The Supreme Court on Wednesday denied bail to 10 alleged members of the Khmer National Liberation Front (KNLF), which has been accused of plotting a violent overthrow of the government.
Judge Chan Raingsey said the men could not be set free because their trial at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on charges of plotting to attack the government, which began on July 7, was already in progress.
The decision upholds an identical ruling handed down by the Appeal Court in April and exhausts their avenues to seek bail. Leaving the court Wednesday, the defendants denounced the decision.
“It is very unjust because I did not commit the crime I am charged with. I just wanted to see the protest in front of the Vietnamese Embassy,” said Chhay Vit, referring to a demonstration the KNLF was planning to stage on October 23 to mark the anniversary of the 1991 Paris Peace Agreements.
Several alleged members of the group have already been convicted of “plotting.”
The KNLF is highly critical of the government, but rights groups say it has been unfairly targeted for political reason.
