PHNOM PENH (Khmer Times): Six Cambodian activists were charged and jailed for plotting against the government. They are accused of attempting to overthrow the government and sent to prison. They face jail terms of five to ten years each if found guilty.
The six accused are charged with making inflammatory posts on social media, alleging that the government leaders have ceded Koh Kut to Thailand.
Among the six detainees, two are men and four are women. The women are Son Kunthear, Hong An, Yin Chanthou, and Vorn Chanrachna, while the men are Pen Chansangkream and Mean Chanthon. They are accused of violating Article 453 of Cambodia’s Penal Code.
According to Major General Kheang Sonadin, spokesman for the General Department of Prisons in the Ministry of Interior, the six have now been transferred to three separate detention facilities pending trial following an investigating judge’s order.
Am Sam Ath, Operations Director of human rights group Licadho, claimed that the six detainees have got refugee status from the UNHCR in Thailand.
He said that the arrests were made on Sunday by Thai authorities in cooperation with Cambodian authorities in Pathum Thani province, Thailand.
Following their arrests, they were deported by the Thai authorities and transferred to the Cambodian authorities.
Sam Ath also claimed that Thailand is now no longer a safe place for those seeking asylum with the UNHCR. He added that his organisation is now monitoring and investigating the case. - Khmer Times
