Police in Cambodia have arrested opposition leader Kem Sokha, charging him with collaboration with foreign enemies to overthrow the government.

Sokha was arrested during a pre-dawn raid on his Phnom Penh home on Sunday for allegedly secretly planning against the government with the backing of the United States.

The government said in a statement that it had a video clip and other evidence pointing to a secret plan with foreigners to harm the Kingdom of Cambodia, which it said amounted to treason.

“It’s an act of treason with conspiracy with a foreign country, betraying his own nation. This requires arrest,” said Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Interior Ministry spokesman General Khieu Sopheak the next step would a trial.

The charges against Sokha carry a prison sentence of 15 to 30 years.

Sokha reportedly says in the purported video that “he was trained and received funding from a powerful foreign country to topple the government.”

His party denied the allegations and said the charges were politically motivated. The opposition party also said that the arrest violated the law because his position as an elected lawmaker gave him immunity from prosecution.

The party called for Kem Sokha's immediate release and urged the international community to “intervene for the release of Kem Sokha.”

Mu Sochua, a vice-president of the opposition party, insisted that the charges had been fabricated.

The arrest “sends a very clear signal that democracy in Cambodia is under severe threat,” she said.

Last month, the government stopped broadcasts by some radio stations and ordered an independent newspaper, The Cambodia Daily, to pay $6 million in tax, or face closure. </s> Cambodian authorities have been accused of orchestrating a crackdown on critics of prime minister Hun Sen’s government after a prominent opposition leader was arrested and an independent newspaper closed down.

Kem Sokha, the leader of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party was arrested in a police raid in the early hours of Sunday morning. He was later charged with treason.

Kem Sokha had spoken with “American and Canadian professors” about how to instigate a revolution in Cambodia “with similar strategy as that done in Yugoslavia,” Cambodian authorities said in a statement released via Fresh News, a pro-government website.

Later on Sunday, the Cambodia Daily, an independent English-language newspaper published since 1993, said it was closing after it failed to pay a tax bill of $6.3 million. </s> Cambodian opposition leader Kem Sokha was arrested early Sunday on an espionage charge, accused of conspiring with a foreign power to harm the country, according to a government statement.

Kem Sokha’s daughter, Kem Monovithya, tweeted: “Kem Sokha and all bodyguards are taken away by 100-200 police without warrant after they raided his home. We don’t know where they take him.”

The Cambodian government statement said Kem Sokha, the leader of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, had been charged with espionage under Article 443 of Cambodia’s criminal code.

“The Royal Government would like to inform the public that according to a video clip broadcasted by the Cambodian Broadcasting Network, based in Australia, and other evidences collected by the competent authority, it clearly proves the conspiracy between Kem Sokha and the accomplices with foreign power, which harms the Kingdom of Cambodia,” the statement read.

The charge carries a jail term of 15 to 30 years. The statement said Kem Sokha was arrested “in flagrante delicto,” which means caught in the act, and allows for a lawmaker’s parliamentary immunity to be lifted.

His arrest follows the script of a conspiracy narrative the pro-government website Fresh News has written recently without citing supporting evidence, in which the CIA, the U.S. Embassy, nongovernmental organizations, journalists, a Taiwanese “extremist group” and the opposition leader’s family are all accused of plotting a color revolution.

The term color revolution refers to pro-democracy movements that have swept through states in the former Soviet Union, the Balkans and the Middle East to nonviolently overthrow autocratic regimes.

At the same time, the Cambodian government has launched a sweeping crackdown on free speech, shutting down more than a dozen radio stations, an independent newspaper and the National Democratic Institute, a U.S.-government-funded NGO.

The tougher approach by the Cambodian government led by Prime Minister Hun Sen comes against a backdrop of growing opposition support, especially among younger voters.

Hun Manith, one of Hun Sen’s sons, tweeted that Kem Sokha had confessed to having long-term plans with the United States.

“Thank to him [sic], we now know who was (is) the Third Hand … ,” he tweeted.

David Josar, deputy spokesman of the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh, told The Phnom Penh Post earlier this week that such claims against the U.S. government were “categorically false” and “intended to draw attention away from the recent deterioration in Cambodia’s political climate.”

The Cambodian government was almost toppled in the last national election in 2013 and is fighting for re-election in mid-2018.

It has ruled for more than three decades under the leadership of former Khmer Rouge commander Hun Sen.

Analyst Sebastian Strangio, author of Hun Sen’s Cambodia, said the arrest came as a surprise and signaled a departure from the tactic of alternating repression and relaxation that the regime has typically employed.

