Cambodia’s leader on Thursday condemned international human rights groups for criticizing the arrest of nearly 100 people for protesting against a decades-old regional development agreement with neighboring countries.
London-based Amnesty International and New York-based Human Rights Watch issued a joint statement of concern last week over what they called the arbitrary arrests since late July of at least 94 people for publicly criticizing the agreement that the Cambodian government signed with neighboring Laos and Vietnam.
“At least 59 of those arrested, which include environmental, human rights and other activists, remain unlawfully detained and charged for peacefully expressing their views, including several children,” said the statement.
