be jailed or charged,” said Ou Vira, president of the Future Forum, a think-tank dedicated to public policy issues.
Despite widespread criticism, the government has made progress.
Chin Malin, a spokesman for the Cambodian Ministry of Justice and the Government’s Human Rights Commission (CHRC), said there was enough evidence to move the case forward.
“In the case of Kem Sokha, the court has correctly complied with its judicial authority by complying with the law,” he said.
The trial of Sokha’s betrayal began in January 2020, when the first cases of coronavirus were postponed in March.
“We are now in control of COVID-19 so that we can proceed with the trial,” Y Rin Phnom Phenom court spokesman told Al Jazeera.
Sokha’s defense team says they are “hopeful” and ready to defend the veteran politician in court.
“We, our partner’s attorneys and our client are ready to go to trial,” Sokha’s defense attorney Chan Chen said. “It simply came to our notice then [to win]. Like I said before, my client didn’t do anything wrong. “
While defense attorneys are positive about winning the case, many are more skeptical. Critics have argued that the procedure is politically motivated.
“It simply came to our notice then. The courts have almost acquitted Cambodia’s political disputes, “said Vira, a former president of the Sokha-based Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR).
“I expect more delays. The best case scenario is hardly a conviction and then a suspended sentence. However, Kem Sokha will not automatically be politically rehabilitated. That will require more political negotiation and commitment. “
Doubts of fair trial
Following the 2017 municipal elections, the CNRP a strong performance, hundreds of police searched Sokha’s house.
Sokha was arrested for treason, a 30-year prison sentence. The charge was based on a video in which Sokha said he had received advice from the US to build an opposition movement.
Critics and the international community have largely described the case as false. The real reason for Sokha’s arrest is that the CNRP has become too popular.
“I see no legal justification for his arrest. The government wanted to make sure that the main opposition party (CNRP) could not compete effectively in future elections and that was the main reason for its arrest, “said Sorpong Peou, a professor in the Department of Politics and Public Administration at Ryerson University.
“The Cambodian court remains highly politicized and is unlikely to give him a fair trial. Cambodia’s policy remains highly volatile as it is about survival policy.
“The current regime is always confronting what I call a crisis of legitimacy, so it prefers to focus on coercive ways to stay in power,” he said.
The CNRP opposition has posed a growing threat to Prime Minister Hun Sen’s long-term rule [File: Samrang Pring/Reuters]The Cambodian judiciary is one of the worst in the world, according to the World Justice Project (WJP).
In an October report, which ranked the country based on factors such as protection of fundamental rights, civil justice, law enforcement and non-corruption, Cambodia ranked second – 138 out of 139 countries – above Venezuela.
The U.S. has continued to urge Cambodian authorities to “stop politically motivated trials” against political opposition and dissidents, journalists, workers and environmental activists like Sokha, US Embassy spokesman Chad Roedemeier Phnom Penh said.
“Promoting democracy and respect for human rights is key in Cambodia in the United States and around the world,” he added.
The CPP has long dominated the country’s politics and is closely linked to all states and military institutions. Its central committee comprises chief judges, military generals and bureaucrats.
He faced the toughest election challenge in 2013 when he confronted the CNRP, which was created by a merger of the Sokha Human Rights Party and the same party led by long-time opposition figures Sam Rainsy.
The CNRP won 44 percent of the national vote at the time, and four years later won nearly half of the vote in local elections.
In the run-up to the general election, the Hun Sen government has been strongly opposed to the opposition and other critical voices, including civil society and the independent media.
Sokha was under arrest, the Cambodia Daily newspaper, an English newspaper owned by an American family and known for its in-depth journalism. forced to close After filing with a large tax bill of more than $ 6 million. Another independent newspaper, The Phnom Penh Post, was forced to sell to a government-affiliated businessman after he was also given a large tax bill.
Sam Rainsy, a longtime prominent leader and political partner of Sokha’s CNRP, fled the country on several occasions, accusing him and his colleagues.
In October 2021, he and his group, including Mu Sochua, were accused of another major opposition politician of “conspiracy to betray and stir up social security chaos” under Cambodian criminal law, in addition to several existing charges. Both are in exile.
“The whole trial is a farce, based on fabricated and political accusations that don’t look like reality. The reason for the trial is that Prime Minister Hun Sen wanted an excuse to disband the opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP), which was threatening his power with the strong support of the Cambodian people, “said Phil Robertson, Asia’s Deputy Director of Human Rights Watch. .
“Sokha’s trial is a major symbol of Hun Sen’s cleansing of democracy, based on lies, threats, arbitrary arrests and malicious and unscrupulous courts that answer only to the ruling party.”
Political treatment
The wave of repression in Hun Sen’s 36-year rule has usually calmed down after political destinations reached agreements.
They gave one to Sam Rainsy royal pardon this allowed him to return to the country from a previous exile and run in the 2013 elections.
Other CNRP leaders have been allowed to re-enter politics after asking the government for so-called “rehabilitation”.
Mu Sochu hopes Kem Sokha will be found guilty and the cycle will continue.
“It will not be a fair trial; all charges are trumped. Keeping Hun Sen in power is a complete political maneuver, “he said.
“Kem Sokha will be found guilty and forgiven by the king. There has never been any doubt that Hun Sen wants to calm political tensions when Cambodia is led by ASEAN. “
Cambodia is the president of this year’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and Hun Senen. courting generals The takeover of Myanmar a year ago has sparked controversy in an organization already known for its “non-intervention” policy.
“It simply came to our notice then. I don’t see the impact of Cambodia’s role as host in ASEAN in 2022, “said political analyst Sorpong Peou. “Non-interference is one of the rules of ASEAN. Nothing can be done about what happened in Myanmar.”
Sokha was released in late 2019 under house arrest. He has met several ambassadors and has since traveled around the country, but the court has complied with a ban on political activities.
Robertson, of Human Rights Watch, believes that the case against Sokha is designed to last “as long as possible” in order to keep him out of politics and “always looking over his shoulder” for fear of returning to prison.
Kem Sokha has been away from politics since the postponement of his trial, but has had several meetings with diplomats, including French Ambassador to Cambodia Eva Nguyen Binh. [File: Tang Chhin Sothy/AFP]However, as a new round of local and national elections approaches, the trial will be closely watched.
“We urge all parties involved to defend their right to a fair trial and to ensure that the presumption of innocence, until proven innocent, is respected and protected,” said Pradeep Wagle, a representative. Cambodian High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Defendants “must be protected by certain basic human rights, including the right to assembly, assembly and freedom of expression enshrined in the international human rights law voluntarily adopted by Cambodia prior to the arrests,” he added.
“We especially hope that these three rights will be reaffirmed by the Cambodian authorities before the commons and the national elections.”
Sokha was unable to receive comments, while his daughter, Monovithya Kem, did not comment.
“After the trial, I will,” Monovithya said.
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