Seventeen NGOs involved in child protection yesterday released a joint statement expressing their “outrage” over the impending release of former Enfants du Cambodge director Philippe Broaly, who was convicted last month of sexually abusing five boys over a period of several years.
The Preah Sihanouk Provincial Court sentenced the Frenchman to 14 months in prison, but suspended five and a half months.
He is due to be released at the end of June, but will not be deported. Yesterday’s statement—from NGOs including Action Pour Les Enfants, Chab Dai and Licadho—have filed a petition to the prosecutor in the case asking that he appeal the court’s verdict as “a last resort to stop Broaly from being able to sexually abuse more Cambodian children.”
Ros Saram, a deputy prosecutor at the Preah Sihanouk court who was in charge of the case, said he had not seen the statement but defended the sentencing, saying the “court’s judgment was suitable.”
Mr. Saram said that because the court had relied entirely on the testimony of Mr. Broaly’s victims, rather than also having outside witnesses, it would have been difficult to hand down a longer sentence.
