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Opposition Party Members Claim Persecution by Kandal Court


With local elections to be held later this year, opposition officials say they are being unduly persecuted in cases minor and major.
With local elections to be held later this year, opposition officials say they are being unduly persecuted in cases minor and major.

Kandal provincial court summoned two opposition party supporters for questioning over the destruction of property Tuesday in a dispute with another local man.

The two men, who are Sam Rainsy Party commune officials, were questioned over the destruction of six land markers they say were put in place illegally on public land.

Nai Nep, who is 70 and a commune chief, said he had refused a bribe by villager Sem Khin, who had put fencing up around public land in Pha Av commune, Bantheay district, Kampong Cham province. When Nai Nep took down the fencing, he was accused of destruction of property.

Cambodian courts face continuous criticism for corruption and bias. With local elections to be held later this year, opposition officials say they are being unduly persecuted in cases minor and major.

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy remains in exile, facing a lengthy prison sentence for uprooting markers near the Vietnamese border and publicizing a map the government says is fraudulent. He has maintained that his cases were politically motivated.

Nai Nep and Thim Thos, a 49-year-old commune official for the party, were questioned for two hours on Tuesday. They were released and asked to return with witnesses for another hearing, court officials said.

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