“They seem to be tearing up the rules by which Cambodia’s pseudodemocracy has run for the past 25 years,” Strangio said. “All bets are off right now, that’s really the feeling I’m getting.”

In a statement, John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch, called the arrest “a disastrous setback for Cambodia’s human rights situation.”

“For 33 years, Hun Sen has used violence, threats, corruption and bogus legal charges to stay in power, and in the last year has been intensifying his attacks on civil society and the political opposition,” the statement said.

“Cambodia’s allies and donors should condemn this latest attack on democracy, and summon Cambodian ambassadors abroad to explain their government’s actions,” Sifton’s statement said. “The international community, which provides a major percentage of the Cambodian government’s annual budget, should put Hun Sen on notice that if he doesn’t reverse course, it will be impossible to consider next year’s elections free and fair.”

VOA has not yet been able to reach the Cambodian government, police or opposition for comment.

The U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh and the U.S. State Department also have yet to reply to requests for comment. </s> PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Police arrested the leader of Cambodia’s main opposition party in a surprise raid on his home in the capital early Sunday, and the government issued a statement accusing him of treason.

The arrest of Kem Sokha dealt a major blow to the opposition ahead of elections due next year and was sure to raise political tensions in the volatile Southeast Asian country.

The move comes amid a push by the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen, one of the world’s longest serving rulers, to shutter critical news outlets in what analysts say is a bid to strengthen its position before the 2018 vote.

Kem Sokha was taken away in handcuffs after a force of between 100 to 200 officers arrived at his Phnom Penh home around midnight, according his daughter, Monovithya Kem, who is also a member of his Cambodia National Rescue Party.

Monovithya Kem said on Twitter that police showed no warrant for her father’s arrest. She said later that his whereabouts were unknown, but Interior Ministry spokesman Gen. Khieu Sopheak said that Kem Sokha was detained at the Tropeang Phlong prison facility in Tbuong Khmum province, some 130 kilometers (80 miles) east of Phnom Penh.

He said the next step will be his court appearance to officially face the charges, which carry a prison sentence of 15 to 30 years.

“In the video clip that the government obtained, he has admitted himself that he was trained and received funding from a powerful foreign country to topple the government,” Khieu Sopheak said. “This is a clear crime and there’s no need to make further investigation because he has confessed already,” he added.

In an official statement issued after the arrest, the government said it had obtained a video clip and other evidence indicating “secret plans of a conspiracy between Kem Sokha … and foreigners to harm the Kingdom of Cambodia.”

The statement gave no details but called the actions “treason.”

Kem Sokha’s party said the arrest violated the constitution because he has parliamentary immunity and called on the government to release him.

The administration of Hun Sen, an authoritarian leader who has held a tight grip on power for more than three decades, has put increasing legal pressure on its critics, the media and political opponents ahead of national elections due in July.

Legal threats forced Kem Sokha’s predecessor, Sam Rainsy, to resign this year from the Cambodia National Rescue Party that he had led.

John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch, said the arrest was “an extremely disturbing development and a setback for democracy in Cambodia.”

“The government’s charges lack credibility, given its long record of misusing its legal system to silence or intimidate critics and political opponents,” Sifton said.

Associated Press writer Matthew Pennington in Washington contributed to this report. </s> Phnom Penh, Cambodia — Police arrested the leader of Cambodia’s main opposition party in a surprise raid on his home in the capital early Sunday, and the government issued a statement accusing him of treason.

The arrest of Kem Sokha dealt a major blow to the opposition ahead of elections due next year and was sure to raise political tensions in the volatile Southeast Asian country.

The move comes amid a push by the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen, one of the world’s longest serving rulers, to shutter critical news outlets in what analysts say is a bid to strengthen its position before the 2018 vote.

Kem Sokha was taken away in handcuffs after a force of between 100 to 200 officers arrived at his Phnom Penh home around midnight, according his daughter, Monovithya Kem, who is also a member of his Cambodia National Rescue Party.

Monovithya Kem said on Twitter that police showed no warrant for her father’s arrest. She said later that his whereabouts were unknown, but Interior Ministry spokesman Gen. Khieu Sopheak said that Kem Sokha was detained at the Tropeang Phlong prison facility in Tbuong Khmum province, some 130 kilometers (80 miles) east of Phnom Penh.

He said the next step will be his court appearance to officially face the charges, which carry a prison sentence of 15 to 30 years.

