Over 30 Opposition Activists Assaulted in Five Years: Lawyer

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Wat Chas after the killing of CNRP activist Sin Khon, on November 21, 2021. (Ananth Baliga/VOD)
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More than 30 opposition activists have been violently attacked in the past five years — including the killing of a man in November and this weekend’s assault — typically by unknown assailants on public streets, a lawyer said.

Sam Sokong, a lawyer representing the CNRP, the main opposition party that was outlawed in 2017, said that since the party’s dissolution more than 30 of its activists had been assaulted. The most common pattern has been a group of men on motorbikes striking an activist from the back.

On Sunday, Nol Pongthearith, a Pur Senchey official for the CNRP-affiliated Candlelight Party, was slashed in the back of the head by six attackers as he approached a party meeting on his motorbike.

Last April, jailed CNRP activist Kak Komphear’s 16-year-old son was struck on the back of the head with a brick in Boeng Tompun. The son was later found guilty of incitement for digital messages insulting officials.

In November, CNRP youth activist Sin Khon was killed in Chroy Changva.

“This problem has been happening since 2018 up to now. We’ve seen that since the dissolution of the CNRP there has been a lot of violence,” Sokong said on Tuesday.

He added that all opposition victims had filed police complaints, but there had not been thorough investigations and most of the assaults had not resulted in arrests.

Interior Ministry spokesperson Khieu Sopheak said that the authorities did not want to see such incidents of violence. All Cambodian citizens, whether opposition activists or supporters of the ruling CPP, all have the same protections, Sopheak said.

However, the Interior Ministry spokesperson said opposition victims rarely filed police complaints in response to the violence.

“Most of the time they never come to our police first. They always issue statements referring to threats, political motivations, suppression of freedoms and oppression against the opposition,” he said.

“I think that as a whole, I and the authorities also have regrets. Overall, we find it difficult like the victims when we cannot find [the perpetrator] because we cannot find justice for the victim.”

Rights group Licadho’s director of operations Am Sam Ath noted that police were obligated to pursue investigations into criminal cases regardless of whether the victims filed complaints.

Sam Ath added that the lack of justice in cases of violence against opposition activists had stoked suspicions of impunity for ruling party-linked individuals as well as criticism of the government.

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