Call on the Human Rights Council to adopt a resolution addressing Cambodia's gravely deteriorating human rights situation
Geneva, 18 August 2016,
Re:Call on the Human Rights Council to adopt a resolution addressing Cambodia'sgravely deteriorating human rights situation
Your Excellencies,
We, the undersigned international, regional, andCambodian non-governmental organizations (NGOs), urge your delegation tosupport the adoption of a resolution addressing Cambodia's gravelydeteriorating human rights situation at the 33rd session of theHuman Rights Council (13-30 September 2016).
This resolution should highlight and condemn the ongoingand systematic human rights violations in the country and impunity for theirperpetrators; build on the concerns expressed by a number of States at theCouncil's 32nd session[1]; andurge the Cambodian Government to urgently take corrective action to preservethe legacy of the Paris Peace Agreements,[2] aheadof their 25th anniversary and of key municipal and general elections(2017-2018). The resolution should also request the United Nations (UN) SpecialRapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, Ms. Rhona Smith, toassess the status of implementation of the recommendations made to Cambodia byvarious UN bodies and mechanisms, including by her and her predecessors,[3] andto identify benchmarks for progress and priority areas for reform with a viewto putting an end to the ongoing and systematic human rights violationscommitted in the country.
The mandate of the Special Rapporteur on Cambodia wasextended for an additional two years at the Council’s 30th session.This unique practice of bi-annual country-specific resolutions providesimportant continuity to the monitoring of, and public reporting on, thesituation in the country and helps streamline the work of the Council. However,this should not prevent the Council from exercising its responsibility to takemore decisive action given the grave circumstances in Cambodia.
Latest developments on the ground
Since we expressed deep concern about Cambodia's humanrights situation in a letter sent to your and other delegations prior to theHuman Rights Council's 30th session,[4] ourfear that the country risked “falling deeper into a pattern of institutionalizedhuman rights violations, including political violence”[5] andthe alarm expressed by the Special Rapporteur that the country was reaching a“dangerous tipping point,”[6] havematerialized.
Indeed, since the adoption of Human Rights Council resolution30/23[7] on 2October 2015, the Cambodian Government has taken steps to further restrict therights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association, limit thepolitical opposition's ability to meaningfully engage in policy-making andcampaigning, and prevent civil society organizations from operating freely andindependently. Legislation that unduly restricts human rights and fundamentalfreedoms continues to be in force, including the Law on Association and NGOs(LANGO), which the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)has described as falling “significantly short of international human rightslaws and norms” and as “threatening the existence of a free and independentcivil society in Cambodia,”[8] withincreasing concerns that the government is prepared to use it to arbitrarilyde-register civil society organizations it labels as violating the concept of“political neutrality.” A Trade Union Law imposing new restrictions on theright to freedom of association[9] hasalso come into force, marking a further downward slide for labor rights in thecountry. Security forces continue to suppress peaceful protests, and in recentmonths, instances of judicial harassment and unwarranted legal attacks againsthuman rights defenders, community activists, trade unionists and politicalopposition members and their supporters have multiplied, with no end in sight.
On 12 May 2016, four UN Special Rapporteurs jointlycalled on the Government of Cambodia to “stop targeting civil society, humanrights defenders, parliamentarians and UN personnel and to take effective measuresto protect civil society and respect fundamental freedoms in the country.”[10] Theyhighlighted the case of the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association(ADHOC), one of Cambodia's oldest, largest, and most-respected human rightsNGOs, whose four senior staff members have been targeted along with a formerstaff member, now Deputy Secretary-General of the National Election Committee(NEC). They have been subjected to a judicial investigation and arbitrarydetention on charges that have all the hallmarks of beingpolitically-motivated of “bribing a witness” in connection with the provisionof advice and legitimate reimbursement of food and transportation costs to awoman alleged to have had an extra-marital relationship with the deputyopposition leader, Kem Sokha. The continued detention of the five defenders, aswell as the threats and intimidation of those who have spoken out in theirdefense, including through a campaign on social media,[11] hasled to an increasingly repressive environment for freedom of expression andsent a chilling message to the critics of the government.
On 10 July 2016, prominent Cambodian political analystand social justice activist Kem Ley was shot dead in broad daylight at aconvenience store in a petrol station in central Phnom Penh. Following theattack, five UN Special Rapporteurs jointly stated that “[t]he circumstances ofMr. Kem Ley's death have given rise to deep concerns in view of his standing asa critic of the government and his regular comments in the media highlightinggovernance and human rights concerns.” They added that his shooting“exemplifie[d] an alarming negative trend in Cambodia whereby politicalactivists and human rights defenders are facing increasing restrictions […]”and that his killing is “likely to have a chilling effect on the pursuit ofdemocracy and human rights in Cambodia.”[12] The“prompt, thorough and impartial investigation into this crime” by “an independentbody with no ties to the government” they have called for has yet to beconducted.
