Statement at the UN Human Rights Council's 60th Session
Interactive Dialogue with the UN Special Rapporteur on Cambodia
Delivered by: Olimjon Bakhtaliev
Mr. President,
CIVICUS welcomes the Special Rapporteur’s report on the human rights situation in Cambodia. We are deeply concerned about the persistent use of judicial harassment and intimidation to silence activists, journalists and the opposition.
In July 2024, five members of environmental group Mother Nature Cambodia were convicted and sentenced to imprisonment between six to eight years for their legitimate human rights work. Their requests for bail have been consistently denied, and they have been transferred to prisons far from their families, hindering family contact, medical care, and legal support.
Peaceful protests continue to be systematically supressed and civil society have been silenced due to the Law on Associations and NGOs.
CIVICUS also remain concerned about transnational repression against Cambodian activists and dissidents in exile including arrests, assaults, enforced disappearances and unlawful killings with impunity. Amendments to the Citizenship Law undermines the fundamental right to nationality and risks leaving activists and opposition politicians stateless.
We call for repeal or review of provisions of the Cambodian Criminal Code that criminalise ‘incitement’ (Articles 494 and 495), ‘insulting the King’ (Article 437) and ‘plotting’ (Article 453), which are routinely misused to punish activists.
Mr. President, the people of Cambodia deserve an environment where civic freedoms are respected, and those who defend rights and the environment are celebrated, not imprisoned. We call on the member states to press for their immediate protection and release.
Thank you!
