Cambodia
15.09.17
Urgent Interventions

Pre-trial detention of Messrs. Hun Vannak and Doem Kundy, two members of ‘Mother Nature Cambodia’

KHM 002 / 0917 / OBS 100

Arbitrary detention /

Judicial harassment

Cambodia

September 15, 2017

TheObservatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of theWorld Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and FIDH, requests your urgentintervention in the following situation in Cambodia.

Briefdescription of the situation:

TheObservatory has been informed about the arbitrary arrest and pre-trial detentionof Messrs. HunVannak and Doem Kundy,two membersof the grassroots environmental rights organisation ‘Mother Nature Cambodia’,for filming twosuspected sand-bearing large vessels anchored off the coast of Prek Ksachcommune, in Koh Kong province.

According to the informationreceived, on September 12, 2017, at 10:45 am, Messrs.HunVannak and Doem Kundy were arrested as they were on a smallspeedboat off the coast of Koh Kong province, and were taken to Koh Kongprovincial police headquarters for questioning. They had just finished filming two large vesselsthat were suspected to be ready to carry silica sand for export. The video wasaimed at asking prominent businessman and ruling Cambodian People’sParty (CPP) Senator LyYong Phat[1],who owns the nearby Special Economic Zone where the sand had been extractedfrom, why the ships appeared not to be broadcasting an Automatic IdentificationSystem signal, meaning they did not appear on online ship tracking databases. The police werereportedly acting on a complaint issued by the companyKirisakorKoh Kong S.E.Z, under thecontrol of Ly Yong Phat Group Co Ltd., which claimed that the activists were filming inside thecompany’s private land”.

OnSeptember 13, 2017, Messrs.Hun Vannak and Doem Kundy were interviewed by Koh Kong Prosecutorwithout any lawyer present. Koh Kong Provincial Court subsequentlycharged themwith “incitement to commit a felony” and “violation of privacy (recordingof a person’s image)” (Article 302 of the Criminal Code). If found guilty ofthese charges, they could face up to three years in prison.

BothMessrs. Hun Vannak and Doem Kundy were subsequentlyplaced in pre-trialdetention in Prek Svay prison, Khmerak Phumin city, Koh Kong province, wherethey remained detained as of issuing this Urgent Appeal. They now have access toa lawyer.

Messrs. HunVannak and Doem Kundy’s arrest happened a day after Mother NatureCambodia had published a video onlineexposing huge discrepancies in silica sand trade figures with Taiwan,highlighting more than $30 million in undocumented and potentially illegalexports. The video has been viewed 1.1 million times, and shared more than57,000 times on Facebook. Mother Nature hasrepeatedly sought to expose discrepancies in trade figures between Cambodia andthird countries, including India and Singapore, which would indicate largescale sand smuggling. The Observatory believes that this video mightbe the real reason behind the arrest of Messrs. Hun Vannak and Doem Kundy.

TheObservatory recalls that several Mother Nature Cambodia members have faced legal action and havebeen harassed and imprisoned for their campaigning against illicit sand dredging in Koh Kong Province[2].

TheObservatory strongly condemns the arbitrary arrest and pre-trial detention of Messrs. HunVannak and Doem Kundy, which only aim at punishing them for their legitimate human rightsactivities. The Observatory calls on the Cambodian authorities to immediatelyand unconditionally release Messrs. Hun Vannak and Doem Kundy and to put an end to all acts ofharassment against then and all human rights defenders in Cambodia.

Actionsrequested:

Pleasewrite to the authorities of Cambodia asking them to:

i.Guarantee in all circumstances the physical and psychological integrity of Messrs. HunVannak and Doem Kundy as well as of all human rights defenders in Cambodia;

ii. Immediately and unconditionally release Messrs. HunVannak and Doem Kundy, as well as all detained human rights defenders inCambodia, as their detention is arbitrary since it only aims at punishingthem for their legitimate human rights activities;

iii. Putan end to all forms of harassment, including at the judicial level,against Messrs. HunVannak and Doem Kundy and all human rights defenders in the country so that they are able tocarry out their work without hindrance;

iv. Complywith all the provisions of the United Nations Declaration on Human RightsDefenders, adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 9, 1998, inparticular with its Articles 1 and 12.2;

v.Guarantee the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordancewith the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and other international humanrights instruments signed or ratified by the Kingdom of Cambodia.

Addresses:

· Mr. Hun Sen, Prime Minister of the Kingdom ofCambodia. Fax: +855 23 360666 / 855 23 880624 (c/o Council of Ministers),Email: leewood_phu@nida.gov.kh / cppparty@gmail.com

· Mr. Sar Kheng, Minister of Interior and DeputyPrime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia. Fax: + 855 23 212708

· Mr. Ang Vong Vathna, Minister of Justice ofthe Kingdom of Cambodia. Fax: + 855 23 364 119

· Mr. Prak Sokhon, Minister of Foreign Affairsof the Kingdom of Cambodia. Fax: + 855 23 216 144 / 855 23 216 141,Email: mfaic@mfa.gov.kh

· Mr. Keo Remy, President of the Cambodian HumanRights Committee, Fax: +855 12 81 37 81 / +855 23 21 11 62 or +855 23 88 10 45(c/o Council of Ministers)

· Mr. Suon Visal, President of theCambodian Bar Association, Fax: +855 23 864 076, Email: info@bakc.org.kh

· AmbassadorMr. Ney Samol, Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Cambodia to the UnitedNations in Geneva, Switzerland, Fax: + 41 22 788 77 74, Email: camemb.gva@mfa.gov.kh

Pleasealso write to the diplomatic representations of Cambodia in your respectivecountries.

***

Geneva-Paris,September 15, 2017

Kindly informus of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.

TheObservatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) wascreated in 1997 by the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and FIDH. Theobjective of this programme is to prevent or remedy situations of repressionagainst human rights defenders. OMCT and FIDH are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human RightsDefenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society.

Tocontact the Observatory, call the emergency line:

· E-mail:Appeals@fidh-omct.org

· Tel and fax OMCT + 41 (0) 22 809 49 39 / + 41 22809 49 29

· Tel and fax FIDH + 33 (0) 1 43 55 25 18 / +33 1 43 55 18 80

[1] Senator Ly Yong Phat is the Presidentof the L.Y.P group and has been mentioned in a large number ofland-grabbing and other human rights violations allegations.

[2] See Observatory UrgentAppeal KHM 004/1115/OBS 094.1, published on July 4, 2016, as well asUrgent Appeal KHM 001/0617/OBS065, published on June 16, 2017.