A Change of Guard

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Wednesday 4 February 2015

NGOs, Media Groups Slam Cambodia Over State Secrets Draft Law

cambodia-em-sam-an-draft-law-jan-2015.jpg
Ministry of Interior secretary of state Em Sam An (C, seated) chairs a meeting with Vietnamese defense officials to discuss a draft law to protect state secrets, Jan. 28, 2015.
 Photo courtesy of the National Police Commission
Nongovernmental organizations and media watchdogs in Cambodia have expressed concern that a proposed law to protect state secrets being drafted with assistance from neighboring communist Vietnam could be used to silence dissidents and the media.

Opposition lawmakers also slammed the proposed legislation, which they said could be used by Prime Minister Hun Sen’s ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) to stifle leaks about official corruption and other political information the public has a right to know.

Cambodia’s National Police Commission announced on its website last week that the Ministry of the Interior was drafting the law “to ensure that state secrets are well protected” after meeting with Vietnamese defense officials on Jan. 28, and was pushing for its approval.

Am Sam Ath, senior investigator for local rights group LICADHO, said the proposed law could allow the CPP to prosecute opposition activists and violate human rights.

He urged the government to hold a discussion about the draft law with NGOs before submitting it to the Council of Ministers and the National Assembly, or parliament, for approval.

“There must be a good discussion concerning the law to make sure that it will not negatively affect the rights of the people,” he recently told RFA’s Khmer Service.

Moeun Chheannarith, director of the Cambodian Institute for Media Studies, said he supports the move as long as the law complies with the constitution.

But he warned that the law could easily be used to rein in press freedom and the freedom of expression.

“If the draft law doesn’t have a clear definition, it will be interpreted to serve certain political purposes or to prosecute dissidents and reporters,” he told RFA.

“This law is a challenge for the press,” he said.

Following last week’s announcement, National Police Commission spokesman Kieth Chantharith was quoted on the panel’s website as saying that “the Vietnamese Ministry of Defense and [Cambodia’s] Ministry of Interior had worked together to draft the law.”

He said the Ministry of Interior was also working on a draft law which would prevent against faked or doctored documents, adding that it plans to dispatch 100 senior officials to Vietnam to study encryption and forgery practices for five years, before sending another group of 100 for a three-year program.

The National Police Commission website did not provide a reason for why the ministry believed a law to protect state secrets was necessary.

RFA was unable to reach Ministry of Interior spokesman Khieu Sopheak for further comment.

Political motives

Opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) lawmaker Son Chhay told RFA he believes the CPP had pushed for the draft law because Hun Sen was concerned about information from cabinet meetings being leaked to the public.

He said the new law would also prevent the media from using information about official corruption.

“The law will prevent public information from reaching the people,” he said.

“It will lead to corruption and violations of the constitution.”

The Phnom Penh Post recently quoted Sok Touch, a political analyst, as saying he supported a law to protect state secrets as long as it was clearly drafted in “the national interest.”

“But if a neighbouring country like Vietnam is involved in drafting, I don’t really understand how that [would help protect] state secrets,” he added.

The Post also quoted CNRP lawmaker Mu Sochua as saying that her party would not support any law that “would violate the fundamental right to information.”

She called the draft law “against the principle of democracy,” especially if it has been undertaken in tandem with communist Vietnam, which she said had “taken strong measures under so-called national security [purposes].”

Press Freedom in Vietnam

In its annual Press Freedom Index, released in December last year, Paris-based press freedom group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said that independent news providers in Vietnam are subject to enhanced Internet surveillance, draconian directives, waves of arrests and sham trials.

Vietnam is currently the world's largest jailer of bloggers and social media dissidents, it said, with 34 bloggers currently in detention of some kind.

It cited a decree issued by Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party last year banning bloggers and social media users from sharing news.

Reported by Van Vicha and Samean Yun for RFA’s Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

You must be fooled. I am very unfortunate to have such fucking stupid leaders running my country like you all. You are giving my country away to Yuon.