via CAAI
Mon Dec 20
PHNOM PENH (AFP) – A World Food Programme employee in Cambodia has been jailed for six months for printing and distributing anti-government material in a sentence criticised Monday by rights groups.
A Phnom Penh court on Sunday sentenced Seng Kunnaka, a Cambodian who reportedly works in a WFP warehouse, to six months in prison and a fine of one million riel (250 dollars) -- just two days after his arrest for incitement.
"It's shocking that we now see even a warehouse employee at a UN agency with a print-out of materials from a website can incur the wrath of this increasingly authoritarian Cambodian government," said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch (HRW).
"This rushed trial and groundless conviction is further proof of the growing crackdown on freedom of expression by the Cambodian government", local rights group Licadho said in a statement.
The arrest and trial came less than 10 days after the introduction of a new penal code in Cambodia that rights groups said could be used to silence critics.
A government spokesman refused to comment on the verdict.
"This was the court's decision. My question is whether the WFP or human rights organisations want to support the distribution of (such) leaflets," Khieu Kanharith told AFP.
The exact content of the material was unclear. It was taken from a blog that collects news stories and opinion pieces about Cambodia and is often critical of the government.
Earlier this month, Prime Minister Hun Sen attacked the WFP for saying that Cambodia was vulnerable to food shortages. The UN organisation has denied making such claims.
Khieu Kanharith said there was no link between the arrest and Hun Sen's remarks.
"This is an individual case... They did not prosecute WFP," he said.
The Cambodian government has come under fire from rights groups in recent years for launching a number of defamation and disinformation lawsuits against critics and opposition members.
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