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CAMBODIA: Death threat letter sent to television broadcaster

September 12, 2006

[NOTICE: The AHRC have developed a new automatic letter-sending system using the "button" below. However, in this appeal, we could not include e-mail addresses of some of the Cambodian authorities. We encourage you to send your appeal letters via fax or post to those people. Fax numbers and postal addresses of the Cambodian authorities are attached below with this appeal. Thank you.]

URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

13 September 2006
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UA-304-2006: CAMBODIA: Death threat letter sent to television broadcaster

CAMBODIA: suppression of freedom of expression; violation of the right to life; un-rule of law
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that 34 year-old Soy Sopheap, a news analyst for CTN TV in Cambodia, received an anonymous letter that threatened to kill him on 7 September 2006.  Apparently, the letter came from an army general who had been affected by negative press reports which were analyzed and discussed by Soy Sopheap on television.

The letter urged him to stop criticising the military otherwise his life would be in danger. The letter said, “Soy Sopheap! Don’t show off too much! Don't interfere with military affairs.  Military affairs should be left to the military to solve. You know, myself like other generals, if we have many stars, this is because we simply are not ordinary people, we are powerful people. You should not criticize the stars [generals] too much. Be careful about what you say and about your security, young man! I have hated you for so long. You criticise the stars and you'll be dead!” The letter also contained a mobile phone number, 012 92 91 43, but calls made to this number after receiving the letter could not get through.

The letter was found at the bottom of one of the tamarind trees in a section of the pavement across from the National Assembly compound in Phnom Penh. The area has several food stalls which are patronised by journalists and National Assembly staff. The place is nicknamed "the tamarind tree assembly" as journalists gather there every day to share news amongst each other. According to food sellers and National Assembly staff, a taxi driver riding a green Super Cub motorcycle pulled up at the tamarind tree and hung the letter onto it. When asked why he hung the letter there, the man said that someone had hired him to do it and paid him 5000 Riels (US$ 1.25) for the job. He added that he did not know what was inside the letter.

Soy Sopheap has been doing press reviews on the CTN TV channel every morning for several years until the programme was recently dropped. He selected newspaper articles on various issues and analysed main stories that are covered in the press. Over a period of time before the end of that TV programme, he paid more attention to articles covering land disputes between military commanders and poor people, as well as the illegal logging that has gone on in many places across Cambodia. He was also conducting field investigations into some land-grabbing cases and reported his findings and solutions to the prime minister, to whom he had direct access. On this particular issue of land-grabbing, he echoed on his TV programme the prime minister's public statements which warned that any army general, commander or high ranking government official who hurt the people by grabbing their land or engaged himself in illegal logging would be dismissed from their job.

It should be reminded that over the years, land disputes, land grabbing and illegal logging have affected many people in town as well as in the rural areas. It is known that in some places senior army officers and other powerful people are behind all these widely condemned activities. There has been continued protest against these activities. The prime minister has also from time to time issued measures against land grabbers for fears that the protests might degenerate into riots. But these measures are not effective and have been used more to calm down the protests rather than to address the real issue since the land grabbers are often his own supporters.

This death threat to Soy Sopheap is yet another instance of the abuse of power by members the ruling elite, the absence of the rule of law and the continued threat to freedom of expression and press freedom. This has followed a death threat via fax sent to You Saravuth, editor of the Khmer language newspaper Khmer Srolanh Khmer, on June 21 after it had reported on a land-grabbing case in Mondolkiri and Rattanakiri provinces in which Hun To, the prime minister's nephew, and a senior army officer were alleged to be involved. You Sasavuth made a complaint to the police and the court. Hun To summoned him to a meeting and was reported to have intimidated him in that encounter. Hun To then sued You Saravuth for defamation afterwards. You Saravuth felt so threatened that he had to flee the country.

The AHRC strongly condemns this abuse of power by those people in positions of authority, and their threat to life and to freedom of expression and press freedom. We urge the highest level of Cambodian authorities to immediately investigate the death threat to Soy Sopheap and to You Saravuth, and bring their authors to justice. Witnesses to the scene where the letter was placed, the letter itself in the Soy Sopheap case, as well as the fax and reported intimidation in the You Saravuth case should all provide a good lead in those investigations. The progress and results of these investigations should also be made public.

The AHRC also urges donor governments, UN agencies, international aid agencies and the international human rights community to work with the Cambodian government and courts to end this abuse of power by people in position of authority, especially the threat to their lives and to the freedom of expression and press.


SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the relevant authorities listed below calling for an investigation and the arrest of the authors of the letter to Soy Sopheap and of the fax to You Saravuth, as well as for the end to the abuse of power by people in position of authority and their threat to life and to freedom of expression and press. 

