via CAAI
Sep 8, 2010
Phnom Penh - A Cambodian court on Wednesday heard evidence in a border-dispute case that could see the leader of the largest opposition party jailed for 18 years.
The Phnom Penh municipal court said it would rule on the case on September 23.
Opposition leader Sam Rainsy was charged with disinformation and falsifying public documents after producing maps during a video-conference earlier this year. He claimed the maps proved that Vietnam was encroaching on Cambodian territory.
Yim Sovann, a spokesman for the Sam Rainsy Party, described the charges as political, and said he was 'very pessimistic' about the outcome.
'Whenever there is a dispute between the government and the opposition, the opposition has no chance to win at all,' he said.
'It is Sam Rainsy's duty as a member of parliament to help the people and protect Cambodia's land,' he added.
Sam Rainsy is in France avoiding a two-year prison sentence from an earlier, related case. He was convicted of racial incitement and damaging public property.
The government prosecuted him for uprooting wooden posts in Svay Rieng province that marked the international border with Vietnam.
Two villagers from Svay Rieng province were also sentenced to jail terms in that case, which goes to appeal on October 5.
The opposition party claims the rights of Cambodian farmers are not being respected in the process to demarcate the 1,270-kilometre border, which is expected to be completed by 2012.
The border incident riled Hanoi, which is a close ally of Prime Minister Hun Sen's government. Vietnam has significant interests in agribusiness, aviation, telecommunications and banking in Cambodia.
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