These developments have taken place in a context ofincreased political tensions, as the country's two opposition leaders, Mr. SamRainsy and Mr. Kem Sokha, President and Vice-President of the Cambodia NationalRescue Party (CNRP) respectively, have been targeted with a series of criminalallegations that have prevented them from effectively participating inCambodia's public life.[13] Inaddition, 26 political prisoners, including human rights defenders,[14] arecurrently in detention in Cambodia. Prime Minister Hun Sen and other high-levelofficials have threatened several opposition politicians, politicalcommentators and civil society representatives with legal proceedings,including for “defamation.” Amid the attacks against civil society and othercritical and independent voices and the increased harassment of the media,these mounting political tensions threaten to make the elections planned for2017 and 2018 neither free nor fair.
Suggested language for a strengthened Councilresponse
In the face of Cambodia's rapidly deterioratinghuman rights situation as well as government policies and practices that goagainst the spirit and purpose of the Paris Peace Agreements and UN engagementin the country since, the Human Rights Council should adopt a resolution that:
- Condemnsthreats to, and attacks against, human rights defenders and other criticalor independent voices; violations of the rights to freedom of peacefulassembly, association and expression; the lack of independence of thejudiciary; violations of land and housing rights; violations of women's andindigenous peoples' rights; the erosion of fundamental democratic principlesand institutions; and ongoing impunity for perpetrators of human rightsviolations and abuses[15];
- Urgesthe Cambodian Government to put an end to these serious violations, abide byits domestic and international human rights obligations, and implement keylegal and institutional reforms that UN bodies and mechanisms have highlightedas essential;
- Urgesthe Cambodian authorities to immediately release all activists, human rightsdefenders, and opposition members and supporters who have been arbitrarilyimprisoned or detained in relation to the exercise of fundamental rights andfreedoms and to drop all charges that have been pressed against any person forsuch exercise;
- Callson the Cambodian authorities to carry out prompt, thorough, effective,transparent, impartial and independent investigations into instances ofviolence, including the October 2015 assault by three of the Prime Minister’sbodyguards on two opposition members of the National Assembly and the 10 Julymurder of political analyst Kem Ley, and bring perpetrators, including anyonewho may have instigated or orchestrated these acts, to justice in fair trials;
- Callsupon the Cambodian Government to repeal laws that are not in line withinternational law and standards on the rights to freedom of expression, peacefulassembly and association, or amend them with a view to bring them into linewith international standards, including the Law on Associations and NGOs, theTrade Union Law and the Telecommunications Law; and refrain from adoptingadditional legislation that falls short of international standards;
- Callsupon the Cambodian Government to amend the three “judicial reform laws” (onthe Organization of the Courts, the Statute of Judges and Prosecutors, and theOrganization and Functioning of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy) thatinfringe on the independence of the judiciary, in contravention ofinternational standards and Cambodia’s Constitution;
- Callson the Cambodian Government to establish a time-bound action plan for theimplementation of recommendations made by the Special Rapporteur and byprevious mandate holders, as well as by UN bodies and mechanisms, includingtreaty monitoring bodies, thematic special procedures of the Human RightsCouncil, the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), the OHCHR and the UNSecretary-General;
- Urgesthe Cambodian Government to ensure the transparency and credibility of theelectoral process and to create the necessary conditions for the upcomingmunicipal and general elections to be free, fair, credible, inclusive, peacefuland transparent, in accordance with the international commitments of theCambodian Government; in this regard, urges the government to providefor an expansion of political space and to ensure respect for human rights andfundamental freedoms, including the freedoms of expression, online andoffline, peaceful assembly and association;
- Callsupon the Cambodian Government to establish an independent, well-resourcedNational Human Rights Institution in accordance with the principles relating tothe status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of humanrights (the “Paris Principles”);
- Callson the Cambodian Government to fully cooperate with the UN SpecialRapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, as well as with otherUN human rights bodies and mechanisms;
- Requeststhe Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia to assessthe status of implementation of the recommendations made to Cambodia by variousUN bodies and mechanisms, including her and her predecessors, and to identifybenchmarks for progress and priority areas for reform with a view to putting anend to the serious and systematic human rights violations committed in thecountry;
- Invitesthematic special procedure mandate-holders to engage fully and to coordinatewith the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia; and
- Decidesto remain actively seized of the matter.
