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Cambodian dissident jailed for 'insurrection'
Agence France Presse - July 17, 2012
Mam Sonando, owner of the independent station Beehive, was arrested on Sunday, on charges including insurrection, which is punishable by up to 15 years in prison, and inciting people to take up weapons against state, his lawyer Sok Sam Oeun told AFP.
He has been accused of masterminding a plot to establish an autonomous region in the eastern province of Kratie, the scene of violent land rights protests. A teenage girl was shot dead there in May when security forces clashed with demonstrators.
Sonando, the 71-year-old president of campaign group the Association of Democrats, has denied the accusations. If convicted on all charges he could face a maximum of 30 years in prison, according to his lawyer.
He was arrested previously in 2003 and 2005 for his political activities and defaming the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen, the 60-year-old strongman who has ruled Cambodia since 1985 and has vowed to remain in power until he is 90 years old.
Sonando's detention came just two days after US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton concluded an official visit to Cambodia. He was placed in pretrial detention on Monday afternoon, according to his lawyer.
"Sonando's arrest on the heels of Clinton's visit is a brazen signal that Hun Sen thinks that the US wants his cooperation on other matters so much that he isn't afraid to lower the boom on his critics," said Brad Adams, Asia Director of the New York-based NGO Human Rights Watch.
The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee, a coalition of 22 local organizations, also urged the authorities to immediately free Sonando and thus "save the country's reputation," saying his arrest lacked legal grounds.
Activists say land conflict is Cambodia's most pressing human rights issue. Protests have intensified this year and campaigners say the authorities are increasingly cracking down on dissent.
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