The sentencing of opposition leader Sam Rainsy to 18 months in jail by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Thursday continues the erosion of democracy in Cambodia, the US State Department said in a statement.
Amnesty International said the conviction in absentia of Sam Rainsy for defaming Prime Minister Hun Sen and National Assembly Prince Norodom Ranariddh demonstrated the Cambodian court’s lack of “independence, impartiality and credibility.”
“The United States remains concerned about the continuing deterioration of democratic principles such as free speech and expression in Cambodia,” State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said in a statement received Friday.
“The conviction in absentia [Thursday] of opposition leader Sam Rainsy on defamation charges by a Phnom Penh court is further evidence of this unfortunate trend.”
Amnesty International said the ruling took place against a backdrop of government critics being imprisoned for expressing their opinions.
“The guilty verdict of Sam Rainsy is another setback for Cambodia, where two government critics were jailed in October 2005 for voicing peaceful dissent. Radio journalist Mam Sonando and union leader Rong Chhun remain in pre-trial detention and are also considered prisoners of conscience,” Amnesty said in a statement.
Prince Ranariddh told reporters on Friday that he could not understand why Sam Rainsy was being portrayed as a victim of the court.
“I am a victim but they forget that I, the president of the National Assembly, was defamed both locally and overseas,” the prince said. “People never see me as a victim, just those who they consider the representative of democracy. Free expression has its limits,” the Prince added.
Asked to comment on the impartiality of a court that also sentenced him to 35 years in prison following the 1997 factional fighting, Prince Ranariddh said, “that’s a different story.”
“Sam Rainsy also filed lawsuits with such a non-independent court many times. So if he thinks that the court is not independent, he should stop filing lawsuits and go file them at another court,” the prince said.
Heng Samrin, CPP honorary president and National Assembly vice president, said critics of the verdict were guilty of double standards.
“No. Democracy was not set back. It was democracy and that’s why the court sentenced [Sam Rainsy],” Heng Samrin said.
“Any criticism is not reasonable because other countries also do the same,” he said, adding “This sentence does not undermine democracy but it showed the reality that he committed an offense.”
