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Khmer Times/Taing Vida and Ven Rathavong Friday, 09 September 2016
Acting opposition leader Kem Sokha was found guilty today by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court for refusing to appear when summoned in earlier court hearings and sentenced to five months in jail and fined 800,000 riel, or about $200.
The verdict was announced about 2pm today by trial judge Keo Mony, who said Mr. Sokha was found guilty under article 538 of the Penal Code.
According to officials, the conviction disqualifies Mr. Sokha from running in the commune elections set for next year and the national elections the following year.
Mr. Sokha now faces arrest, but it was unclear when authorities would try to take him into custody.
Earlier in the day Mr. Sokha did not appear in the Phnom Penh Municipal Court to hear the charges against him, but did speak to supporters who gathered at the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) headquarters this morning.
After a lengthy hearing at the court this morning, the case was adjourned until 2pm when the verdict against Mr. Sokha was announced.
The charges were brought in May after Mr. Sokha refused to obey two summons to appear as a witness in a case against two CNRP MPs accused of procurement relating to accusations of prostitution leveled against Khom Chandaraty, who allegedly had an affair with Mr. Sokha.
On Tuesday, five of Mr. Sokha’s lawyers filed appeals to the court against sending the case to trial, eventually requesting an extension. On Thursday they filed another complaint to the Appeal Court, asking for Judge Keo Mony to be replaced due to his alleged lack of impartiality.
At the beginning of the hearing today, where Mr. Sokha was represented by his lawyers, the court clerk announced a decision by Appeal Court president You Bunleng to allow the case to proceed, rejecting Mr. Sokha’s lawyers’ requests to have the case stopped.
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Multiple legal documents allowing the court to conduct the hearing on Mr. Sokha were read during the hearing. They included warrants and approvals from Minister of Justice Ang Vong Vantha and National Assembly President Heng Samrin.
On May 30, 68 members of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party voted to allow the Phnom Penh Municipal Court to proceed with the charges against Mr. Sokha, said Sieng Sok, the deputy prosecutor.
“Mr. Sokha refused to appear without any reason. We found there was no obstacle to bar him from giving testimony as a witness over the procurement case. Most importantly, this is a flagrant offense,” Mr. Sok said.
The CNRP and Mr. Sokha’s lawyers repeatedly condemned the charges as politically motivated and a violation of his parliamentary immunity under the constitution.
About 200 CNRP supporters gathered outside the court during the hearing, with a heavy mixed police presence in the nearby Olympic Stadium. One supporter – CNRP Phnom Penh treasurer Om Dara – was arrested and taken to the 7 Makara police station after a brief scuffle between police and supporters.
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At the CNRP headquarters in Phnom Penh this morning, Mr. Sokha spoke to about 500 supporters from across the country who gathered there despite police roadblocks set up yesterday on roads coming into the city. He spoke about what he had suffered since the case started, the threats of imprisonment and the risks he had faced, but vowed to continue his struggle peacefully.
“I understand that I could be in danger, but I do not want to see the nation and Cambodian citizens in danger,” he said. “Today I am Kem Sokha and I am suffering. In the future, Cambodian citizens must be happy.”
He told supporters that the charges against him were politically motivated by the ruling Cambodian People’s Party in a bid to end his political life and bar him for registering to vote.
Mr. Sokha has been hiding inside the building since May 26, when police tried to storm the property and stopped his wife’s car in a failed attempt to arrest him for not heeding a court summons for questioning over the sex scandal.
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Khmer Times/Taing Vida and Ven Rathavong Friday, 09 September 2016
Acting opposition leader Kem Sokha was found guilty today by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court for refusing to appear when summoned in earlier court hearings and sentenced to five months in jail and fined 800,000 riel, or about $200.
The verdict was announced about 2pm today by trial judge Keo Mony, who said Mr. Sokha was found guilty under article 538 of the Penal Code.
According to officials, the conviction disqualifies Mr. Sokha from running in the commune elections set for next year and the national elections the following year.
Mr. Sokha now faces arrest, but it was unclear when authorities would try to take him into custody.
Earlier in the day Mr. Sokha did not appear in the Phnom Penh Municipal Court to hear the charges against him, but did speak to supporters who gathered at the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) headquarters this morning.
After a lengthy hearing at the court this morning, the case was adjourned until 2pm when the verdict against Mr. Sokha was announced.
The charges were brought in May after Mr. Sokha refused to obey two summons to appear as a witness in a case against two CNRP MPs accused of procurement relating to accusations of prostitution leveled against Khom Chandaraty, who allegedly had an affair with Mr. Sokha.
On Tuesday, five of Mr. Sokha’s lawyers filed appeals to the court against sending the case to trial, eventually requesting an extension. On Thursday they filed another complaint to the Appeal Court, asking for Judge Keo Mony to be replaced due to his alleged lack of impartiality.
At the beginning of the hearing today, where Mr. Sokha was represented by his lawyers, the court clerk announced a decision by Appeal Court president You Bunleng to allow the case to proceed, rejecting Mr. Sokha’s lawyers’ requests to have the case stopped.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Multiple legal documents allowing the court to conduct the hearing on Mr. Sokha were read during the hearing. They included warrants and approvals from Minister of Justice Ang Vong Vantha and National Assembly President Heng Samrin.
On May 30, 68 members of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party voted to allow the Phnom Penh Municipal Court to proceed with the charges against Mr. Sokha, said Sieng Sok, the deputy prosecutor.
“Mr. Sokha refused to appear without any reason. We found there was no obstacle to bar him from giving testimony as a witness over the procurement case. Most importantly, this is a flagrant offense,” Mr. Sok said.
The CNRP and Mr. Sokha’s lawyers repeatedly condemned the charges as politically motivated and a violation of his parliamentary immunity under the constitution.
About 200 CNRP supporters gathered outside the court during the hearing, with a heavy mixed police presence in the nearby Olympic Stadium. One supporter – CNRP Phnom Penh treasurer Om Dara – was arrested and taken to the 7 Makara police station after a brief scuffle between police and supporters.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
At the CNRP headquarters in Phnom Penh this morning, Mr. Sokha spoke to about 500 supporters from across the country who gathered there despite police roadblocks set up yesterday on roads coming into the city. He spoke about what he had suffered since the case started, the threats of imprisonment and the risks he had faced, but vowed to continue his struggle peacefully.
“I understand that I could be in danger, but I do not want to see the nation and Cambodian citizens in danger,” he said. “Today I am Kem Sokha and I am suffering. In the future, Cambodian citizens must be happy.”
He told supporters that the charges against him were politically motivated by the ruling Cambodian People’s Party in a bid to end his political life and bar him for registering to vote.
Mr. Sokha has been hiding inside the building since May 26, when police tried to storm the property and stopped his wife’s car in a failed attempt to arrest him for not heeding a court summons for questioning over the sex scandal.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
