Cambodia Opposition Leader Kem Sokha's Treason Trial Resumes After Suspension

2020-02-26 -- The treason trial for Cambodian opposition leader Kem Sokha resumed Wednesday after being suspended since last week after the defense protested not being allowed to respond to new evidence presented by the prosecution without their prior knowledge.

In Phnom Penh's Municipal Court, the debate over the new evidence resumed Wednesday and lasted for about one hour, before the court asked the two sides to stop and focus on events starting in 2012, when the Cambodian National Rescue Party was established, up until Sept. 3, 2017, the day Kem Sokha was arrested.

Prosecutor Vong Bunvisoth asked the defendant to explain the reasons he established the CNRP and to discuss what went down at a meeting between Kem Sokha and Sam Rainsy in the Philippines, when the pair announced the mergers of their respective parties to form the CNRP, according to his defense team.

Kem Sokha told the court that the merger between the Sam Rainsy Party and his Human Rights Party was to prepare for the approaching national election, the lawyers said.

The prosecutor asked him how the CNRP was funded, to which Kem Sokha replied there was no funding from non-Cambodians. He added that foreign actors did not help with or advise on the merger of the two parties.

Following the proceedings on Wednesday, defense lawyer Chan Chen told reporters that he requested that the judge allow questioning of the defendant five days per week because answering them all would take considerable time, but the judge denied the request.

"There are some who believe that the defense is simply buying time. So to prove that we don't want to buy time, we requested that the court meet five days per week from 8 to 11 a.m. then 2 to 5 p.m.," the lawyer said.

"We are sad that our requests were denied," Chan Chen added.

Chan Chen told RFA's Khmer Service that the trial was purely political and should be resolved by politicians.

"This is a political conflict," said the defense lawyer.

"We want to see politicians talk and have their moment of national reconciliation, so that they country can focus on development for the sake of the country," he said.

In a speech on Tuesday, Prime Minister Hun Sen said the trial of Kem Sokha would proceed despite the fact that Cambodia will lose its tariff-free status in the EU's Everything But Arms (EBA) scheme for developing countries.

The EU earlier this month suspended tariff-free access for one-fifth of Cambodia's exports over Phnom Penh's rollbacks on democracy and human rights, symbolized by the treatment of Kem Sokha.

"Today, I want to give you the truth. Cambodia will not walk backward from this traitor's trial. You must receive your punishment, we can't simply forgive you," said Hun Sen.

The strongman, who has ruled Cambodia since 1985, had previously warned that sanctions from the EU would kill the possibility of any opposition party in Cambodia.

Seoung Sen Karona, a spokesperson for the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC), told RFA that the judges and government lawyers asked questions they had already asked, and wasted time.

He said the court should consider the request by the defense, adding that the prosecution's repeating questions will only serve to cause the trial to last longer than it needs to.

"We don't want to see them asking the same questions again and again. It will delay the trial," Seoung Sen Karona said.

We would like the trial procedure to be amended so it will be over with faster," he said.

The trial will resume on Thursday.

Reported by RFA's Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Eugene Whong.

Copyright © 1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content February not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.