Cambodia is under increasing pressure from the United States, other Western countries and human rights groups over the arrest of investigative journalist Mech Dara, who had exposed human trafficking, online scamming, environmental destruction and corruption.
Mech Dara, who had been honored by the U.S. for his work, was arrested on September 30 and charged the next day by the municipal court in the capital Phnom Penh with “incitement to cause serious social unrest” over online posts about a quarry excavation at one of the most sacred sites in Cambodia. He faces up to two years in jail.
The arrest comes at a time when ties have been strained between the U.S. and Cambodia over U.S. Treasury Department sanctions on a senator, tycoon and top level adviser to Prime Minister Hun Manet’s administration for alleged involvement in human trafficking and scam centers of the type exposed by Dara.
