Politics

The mass treason trial of senior leaders of the banned Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) is continuing amid claims the courts were working off a “presumption of guilt” as the government takes aim at activists abroad for a “distortion of the facts.”

Cambodia's foreign ministry has lashed out at an Australian-Khmer lawyer and political activist after he claimed Cambodian rice exports to Australia were a violation of human rights.

Phnom Penh has maintained what has been described as a “cozy relationship" with Beijing for many years, but it was only last year that the controversy over the Ream Naval Base on the Gulf of Thailand intensified when reports circulated that China was seeking a thirty-year lease of the base.

Former Cambodian Prime Minister Prince Norodom Ranariddh is expected to once again foray into politics after he returns from medical treatment in France.

Airlines refuse to let CNRP members board flights to face mass treason and incitement trial.

The attempt nonetheless succeeded in drawing international attention to the repression inside the country.

National Rescue Party vice-president Mu Sochua said she was stopped from boarding her flight from Los Angeles because she didn’t have a Cambodian visa.

An outspoken union leader went on trial in Cambodia on Friday for alleged incitement, the latest in a series of court cases activists say are aimed at cracking down on opposition voices.

The trial of a Cambodian labor union leader charged with inciting social unrest opened in Phnom Penh on Friday, part of a large-scale legal offensive by the government against its critics.

Ten opposition activists, including a Cambodian-American lawyer, are facing treason and other charges in a trial in Cambodia’s capital widely criticized by rights advocates.

A court in Cambodia convened on Thursday (Jan 14) for the treason trial of scores of opposition figures, one of a series of cases seen by activists as moves by the ruling party to sideline threats to its political monopoly.

Some senior opposition members have vowed to return from exile to attend.

Critics claim the prime minister has exploited the pandemic to crack down on opponents.

An activist said she was being persecuted for her political opinions as Cambodia tries dozens of opposition members. Human rights groups raised concerns over the fairness of such a trial.

Khmer Bible editor Theary Seng says she and others are being persecuted for their adherence to democracy.

The charges are linked to former CNRP president Sam Rainsy’s unsuccessful attempt to return to the country in 2019.

It is unclear if Cambodia’s apparent criticism of Chinese coronavirus vaccines is meant to refute the country’s reputation as China’s proxy. If that is the case, then Cambodia needs to do far more to introduce balance to its foreign policy.

After living in exile for more than three years, Mu Sochua is making a daring bid to return to her homeland, Cambodia.

The Cambodian government says it will not grant travel documents to exiles hoping to return to stand trial.

It might behoove opposition figure Sam Rainsy to be thankful Cambodia's monarch doesn't interfere in politics.