Some 1,061 cases of “fake news” have been identified by the Information Ministry this year, according to a ministry report — 910 of them for inciting criticism of the government or insulting the country’s leaders.
Journalists broadcasting from red zones, following ambulances or making misleading conclusions “without clear background” will face legal action, the Information Ministry said on Tuesday, as a spokesperson explained that the measures were needed as some had made reports without first verifying with relevant parties.
A Siem Reap-based journalist says he fears he is being targeted by illegal loggers after being beaten at night as he slept in a hammock outside Beng Mealea temple.
The Information Ministry has issued a letter saying it should be notified before all journalism trainings, with a spokesperson saying it can help find trainers and speakers from various government institutions.
Taking precautionary measures, some staff at news outlets and government bodies have gone into two-week quarantine following the visit of a Hungarian foreign minister who later tested positive for Covid-19.
A new journalists’ association, the Cambodian Journalists Alliance (CamboJA), vowed to promote press freedom and independent newsgathering, and defend and help professionalize local reporters during a launch event on Friday.
Two journalists who worked for the U.S.’s Radio Free Asia in Phnom Penh marked two years since their arrest on Thursday as local and international groups renewed their call for the espionage case against them to be dropped.
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