This Week in Human Rights News

In Cambodia, Covid-19 laws have been misused against human rights workers

Sources: Al Jazeera (1, 2), Amnesty International, UNHCR, Radio Free Asia, European Parliament

In Cambodia, human rights activists continue to face increased scrutiny from governmental authorities. In some cases, they have even faced legal trouble over arbitrary charges. 

Recently, Covid-19 law has been used to prevent a human rights worker from carrying out efforts to collect aid information. Al Jazeera reported an incident where an NGO aid worker was detained for violating Covid-19 law after traveling to a “banned region” in order to document the names of people who may need food assistance. After five hours of detainment, the aid worker was released after signing a document agreeing to cease further information gathering in the region.  

Covid-19 law in Cambodia grants a significant amount of power to the government, such as allowing the government to prohibit any kind of gathering or demonstration. In April, UN experts urged Cambodia to reconsider their approach to preventative Covid-19 measures. The UN statement also followed a December 2020 statement in response to the Cambodian government doxing people who had tested positive for Covid-19.

Beyond Covid-19 law, other extensions of legal power have been used to silence and target activists. For example, earlier this year, environmental activists that attempted to gather evidence of illegal logging were arrested and detained. 

Activists also face risks beyond legal trouble. In June 2020, Thai activist Wanchalearm Satsaksit was abducted in Cambodia’s capital, Phnom Penh, one day after he had criticised Thailand’s prime minister on social media. Satsaksit is still missing. Cambodian authorities have not yielded any results from investigations, with human rights groups and Satsaksit’s sister still asking for answers.