“In the video clip that the government obtained, he has admitted himself that he was trained and received funding from a powerful foreign country to topple the government,” Khieu Sopheak said. “This is a clear crime and there’s no need to make further investigation because he has confessed already,” he added.

In an official statement issued after the arrest, the government said it had obtained a video clip and other evidence indicating “secret plans of a conspiracy between Kem Sokha … and foreigners to harm the Kingdom of Cambodia.”

The statement gave no details but called the actions “treason.”

Kem Sokha’s party said the arrest violated the constitution because he has parliamentary immunity and called on the government to release him.

The administration of Hun Sen, an authoritarian leader who has held a tight grip on power for more than three decades, has put increasing legal pressure on its critics, the media and political opponents ahead of national elections due in July.

Legal threats forced Kem Sokha’s predecessor, Sam Rainsy, to resign this year from the Cambodia National Rescue Party that he had led.

John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch, said the arrest was “an extremely disturbing development and a setback for democracy in Cambodia.”

“The government’s charges lack credibility, given its long record of misusing its legal system to silence or intimidate critics and political opponents,” Sifton said.

Associated Press writer Matthew Pennington in Washington contributed to this report.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. </s> PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Police arrested the leader of Cambodia’s main opposition party in a surprise raid on his home in the capital early Sunday, and the government issued a statement accusing him of treason.

The arrest of Kem Sokha dealt a major blow to the opposition ahead of elections due next year and was sure to raise political tensions in the volatile Southeast Asian country.

The move comes amid a push by the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen, one of the world’s longest serving rulers, to shutter critical news outlets in what analysts say is a bid to strengthen its position before the 2018 vote.

Kem Sokha was taken away in handcuffs after a force of between 100 to 200 officers arrived at his Phnom Penh home around midnight, according his daughter, Monovithya Kem, who is also a member of his Cambodia National Rescue Party.

Monovithya Kem said on Twitter that police showed no warrant for her father’s arrest. She said later that his whereabouts were unknown.

His Cambodia National Rescue Party said the arrest violated the constitution because Kem Sokha has parliamentary immunity and called on the government to release him.

In an official statement issued after the arrest, the government said it had obtained a video clip and other evidence indicating “secret plans of a conspiracy between Kem Sokha … and foreigners to harm the Kingdom of Cambodia.”

The statement gave no details but called the actions “treason.”

The administration of Hun Sen, an authoritarian leader who has held a tight grip on power for more than three decades, has put increasing legal pressure on its critics, the media and political opponents ahead of national elections due in July.

Legal threats forced Kem Sokha’s predecessor, Sam Rainsy, to resign this year from the Cambodia National Rescue Party that he had led.

John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch, said the arrest was “an extremely disturbing development and a setback for democracy in Cambodia.”

“The government’s charges lack credibility, given its long record of misusing its legal system to silence or intimidate critics and political opponents,” Sifton said.

Associated Press writer Matthew Pennington in Washington contributed to this report. </s> Cambodian opposition leader Kem Sokha was arrested in Phnom Penh early on Sunday and the government of veteran Prime Minister Hun Sen said he was accused of treason.

The government said in a statement it had a video clip and other evidence that pointed to "secret plans of conspiracy between Kem Sokha, others and foreigners to harm the Kingdom of Cambodia".

"The above act of this secret conspiracy is treason," the statement said.

Tension has been growing in the Southeast Asian country in the run-up to a general election next year in which the opposition party has been expected to pose a strong challenge to Hun Sen's rule of more than three decades.

Hun Sen is a former Khmer Rouge member who has become one of China's closest regional allies and has been making increasingly strident verbal attacks on the United States.

Kem Sokha's daughter Monovithya Kem, who is also an official in his Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), said on Twitter that Kem Sokha and his bodyguards had been taken away.

"Kem Sokha is in police custody at city hall. Handcuffed. No arrest warrant. After 100-200 police raided and vandalised his home," she said.

Fresh News, a pro-government website, earlier said it had video of Kem Sokha discussing overthrowing Hun Sen with support from the United States.

It showed a picture of him being led away in handcuffs.

Kem Sokha made no immediate comment and it was not clear if he had legal representation at this stage.

Last month Hun Sen's government stepped up attacks on the media, halting broadcasts by some radio stations and ordering an independent newspaper, The Cambodia Daily, to close if it did not pay a $6m tax bill within days.

The government also increased its rhetoric against the United States and ordered the expulsion of the US State Department-funded National Democratic Institute pro-democracy group.

