Statement at the 54th Session of the UN Human Rights Council
Interactive Dialogue with UN Special Rapporteur on Cambodia
Delivered by Sigrid Lipott, CIVICUS
Thank you, Mrs. Vice President,
CIVICUS welcomes this new report by the UN Special Rapporteur and express our grave concern that there has been no tangible progress in meeting the benchmarks on civic space presented to the Council in October 2022 by the Special Rapporteur. Instead, the assault on civic and political space in the country escalated ahead of the July elections.
The benchmark to halt the use of draconian laws and criminalisation of human rights defenders was completely ignored as land, environmental and trade union activists were targeted. In May, union leader Chhim Sithar was convicted for ‘incitement’ with eight other union members for a strike action. Critical civil society groups have faced recurring threats of dissolution under the restrictive Law on Associations and NGOs (LANGO) while independent media outlets were forced to shut down or have had their licences revoked.
Despite the benchmark to end mass trials of political opposition and ensure a free and fair elections, scores of opposition politicians were convicted on trumped up charges while others were harassed and vilified ahead of the elections. The sole viable opposition party, the Candlelight Party, was barred from participating in the elections. In addition, the election law was amended, prohibiting those who refused to vote from running as candidates in future ballots.
In light of these violations, the silence from many governments, especially in ASEAN has been deafening. We urge the international community to renew the mandate of the Special Rapporteur and ensure enhanced monitoring and reporting on the progress of the benchmarks presented by the Special Rapporteur. States should also call for the release of all detained activists and do more to support civil society.
We thank you.
Civic space in Cambodia is rated as "Repressed" by the CIVICUS Monitor