We also call upon your Government to express itssupport to the renewal of the mandate of the OHCHR country office in Cambodiathrough the prompt signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between theGovernment of Cambodia and the OHCHR, and to underline the importance of thecomplementarities between the work of the Special Rapporteur, other UN bodiesand mechanisms and the OHCHR country office.
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Twenty-five years after the signing of the Paris PeaceAgreements, this resolution should reaffirm the UN’s historical responsibilityto support the Cambodian people's quest for justice, democracy, human rightsand the rule of law. As it examines the situation in Cambodia for the last timebefore the country's municipal elections (4 June 2017), the Human RightsCouncil should make clear its intention to continue to closely monitor andaddress the situation in the country by adopting a resolution that highlightsthe abovementioned concerns and urges the Cambodian Government to urgently takecorrective action in this regard.
We thank you for your attention to these pressing issues and are available toprovide your delegation with further information as required.
Sincerely,
International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development(FORUM-ASIA)
CambodianCenter for Human Rights (CCHR)
Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association(ADHOC)
CambodianLeague for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO)
CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation
CivilRights Defenders
InternationalCommission of Jurists
International Service for Human Rights
Human Rights Now
Human Rights Watch
WorldOrganization Against Torture (OMCT)
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ANNEX: Additional references
Human rights defenders
- “Release detained human rights defenders and stoptheir harassment”, 21 July 2016:
- “Cambodia: Suspended sentences and subsequentrelease of Messrs. Sim Somnang, Tri Sovikea and San Mala”, 4 July 2016: www.fidh.org/en/issues/human-rights-defenders/cambodia-suspended-sentences-and-subsequent-release-of-messrs-sim
- “Cambodia: Ny Sokha, Nay Vanda, Yi Soksan, LimMony and Ny Chakrya denied bail”, 14 June 2016: www.fidh.org/en/issues/human-rights-defenders/cambodia-ny-sokha-nay-vanda-yi-soksan-lim-mony-and-ny-chakrya-denied
- “Civil Society Condemns Escalating Intimidationof Human Rights Defenders”, 10 May 2016: www.licadho-cambodia.org/pressrelease.php?perm=405
- “Cambodia:ICJ calls for halt to prosecutorial and judicial harassment of human rights defendersand political opponents”, 9 May 2016: www.icj.org/cambodia-icj-calls-for-halt-to-prosecutorial-and-judicial-harassment-of-human-rights-defenders-and-political-opponents/
- “Open Letter to the Cambodian Prime Minister: Endlegal harassment of Cambodian human rights defenders including ADHOC staffmembers”, 9 May 2016: www.forum-asia.org/?p=20669
- “New wave of arrests targeting human rightsdefenders threatens to destroy vibrant human rights community”, 9 May 2016: www.fidh.org/en/issues/human-rights-defenders/cambodia-new-wave-of-arrests-targeting-human-rights-defenders
- “Attacks and Threats Against Human RightsDefenders, 2013-2014”, December 2015: www.licadho-cambodia.org/reports.php?perm=211
- “Open Letter to Prime Minister of Cambodia on theJudicial Harassment against Ny Chakrya”, 20 October 2015: www.forum-asia.org/?p=19639
- “Cambodia: immediately quash convictions ofopposition activists for insurrection”, 22 July 2015: www.icj.org/cambodia-immediately-quash-convictions-of-opposition-activists-for-insurrection/
- “Cambodian Human Rights Defenders Decry HumanRights Abuses at the UN Human Rights Council”, 3 October 2014: www.forum-asia.org/?p=17770
Freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly andassociation
- “Dragged and Beaten: The Cambodian Government’sRole in the October 2015 Attack on Opposition Politicians”, 26 May 2016: www.hrw.org/report/2016/05/26/dragged-and-beaten/cambodian-governments-role-october-2015-attack-opposition
- “Cambodia: Human rights in peril amidst unlawfulcampaign against political opposition and human rights workers”, 3 May 2016: www.amnesty.org/en/documents/asa23/3954/2016/en/
