CAMBODIA: A military police officer threatened a woman journalist in Kompong Thom province

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding threat of a journalist by military police captain on 27 November 2007. The journalist was interviewing with military police commander Lork Vong of Sandan district in Kampong Thom province regarding a brawl involving two military police officers. While the journalist was interviewing, a military police captain was wire-tapping the conversation, cut in and threatened her saying, “Do the job properly, otherwise I will break your legs”. The journalist has since feared for her safety and security due to this threat.

CASE DETAILS:

At around 7:35am on 28 November 2007, Ms. Som Sithavry, a journalist from the Khmer-language newspaper Kampuchea Thmei, conducted a phone interview with the military police commander Lork Vong of Sandan district in the same province from her house. Her house is located at 6 kilometers from Kampong Thom City, the capital of Kampong Thom province. She had wanted to check with that commander the veracity of the story before she wrote it.

The story was about a brawl that occurred on November 27 and involved two military police officers. One officer is Ky from Sandan district whom Lork Wong assigned to keep law and order at a ceremony and dance party in the night of 27 November in Yeak Teay village, Khleng commune, Sandan district. The other, Ron from the neighbouring district Prasat Sambor was off duty and went to join the ceremony with a few villagers one of whom carried his rifle. Some people got drunk, started to quarrel and had a brawl which drew in both Ky and Ron who pointed their guns at each other. Villagers managed to stop and separate both of them in time before any shot was fired. Nevertheless, the armed confrontation between the two officers was very frightening to villagers who were taking part in the ceremony and the dance.

Lork Vong was at the provincial military police headquarters in Kompong Thom City when he received Som Sithavry’s call. While she was in the middle of interviewing, a military police captain Bun Thy Soon, head of the crime investigation bureau of the provincial military police, wire-tapped this phone call. During the interview, Bun Thy Soon suddenly cut in and threaten her with saying “do your job properly; don’t do anything stupid; abide by journalism ethics; otherwise, I’ll break your legs.”

Lork Vong also heard the threat while he was confirming the veracity of the story of the brawl. A few moments after the end of the interview, he called Som Sithavry to tell her that the threat was not from him; it was from Bun Thy.

Som Sithavry has since then had fear for her safety and security. She has been very worried about that threat as she is a woman and has to travel around in the province where there have been previous threats to journalists.

The AHRC holds that Military Police Captain Bun Thy’s tapping of Ms Som Sithavry is a violation of her right to privacy, and his threat against her is a violation of her right to security and is also a violation of press freedom. All these rights are guaranteed and protected by the constitution of Cambodia. Observance of and respect for them are part of that country’s international human rights obligations by virtue of its adherence to all human rights norms and standards.

Action should be taken against Bun Thy. Effective measures should also be taken to put an end to all intimidation and threats against Ms Som Sithavry and other journalists, and to protect press freedom in Cambodia.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

Earlier in June, a Radio Free Asia reporter named Lem Pichpisey received a death threat through his mobile phone after he reported on the illegal logging activities and massive deforestation in that province. Lem Pichpisey had to go into hiding for some time before resuming his journalism (See further; UP-088-2007, UP-148-2007).

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

In Cambodia there are two different police forces to keep law and order. They are doing basically the same job. One force is called the national police. This force is a civilian force though its members have the same ranks as members of the army. It is placed under the Ministry of Interior. It is organized, in descendant order, in provincial units headed by provincial police commissioners, district units headed by police inspectors and commune units headed by police chiefs.

The other force is the military police which is a department of the Ministry of National Defence, but for all intents and purposes, it is under the direct command of the prime minister. It is organized in provincial units headed by commanders and district units also headed by commanders. Its members are army officers. They are better trained, better equipped and rougher in dealing with the public than their counterparts in the national police. People fear them more than national police officers. They wear military uniform, and they apply military discipline in their job.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send your letters to the authorities listed below to call for action against the military police captain Bun Thy, for an end to all intimidation and threats against Ms Som Sithavry and other journalists, and for protection of press freedom in Cambodia. The AHRC is writing a separate letter to the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for human rights in Cambodia calling for intervention into this case.

To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER