Cambodia at a Crossroads: New Laws Would Limit Freedoms
- Autores: Michael Switow
- Localización: Global Education Magazine, ISSN-e 2255-033X, Nº. 10, 2014
- Idioma: inglés
- Enlaces
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Resumen
I recently returned from an international solidarity mission to Cambodia, where so many of the issues that progressive rights-based civil society origanisations campaign on slap you right in the face:
Land grabs: Nearly 750,000 people have lost their homes and land since 2000, according to a brief filed at the International Criminal Court.
Decent Work: Garment workers – who produce shirts, trousers and more for well-known brands – make just US$100/month. They are fighting for a living wage of US$177, yet protestors have been viciously beaten and jailed.
Gender: Most of the exploited garment workers are women. At the same time, human trafficking – particularly of women and girls – is a huge issue.
Lack of respect for human rights and shrinking space for civil society: Activists and protestors have been viciously beaten and jailed. Restaurants, hotels and other public venues often succumb to political pressure and refuse to rent space to CSOs, making it difficult for them to organise.
Proposed laws would criminalise social media posts that those in power do not like. (The official language restricts Facebook and other posts that “hinder the sovereigny and integrity” of the state.).
Lack of Transparency: Three judicial laws were passed this year after just 7 minutes of parliamentary debate.
No Accountability: The Royal Government of Cambodia accepted over 100 recommendations in a recent UN Universal Periodic Review, but shows no sign of implementing them.
Greed and gross inequality: Companies directly linked to politicians and government cronies dominate the economy and are behind land evictions meant to free up space for condos, shopping plazas and other developments.
The most recent news from Phnom Penh seems to indicate that the Royal Government of Cambodia will shelve the Cybercrime law for now, instead relying on regulation, wiretapping (of phones and the internet) and the establishment of a new ‘Cyber War Team’ to monitor social media to “protect the government’s stance and prestige”.
Yet in the face of all this, the activists and families that we met remain optimistic and continually take a stand to reclaim their rights. GCAP Cambodia is participating in the action/2015 campaign, under the banner “iMove Against Corruption and Impunity”. And the international solidarity mission aims to shine a spotlight on the government actions, while advocating for positive change.
What follows is the media release containing the observations and recommendations of our international solidarity mission.