- “New Law on Telecommunications: A LegislativeAttack on Individuals’ Rights and Freedoms”, 31 March 2016: www.licadho-cambodia.org/pressrelease.php?perm=401
- “Cambodia: the ICJ condemns Senate’s approval ofdraft Law on Associations and NGOs”, 24 July 2015: www.icj.org/cambodia-the-icj-condemns-senates-approval-of-draft-law-on-associations-and-ngos/
-- “Cambodia: Quash ‘insurrection’ ruling againstopposition activists following unfair trial”, 21 July 2015: www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/07/cambodia-quash-insurrection-ruling-against-opposition-activists-following-unfair-trial/
- “Cambodia: Taking to the Streets: Freedom ofPeaceful Assembly in Cambodia”, 5 June 2015: www.amnesty.org/en/documents/asa23/1506/2015/en/
- “Going Offline? The Threat to Cambodia’s NewfoundInternet Freedoms”, May 2015: www.licadho-cambodia.org/reports.php?perm=205
- “Legal Analysis of Cambodia's Draft Law on Unionsof Enterprises”, September 2014: www.licadho-cambodia.org/reports.php?perm=199
- “Cambodia: Latest crackdown on peaceful dissent furtherperpetuates impunity and fuels tensions”, 28 January 2014: www.forum-asia.org/?p=16590
Political violence and ongoing impunity
- “Cambodia: Killing of Kem Ley adds grave concernto the deteriorating human rights situation”, 13 July 2016: www.fidh.org/en/issues/human-rights-defenders/cambodia-killing-of-kem-ley-adds-grave-concern-to-the-deteriorating
- “Cambodia: Kem Ley’s killing demands immediatecredible and impartial investigation”, 13 July 2016: www.icj.org/cambodia-kem-leys-killing-demands-immediate-credible-and-impartial-investigation/
- “Cambodian civil society condemns outrageousmurder of political analyst Kem Ley”, 11 July 2016: cchrcambodia.org/index_old.php?title=Cambodian-Civil-Society-Condemns-Outrageous-Murder-of-Political-Analyst-Kem-Ley&url=media/media.php&p=press_detail.php&prid=625&id=5&lang=eng
- “30 Years of Hun Sen: Violence, Repression, andCorruption in Cambodia”, 12 January 2015: www.hrw.org/report/2015/01/12/30-years-hun-sen/violence-repression-and-corruption-cambodia
Lack of independence of the judiciary
- “Cambodia: ICJ condemns new draft laws thatinfringe on judicial independence”, 8 July 2014: www.icj.org/cambodia-icj-condemns-new-draft-laws-that-infringe-on-judicial-independence/
Women’s rights and indigenous peoples’ rights
- “UN expert urges Cambodia to strengthenprotection of women and indigenous peoples’ rights”, 1 April 2016: www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=18552&LangID=E
Violations of land- and housing-related rights
- “Koh Kong Land Communities Deliver Petitions inPhnom Penh”, 4 August 2016: www.licadho-cambodia.org/flashnews.php?perm=183
- “CSOs condemn the unfair conviction of MotherNature activists San Mala, Try Sovikea and Sim Somnang”, 1 July 2016: cchrcambodia.org/index_old.php?title=-CSOs-condemn-the-unfair-conviction-of-Mother-Nature-activists-San-Mala-Try-Sovikea-and-Sim-Somnang&url=media/media.php&p=press_detail.php&prid=623&id=5&lang=eng
- “Cambodia: Retrial and renewed sentencing of YormBopha”, 30 June 2016: www.omct.org/human-rights-defenders/urgent-interventions/cambodia/2016/06/d23829/
- “Cambodia: Sentencing of Mr. Ven Vorn,environmental activist and indigenous community leader”, 10 March 2016: www.omct.org/human-rights-defenders/urgent-interventions/cambodia/2016/03/d23660/
- “Cambodia: Quash Convictions of 11 Human RightsActivists”, 22 January 2015: www.forum-asia.org/?p=18223
- “Cambodia: Call for the Immediate Release andAcquittal of Seven Imprisoned Land Rights Activists”, 12 November 2014: www.forum-asia.org/?p=17926
[1] Duringthe Human Rights Council’s 32nd session (13 June-1 July 2016), anumber of States expressed concern over the escalation of attacks against civilsociety and the political opposition in Cambodia. See joint NGO statement, “UNHuman Rights Council Puts Cambodia on Notice”: www.forum-asia.org/?p=21182
[2] TheAgreements on a Comprehensive Political Settlement to the Cambodia Conflict,signed in Paris on 23 October 1991, also laid out processes for the building ofa just and democratic Cambodia, anchored in human rights and the rule of law.
[3] As well as treaty monitoring bodies, thematic special proceduresof the Human Rights Council, the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), the Office ofthe UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the UN Secretary-General.