READ MORE: Hun Sen rival Sam Rainsy resigns for 'sake of party'

Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party won local elections in June, although the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party fared reasonably well, increasing expectations of a close contest in the general election.

Kem Sokha took over the party leadership after his predecessor, Sam Rainsy, resigned in February. Rainsy said he quit to save the party in the face of a threatened ban on any party with a leader who has been convicted of a crime.

Rainsy lives in exile in France to avoid a defamation conviction he says was politically motivated. </s> PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodia released eight protesters hours after police detained them for demonstrating against what activists described as the politically motivated imprisonment of a group of rights workers and an election official.

Two of the protesters were foreign men, one Swedish and one German.

They were freed on Monday night after being questioned for supporting rights activists who were jailed over an ongoing sex scandal investigation involving opposition politician Kem Sokha.

“They released us after over 10-hour detention,” Ee Sarom, one of those detained, told Reuters on Tuesday.

A series of legal cases filed against prominent members of the main opposition party have raised tensions in Cambodia, where self-styled strong man Prime Minister Hun Sen has held power for 30 years.

Rights groups have accused the government of using the legal system to neutralize the opposition to give Hun Sen an advantage in the run up to the next general election in 2018.

Sam Rainsy, the leader of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), is in exile to avoid prison on charges that were reactivated last year and for which he had previously received a royal pardon.

Kem Sokha, the party’s acting president in Rainsy’s absence, is facing charges for defamation and procurement of prostitution after recordings of a telephone conversation purportedly between Sokha and a woman were leaked.

Six other people - including a United Nations employee - allegedly paid the woman to deny she had a relationship with Sokha, and are facing trial on bribery charges.

The UN worker has not been detained. </s> PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — A Cambodian court on Monday sentenced an opposition senator to seven years in prison over comments he posted on Facebook criticizing a 36-year-old border agreement with neighboring Vietnam.

Judge Ros Piseth of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court found senator Hong Sok Hour, a member of country’s main opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party, guilty of falsifying public documents, using fake documents and inciting chaos.

Hong Sok Hour and his defense lawyer did not appear before the court, but Son Chhay, an opposition lawmaker who attended the hearing, told reporters that the conviction reflected the court’s lack of independence. “For me, I am already aware that this case is political motivated,” Son Chhay said.

Hong Sok Hour was arrested in August 2015 after Prime Minister Hun Sen accused him of treason for the online posting, which included the purported text of a 1979 treaty with Vietnam that declared that their mutual border would be dissolved. Hun Sen — who was foreign minister at the time in a government installed by a Vietnamese occupation force that invaded Cambodia to oust the murderous Khmer Rouge regime — insisted the treaty was forged.

Hong Sok Hour is the latest opposition figure to run afoul of the law in what activists say is the willful use of the courts to suppress government critics.

The case is one of several hanging over opposition leaders in what is generally seen as an attempt to disrupt their organizing efforts ahead of local elections next June. The next general election is not until the middle of 2018, but holding power at the local level is an advantage when national polls are held.

On Friday, an appeals court upheld a five-month prison term for opposition leader Kem Sokha’s refusal to twice answer a court summons, in a case involving his alleged mistress, but which his supporters say is politically motivated.

A month ago, another opposition lawmaker, Um Sam Ann, who has been a strong critic of the government’s handling of demarcating the border with Vietnam, was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison for his online postings. </s> Cambodia's Government threatens to crush protests as acting Opposition leader Kem Sokha vows to stay

Updated

For almost four months, Cambodia's acting Opposition leader has chosen to stay within the relative safety of his party's headquarters in Phnom Penh, rather than risk arrest outside on charges many consider politically-motivated.

Key points: Cambodia's acting Opposition leader has been stuck living in a four-storey building in Phnom Penh since May

Kem Sokha was convicted in absentia and sentenced to five months in jail for not attending court

A spokesman for the ruling party says Mr Kem "refuses to accept his own mistakes"

Only a few unusual items have been added to Kem Sokha's room since May — a mattress instead of a desk and a treadmill for exercise.

"This used to be my office, now it's my bedroom," he says, forcing a smile.

Kem Sokha is surrounded by a few private security staff and dozens of supporters, with many thousand more likely to turn up at the four-storey building if police try to arrest the human rights activist-turned-politician.

On September 5, Kem Sokha was convicted in absentia and sentenced to five months in jail for not attending court as a witness in a case against two fellow Opposition MPs.

