CYN Prepared Young human rights defender training at Kompot,
Wednesday February 28th, 2018
Cambodian Youth Network Association organized a training course on young human rights defenders with a total of 19 participants from youth academies human rights and environmental activists including five women. The seminar was developed in order to share knowledge which related to human rights law to young people and activists who are working on this sector of the history of establishment of human rights advocacy community mobilization and let participants[…]
CSOs Call for Rejection of Draft Amendments to Constitution and Criminal Code
Wednesday February 21st, 2018
February 21, 2018 – We, the undersigned organizations and communities, express our grave concern regarding the Royal Government of Cambodia’s (RGC) proposed amendments to the Constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia, as well as the proposed introduction of a lèse-majesté offense to Cambodia’s Criminal Code. These proposed amendments constitute a severe threat to human rights and fundamental freedoms, and are clearly designed to further criminalize any individual or entity that[…]
Surveillance up ahead of CNRP verdict
Friday November 17th, 2017
Checkpoints went up on national roads, barricades were dumped in front of the Supreme Court and police paid unannounced visits to civil society organisations and opposition officials as darkness fell yesterday ahead of today’s Supreme Court hearing on the dissolution of the opposition CNRP. The security measures coincided with reports of a sharp uptick in harassment and surveillance of Cambodia National Rescue Party officials in the provinces, party members said[…]
CSOs Call for Immediate Release of Mother Nature Activists
Wednesday November 15th, 2017
November 14, 2017 – We, the undersigned Cambodian and international civil society organisations (CSOs), call for the immediate release of Hun Vannak and Doem Kundy, environmental activists affiliated with the recently de-registered NGO, Mother Nature Cambodia (MNC), who have been wrongfully detained for over two months on spurious charges. We are deeply concerned by the arbitrary nature of their arrest and pre-trial detention, which appears to be an attempt to[…]
Ministry ups scrutiny of NGOs
Tuesday October 10th, 2017
The Interior Ministry has instructed provincial officials to urgently report any instances in which activities are carried out by any NGOs or grassroots associations without prior notification, adding that authorities can stop any planned events if they affect “public order and national security”. The letter, which was dispatched countrywide on October 2, coincides with an intensified government crackdown on nongovernmental organisations. “Associations and NGOs wishing to conduct activities in the[…]
Activists call for info on dama
Thursday September 28th, 2017
A group of environmental activists petitioned the government yesterday to release information about the potential impact of the proposed 2,600-megawatt Sambor dam on the Mekong River in Kratie province, which they say could displace thousands and destroy ecosystems. Speaking after submitting the petition to the Ministry of Environment, Chum Hour, a representative of the youth group Social and Environmental Protection Youth (SEPY), said 20,000 families would be evacuated and 70,000[…]
CSOs call for justice and respect for human rights
Wednesday September 13th, 2017
December 9, 2017 – On the eve of International Human Rights Day (IHRD) we, the undersigned members of Cambodian civil society, call for an end to government attacks on human rights defenders and civil society groups and the lifting of unjustifiable restrictions on fundamental freedoms. Respect for fundamental freedoms is a basic requirement for a functioning civil society. It is also guaranteed by the Cambodian constitution and international law. Civil[…]
Government forms NGO panel seen by critics as way to legitimise CPP crackdowns
Friday September 1st, 2017
The government has officially staffed a newly created “Civil Society Forum” – empowered to influence policy in the sector – with government officials and very few civil society members, prompting observers to suggest the body will only serve to legitimise flawed legislation like the controversial NGO Law and the recent clampdown on independent NGOs. While the forum was created through a sub-decree last year, a directive issued earlier this month – and published[…]
NGOs parse LANGO warning
Friday July 7th, 2017
NGOs huddled yesterday to make sense of a letter from the Interior Ministry asking them to comply with controversial provisions of the Law on Associations and NGOs (LANGO), with some considering requesting further clarification or an extension of a September deadline for compliance. The meeting was organised by the Cooperation Committee for Cambodia (CCC) following the issuance of an Interior Ministry letter calling on NGOs to comply with the law,[…]
Civil Society Calls for Justice for Tep Vanny at Appeal Court
Wednesday June 28th, 2017
July 27, 2017 – We, the undersigned civil society groups, call on the Court of Appeal to overturn the unjust conviction of Ms. Tep Vanny on charges of intentional violence with aggravating circumstances. This was based on her peaceful activism at a 2013 protest, for which she received a draconian sentence of two years and six months’ imprisonment on 23 February 2017. The Court of Appeal will hear Ms. Tep[…]