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Khmer Times/Taing Vida Thursday, 22 September 2016
Opposition member Um Sam An lost his latest attempt to have his ongoing detention nullified yesterday, as the Supreme Court ruled that the actions of the police, prosecutors and investigating judges have followed the law.
Mr. Sam An, who was arrested in April, months after writing comments about the demarcation of the border with Vietnam, and weeks after publishing comments about the border on his Facebook page, has maintained that as an elected politician he has immunity from prosecution.
He walked out of questioning at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court two weeks ago, calling the trial “illegal.”
Yesterday he questioned the legal right to continue with his prosecution, while the trials against fellow opposition members Hong Sok Hour and Thak Lany had been paused while their immunity was lifted after parliamentary voting.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
“Only 63 votes from the CPP [Cambodian People’s Party] are not enough to make a decision for the court to take action against me as a politician. I expressed my opinion. Why was I arrested? If doing so was wrong, then a politician is just like a farmer,” he said to the judges.
“Hun Sen has abused opposition MPs [Members of Parliament] just to serve the government of Hanoi.”
Judge Soeng Panhvuth, after a long deliberation, quashed Mr. Sam An’s latest request to be freed. He did not explain the reasoning for the decision and could not be reached for comment after the hearing.
After the hearing deputy prosecutor Chhoun Chantha declined to comment on the issue of Mr. Sam An’s parliamentary immunity, saying only that the court had considered the appeal and made its decision accordingly.
All elected politicians in Cambodia are accorded immunity from prosecution in the constitution, unless they are caught in the act of committing a crime, “in flagrante delicto.”
Despite Mr. Sam An’s arrest coming a considerable time after committing the crime of “incitement” he is accused of, at the time of his arrest police defended their actions on the basis of “in flagrante delicto,” as the constitution does not set a limit between when a crime is committed and legibility for arrest, despite the term’s literal meaning.
Mr. Sam An, who is an outspoken critic of the government’s handling of border issues with Vietnam, was charged with “incitement to commit felony” and “incitement to discriminate” under articles 495 and 496 of the Criminal Code.
During the hearing yesterday, his lawyers Choung Chou Ngy and Hem Socheat repeated that under article 8 of the constitution, only a two-thirds vote by the 123 parliamentary members can strip their client of his immunity.
Outside the courtroom, Mr. Socheat said he was disappointed with the verdict and would file a further appeal with the Constitutional Council.
“I will make a request very soon that the Constitutional Council explain the controversial meaning of the constitution’s rule, compared with the case against my client.”
In a separate appeal, the Supreme Court denied his request for bail last month, deeming the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) member a flight risk.
A few days after Mr. Sam An’s arrest in April, Mr. Hun Sen told a cabinet meeting that the arrest had been legal as Mr. Sam An’s comments were incendiary enough to have incited a conflict with Vietnam, which he stressed was a crime.
However, both the CNRP and civil society groups have vocally disagreed, calling Mr. Sam An’s arrest a violation of the constitution, freedom of expression and Cambodia’s democracy, and a political act.
Two weeks after his arrest, CNRP members wrote a letter to King Norodom Sihamoni, requesting his intervention in the case. No reply has been made public.
The day after his arrest, 13 civil society groups published a statement condemning the arrest, calling it “another example of the intensification of the systematic crackdown of the political opposition in Cambodia.”
“Not only does the arrest plainly undermine the constitutional guarantee of immunity for members of the National Assembly, but it also signifies the shrinking democratic space and intolerance of political pluralism in Cambodia,” it states.
“The law should not and must not be used to stifle legitimate political debate; we therefore call upon the RGC to ensure Mr. Sam An is immediately released, and any charges are dropped.”
Clik here to view.
Khmer Times/Taing Vida Thursday, 22 September 2016
Opposition member Um Sam An lost his latest attempt to have his ongoing detention nullified yesterday, as the Supreme Court ruled that the actions of the police, prosecutors and investigating judges have followed the law.
Mr. Sam An, who was arrested in April, months after writing comments about the demarcation of the border with Vietnam, and weeks after publishing comments about the border on his Facebook page, has maintained that as an elected politician he has immunity from prosecution.
He walked out of questioning at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court two weeks ago, calling the trial “illegal.”
Yesterday he questioned the legal right to continue with his prosecution, while the trials against fellow opposition members Hong Sok Hour and Thak Lany had been paused while their immunity was lifted after parliamentary voting.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
“Only 63 votes from the CPP [Cambodian People’s Party] are not enough to make a decision for the court to take action against me as a politician. I expressed my opinion. Why was I arrested? If doing so was wrong, then a politician is just like a farmer,” he said to the judges.
“Hun Sen has abused opposition MPs [Members of Parliament] just to serve the government of Hanoi.”
Judge Soeng Panhvuth, after a long deliberation, quashed Mr. Sam An’s latest request to be freed. He did not explain the reasoning for the decision and could not be reached for comment after the hearing.
After the hearing deputy prosecutor Chhoun Chantha declined to comment on the issue of Mr. Sam An’s parliamentary immunity, saying only that the court had considered the appeal and made its decision accordingly.
All elected politicians in Cambodia are accorded immunity from prosecution in the constitution, unless they are caught in the act of committing a crime, “in flagrante delicto.”
Despite Mr. Sam An’s arrest coming a considerable time after committing the crime of “incitement” he is accused of, at the time of his arrest police defended their actions on the basis of “in flagrante delicto,” as the constitution does not set a limit between when a crime is committed and legibility for arrest, despite the term’s literal meaning.
Mr. Sam An, who is an outspoken critic of the government’s handling of border issues with Vietnam, was charged with “incitement to commit felony” and “incitement to discriminate” under articles 495 and 496 of the Criminal Code.
During the hearing yesterday, his lawyers Choung Chou Ngy and Hem Socheat repeated that under article 8 of the constitution, only a two-thirds vote by the 123 parliamentary members can strip their client of his immunity.
Outside the courtroom, Mr. Socheat said he was disappointed with the verdict and would file a further appeal with the Constitutional Council.
“I will make a request very soon that the Constitutional Council explain the controversial meaning of the constitution’s rule, compared with the case against my client.”
In a separate appeal, the Supreme Court denied his request for bail last month, deeming the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) member a flight risk.
A few days after Mr. Sam An’s arrest in April, Mr. Hun Sen told a cabinet meeting that the arrest had been legal as Mr. Sam An’s comments were incendiary enough to have incited a conflict with Vietnam, which he stressed was a crime.
However, both the CNRP and civil society groups have vocally disagreed, calling Mr. Sam An’s arrest a violation of the constitution, freedom of expression and Cambodia’s democracy, and a political act.
Two weeks after his arrest, CNRP members wrote a letter to King Norodom Sihamoni, requesting his intervention in the case. No reply has been made public.
The day after his arrest, 13 civil society groups published a statement condemning the arrest, calling it “another example of the intensification of the systematic crackdown of the political opposition in Cambodia.”
“Not only does the arrest plainly undermine the constitutional guarantee of immunity for members of the National Assembly, but it also signifies the shrinking democratic space and intolerance of political pluralism in Cambodia,” it states.
“The law should not and must not be used to stifle legitimate political debate; we therefore call upon the RGC to ensure Mr. Sam An is immediately released, and any charges are dropped.”