Their case relates to charges of prostitution against a hairdresser with whom Kem Sokha's had an alleged affair, in what one observer called "a legal fiction that legitimises [the ruling party's] heavy-handed actions".

The sentence is the latest in a long string of legal and physical attacks against the Opposition — the Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP).

CNRP president Sam Rainsy has fled the country on several occasions and currently lives in self-imposed exile.

But Kem Sokha said he will not be running away.

"I already made my decision, not just recently, I must stay here with the people," Kem Sokha said.

When asked about the similarities between his case and that of Julian Assange, Kem Sokha pointed instead to other notable agitators — presumably thinking of Aung San Suu Kyi and Nelson Mandela.

"Yes, I've thought about that [Assange], however some are not just under house arrest but spend 20 or 30 years struggling in jail to achieve democracy and freedom," Kem Sokha said.

The Opposition made significant gains in the 2013 election and stands a real chance of winning the vote in 2018, but few observers believe Cambodia's ruler of 31 years, Hun Sen, will yield power.

'To kill a snake, hit the head'

Kem Sokha is in a tough place politically — trapped between Cambodia's notoriously pliant courts and the accusation he is acting above the law.

He plans to appeal against the charges but that could tie him up in the courts for months, or even years, effectively neutralising him as a political leader.

One option Kem Sokha has floated is mass protests but this was immediately criticised by the ruling party.

"I think his announcement of a mass demonstration is a very poisonous tactic," spokesman for the Cambodian People's Party (CPP) Sok Ey San said.

"He refuses to accept his own mistake and uses the people to shield him."

The prospect of protests appeared to hit a nerve with Prime Minister Hun Sen, who used his newfound love of social media to issue dark warnings.

"I order all competent forces to be ready to get rid of all illegal activities in order to protect the happiness of the people, no matter the cost," Hun Sen wrote on Facebook, according to The Cambodia Daily.

"Hit the snake, hit it right on the head first."

About two hours later, troops mobilised with an estimated 30-40 trucks filled with heavily armed soldiers — including the Prime Minister's feared bodyguard unit — driving slowly past CNRP headquarters.

Some soldiers reportedly stopped to urinate outside the Opposition Party building.

In a similar "exercise" two weeks earlier, several military helicopters circled low over the building, while navy speedboats with mounted machine guns patrolled the Bassac River, which backs on to the property.

"This is a threat, an obvious and grave threat against me," Kem Sokha said.

The Government denied it was trying to intimidate the Opposition.

"It's not necessary for those of us in power to threaten him, if any problem arises with Kem Sokha, we can simply arrest him," Sok Ey San said.

Kem Sokha told the ABC the best way out of this impasse is a "political settlement … between the leaders".

Hun Sen has made similar deals before with Sam Rainsy and former opposition leader Prince Norodom Ranariddh, always at the cost of their political leverage and public esteem.

Concerns raised about escalating 'political tensions' in Cambodia

Australia was once a key player in Cambodia's peace process, as it emerged from the Khmer Rouge and civil war, but now it keeps a lower profile.

While more than a dozen diplomatic leaders have visited Kem Sokha at party headquarters, a planned visit from Australia's Ambassador on September 8 was cancelled.

The embassy said there was a scheduling problem, but the Opposition believes Canberra does not want to upset Cambodia, the only country to accept refugees from Nauru.

However, Australia did join 38 nations in a statement on the political situation in Cambodia addressed to the United Nations Human Rights Council this week.

"We are deeply concerned about the current escalation of political tensions in Cambodia, which threatens legitimate activities by opposition parties and human rights NGOs," the statement said.

"There is particular concern about the appearance that legal action is being disproportionately pursued against critics of the Government."

The statement also noted the assassination of political analyst and rights activist Kem Lay, who was shot dead in July by a man who appeared to get on and then off an undercover policeman's motorcycle, before he was arrested further along the street.

"We note the chilling effect this crime has had upon civil society and independent voices in Cambodia," the UN statement said.

In response, Cambodia's representative suggested it might sever ties with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR).

"We are negotiating to continue the [memorandum of understanding] with the OHCHR, but we do not welcome interference in our political situation," permanent representative of Cambodia to the UN Ney Sam Ol wrote.

Last month, Hong Lim, a Cambodian refugee who is now a Victorian MP, was blacklisted from entering his birth country after he made critical remarks about the Government.

Topics: human, world-politics, government-and-politics, cambodia, asia

First posted
Cambodian opposition leader Kem Sokha is arrested for alleged treason.