Khmer Circle:
If the same "incitement" charge were to be applied by elected governments in the world's democracies there would not be any opposition parties or governments left to govern the country!
^^^
Chin Bunnaroth is leader of the Nation Power Party, formed last year.
Read RFA coverage of this topic in Khmer.
A high-ranking official with a new Cambodian opposition party, the Nation Power Party, was arrested Monday and charged with incitement, in what the party said was an attempt to intimidate government opponents.
Chin Bunnaroth, the party’s director-general of administration in southern Takeo province, was arrested by six civilian-clothes police officers in Phnom Penh on Monday, according to a National Power Party statement.
No arrest warrant was presented and it was unclear what prompted the “incitement to cause serious social chaos” charge, the party said.
The ruling Cambodian People’s Party, or CPP, often puts pressure on police to arrest political opposition members on politically motivated charges – particularly in the run-up to elections to ensure its own politicians retain power or win new seats in contested areas.
Last May’s local elections featured a crackdown on opposition activists, including the arrests of three opposition party members on May 9.
The Nation Power Party’s president, Sun Chanthy, was one of the three. He was arrested at Phnom Penh International Airport upon his return from Japan, where he had addressed Cambodian supporters. He was also charged with incitement.
Another example of intimidation
Chin Bunnaroth was placed under pre-trial detention at Prey Sar prison in Phnom Penh on Tuesday, according to National Police spokesman Chhay Kim Khoeun.
The Nation Power Party called on the government to unconditionally release Chin Bunnaroth. The arrest was another example of the government’s use of the courts to threaten and intimidate political activists, the party said in its statement.
Rong Chhun, a prominent labor activist and an adviser to the Nation Power Party, told Radio Free Asia that the arrest appeared to violate human rights principles.
Eventually, arresting political opponents will have a negative effect on Cambodia’s international reputation and could severely damage the investment and tourism climate, he said.
“The party’s statement is a political issue,” Chhay Kim Khoeun told RFA. “I have nothing to say. We just enforce the law by following the court’s order.”
The Nation Power Party was formed in 2023 by breakaway members of the Candlelight Party, the main political organization opposing the government under the CPP, which has ruled the country since 1979.
The party has stated that it wants to promote a truly democratic Cambodia through free, fair and equitable elections.
Translated by Sovannarith Keo. Edited by Matt Reed.
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