Cambodia’s first review: A lengthy list of human rights challenges
1 December 2009 12:00 pm

The first Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on Cambodia was conducted by
the UN Human Rights Council in its Working Group session held on
Tuesday 1 December 2009 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva,
Switzerland. During yesterday's 3-hour proceedings, the Cambodian
delegation led by Mr. Ith Rady, Secretary of State of the Ministry of
Justice together with Ambassador Sun Suon of the Permanent
Representative of Cambodia to the UN in Geneva, presented the
achievements and developments of the human rights situation in the
country, extensively focusing in particular on its poverty reduction
strategies and plans. The Cambodian delegation however over-emphasised "its own historical and socio-economic context" as a least developed
country in a post-conflict setting, rather than recognising the reality
of its human rights challenges in a frank and substantive manner.

(Phnom Penh/Geneva, 2 December 2009) The first
Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on Cambodia was conducted by the UN Human Rights
Council in its Working Group session held on Tuesday 1 December 2009 at the
Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. The UPR is a new mechanism that
allows a review of the human rights records of all 192 UN member States once
every four years. During yesterday's 3-hour proceedings, the Cambodian
delegation led by Mr. Ith Rady, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Justice
together with Ambassador Sun Suon of the Permanent Representative of Cambodia to
the UN in Geneva, presented the achievements and developments of the human
rights situation in the country, extensively focusing in particular on its
poverty reduction strategies and plans. The Cambodian delegation however
over-emphasised
‘its own historical and socio-economic context' as a least developed country in
a post-conflict setting, rather than recognising the reality of its human rights
challenges in a frank and substantive manner.

"The
concerns of the international community regarding the gravity of forced
evictions in Cambodia are unequivocal. The Cambodian authorities must
immediately adopt a moratorium on evictions,
until
they are able to guarantee that all relocated families are effectively granted
housing and appropriate compensation"
said Dr.
PUNG
Chhiv Kek, President of
the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights
(LICADHO). 

"We cannot
but question whether the Cambodian delegation was serious when expressing its
hope that the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) will
become a model court for future judicial systems not only in Cambodia but also
for the world. The ECCC have faced persistent allegations of corruption and
political interference undermining the independence of their work. We appeal to
the Cambodian government to sincerely address these problems" said Mr.
Thun
Saray, President of the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association
(ADHOC). 

Meanwhile,
the
member States participating in yesterday's interactive dialogue appreciated some
of the progress made in
Cambodia with respect to economic development, poverty reduction, institutional
frameworks for human rights such as complaints-receiving bodies, abolishment of
death penalty as well as other various initiatives for legislations and legal
reforms. At the same time, a series of concerns
and critical comments were raised on the pressing human rights issues in
Cambodia, inter alia, forced evictions, independence of the judiciary, freedom
of assembly and expression, restriction and intimidation of human rights
defenders, the media and political opponents, pre-trial detention, urban and
rural inequality, violence against women, worst forms of child labour. The
recent lifting
of several Members of Parliament's immunity was also addressed by many
countries. 

"We welcome
those pin-pointing recommendations with regard to the situation of freedom of
expression in the country. We deeply regret however that the Cambodian
delegation merely repeated that freedom of expression is enshrined in the
Constitution as one of the fundamental rights while asserting that the
government would not tolerate social disorder or endangering national unity and
security. We do not see how human rights defenders
who are protecting
fundamental
rights such as land and housing rights with peaceful means, can be perceived as
a threat to social order or national security"
said Mr. Yap Swee Seng, Executive Director of the Asian Forum for Human Rights
and Development (FORUM-ASIA). "We
call on the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) to assist
and monitor the implementation of the UPR Working Group's recommendations by the
Cambodian government." 

Key
recommendations put forward to Cambodia at the UPR Working Group include among
others:

1.     
Fully implement
the 2001 Land Law and institute a moratorium on evictions until safeguards such
as prior consultation, full compensation and access to basic services and
infrastructure in relocation areas can be guaranteed;

2.     
Strengthen the
efforts to protect freedom of expression and the rights of human rights
defenders, journalists and trade unions by safeguarding their freedom of
assembly and association;

3.     
Define the scope
of defamation and disinformation charges to ensure that the recent approved
Penal Code will not be abused to infringe on freedom of
expression;

4.     
Ensure the
independence and impartiality of the judicial system and take measures to ensure
equal access to justice;

5.     
Ensure that all
allegations of corruption are immediately investigated by an independent
mechanism;

6.     
Intensify
its
efforts against domestic and sexual violence against women, inter alia in the context of human
trafficking, by addressing
the root causes of the problems such as gender-based poverty and by developing
gender-sensitive poverty reduction strategies;

7.     
Considering the
current low public expenditure which makes only 3.5 % of the GDP, intensify
public expenditure to enhance the realization of economic, social and cultural
rights,;

8.     
Pay special
attention to the needs of vulnerable groups such as women in rural areas,
children, persons with disabilities, the elderly, indigenous and ethnic
communities by creating necessary conditions for their access to basic
education, medical and other social services;

9.     
Revise the laws
on trade unions and establish a labor court in an effort to guarantee respect
for workers' rights and to provide legal and efficient solutions to labor
disputes;

10. 
Conduct a broad
consultation with civil society in the follow-up process of the UPR outcome and
ensure that the proposed NGO Law does not create more difficulties to the work
environment of civil society;

11. 
Advance the
process of establishing an independent and competent national human rights
institution in line with the Paris Principles and in consultation with all
relevant stakeholders;

12. 
Promote human
rights education and training at all levels including for judges, prosecutors
and government officials;

13. 
Extend a
standing invitation to all special procedures and accept the existing country
visit requests made by the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and
lawyers and the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution
and child pornography. 

The
report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review of Cambodia will be
adopted at the next regular session of the UN
Human
Rights Council in March 2010. "We call on the Cambodian authorities to
publicise and disseminate widely this report and to ensure its follow-up. We
will be closely monitoring whether Cambodia takes genuine steps to implement the
recommendations contained in the report" said Souhayr Belhassen,
President of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).

To read the complete press statement, please click here (pdf).

For inquiries, please
contact:

In Phnom
Penh:

• Cambodian
  League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO),
  Naly Pilorge, +855 23 727 102, [email protected]
• Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association
  (ADHOC), Thun Saray, +855 23218653, [email protected] 

In
Geneva:

• Asian
  Forum for Human
  Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), Giyoun Kim, +41
  22
  740 29 47, [email protected]
• International
  Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Julie Gromellon,
  +41 227001288, jgromellon@fidh.org