More than nine months after the former governor of Bavet town allegedly shot three bystanders during a labor strike, the authorities have failed to arrest or bring him to court.
After the Jan. 22, 2004, shooting of Chea Vichea, two suspects, Born Samnang and Sok Samoeun, were taken into custody, but they soon became known as the “plastic,” or false, killers.
In a brief meeting with Prime Minister Hun Sen last week, US President Barack Obama focused on concerns over Cambodia’s sliding rights record and decreased freedoms.
Mam Sonando was arrested in July, at which time another alleged secessionist, Bun Ratha, fled.
Head of the Cambodia Indigenous Youth Association said the slur should not go unpunished, calling the insult “cruel.”
That included US concern for the imprisonment of Mam Sonando, owner of Beehive Radio, one of the few independent broadcasters in the country.
Cambodian officials have said numerous reports of human rights abuses ahead of Obama’s visit were meant to discredit the government.
A government spokesman dismissed the letter, saying it did not reflect the true situation in Cambodia.
This has led to increased reports of rights abuses in host countries, particularly Malaysia, where young Cambodian are sent to work as maids.
The two women were arrested in early September and accused of inciting violence and criminal activity among demonstrators.
The European Union on Friday called on Cambodia to immediately release jailed Beehive Radio owner Mam Sonando, while condemning political court actions and ongoing rightrs abuses.
Canadian journalist Olesia Plokhii was one of two journalists from the Cambodia Daily who went with environmentalist Chut Wutty to the remote jungle mountains of Koh Kong province in April.
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