To support this appeal, please click:

Sample letter:

Dear_________,

CAMBODIA: Death threat letter sent to television broadcaster

Name of the victims: Mr. Soy Sopheap, 34 year-old television reported for CTN TV;
Mr. You Saravuth, editor of the Khmer Language newspaper Khmer Srolanh Khmer.
Name of alleged perpetrators: Unknown army general, Cambodian Military; Unknown senior army officer, Cambodian Military; Mr. Hun To, nephew to the prime minister
Date of incident: 7 September 2006; 21 June 2006
Place of incident: Phnom Penh, Cambodia. 

It has come to my knowledge that on 7 September 2006, 34 year-old Soy Sopheap who is a news analyst for the CTN TV in Cambodia received an anonymous letter that threatened to kill him. Apparently, the letter came from an army general who had been affected by negative press reports which were analyzed and discussed by Soy Sopheap on television.

The letter urged him to stop criticising the military otherwise his life would be in danger. The letter said, “Soy Sopheap! Don’t show off too much! Don't interfere with military affairs.  Military affairs should be left to the military to solve. You know, myself like other generals, if we have many stars, this is because we simply are not ordinary people, we are powerful people. You should not criticize the stars [generals] too much. Be careful about what you say and about your security, young man! I have hated you for so long. You criticise the stars and you'll be dead!” The letter also contained a mobile phone number, 012 92 91 43, but calls made to this number after receiving the letter could not get through.

The letter was found at the bottom of one of the tamarind trees in a section of the pavement across from the National Assembly compound in Phnom Penh. The area is the place where journalists gather there every day to share news amongst each other. According to food sellers and National Assembly staff, a taxi driver riding a green Super Cub motorcycle pulled up at the tamarind tree and hung the letter onto it. When asked why he hung the letter there the man said that someone had hired him to do it and paid him 5000 Riels (US$ 1.25) for the job. 

As I understand it, Soy Sopheap has been doing press reviews on the CTN TV channel every morning for several years until the programme was recently dropped. Over a period of time before the end of that TV programme, he paid more attention to articles covering land disputes between military commanders and poor people, as well as the illegal logging that has gone on in many places across Cambodia. He was also conducting field investigations into some land-grabbing cases and reported his findings and solutions to the prime minister, to whom he had direct access. On this particular issue of land-grabbing, he echoed on his TV programme the prime minister's public statements which warned that any army general, commander or high ranking government official who hurt the people by grabbing their land or engaged himself in illegal logging would be dismissed from their job.

To my knowledge, this death threat to Soy Sopheap is yet another instance of the abuse of power by members the ruling elite, the absence of the rule of law and the continued threat to freedom of expression and press freedom. This has followed a death threat via fax sent to You Saravuth, editor of the Khmer language newspaper Khmer Srolanh Khmer, on June 21 after it had reported on a land-grabbing case in Mondolkiri and Rattanakiri provinces in which Hun To, the prime minister's nephew, and a senior army officer were alleged to be involved. You Sasavuth made a complaint to the police and the court. Hun To summoned him to a meeting and was reported to have intimidated him in that encounter. Hun To then sued You Saravuth for defamation afterwards. You Saravuth felt so threatened that he had to flee the country.

I join others in strongly condemning this abuse of power by those people in position of authority, and their threat to life and to freedom of expression and press freedom. I therefore request you to immediately investigate the death threat to Soy Sopheap and to You Saravuth, and bring their authors to justice. I believe that the witnesses to the scene where the letter was placed and this letter itself in the Soy Sopheap case, as well as the fax and reported intimidation in the You Saravuth case should all provide a good lead in these investigations. I would appreciate being kept informed of the progress of in the investigations and the results.

I also urge donor governments, UN agencies, international aid agencies and the international human rights community to work with the Cambodian government and courts to end this abuse of power by people in position of authority, especially the threat to their lives and to the freedom of expression and press.

I look forward to your immediate intervention.

_____________


PLEASE SEND LETTER TO:

1. Mr. Samdech Hun Sen
Prime Minister
Cabinet of the Prime Minister
No. 38, Russian Federation Street
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA
Tel: +855-23-21 98 98
Fax: +855-23-36 06 66
E-mail: cabinet1b@camnet.com.kh 

2. Mr. Sar Kheng
Deputy Prime Minister
Minister of Interior
275 Norodom Blvd.
Phnom Penh
Cambodia
Fax/phone : +855-23 72 19 05/72 60 52/72 11 90
E-Mail: info@interior.gov.kh, moi@interior.gov.kh 

3. Mr. Ang Vong Vathna
Minster of Justice
No 240, Sothearos Blvd.
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA
Fax: + 855-23-36 41 19/21 66 22
E-mail: moj@cambodia.gov.kh

4. Gen. Ke Kim Yan
Commander-in-Chief
High Command Headquarters
Royal Cambodian Armed Forces
Kambol
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA

5. Mr. Henro Raken
Prosecutor General
Court of Appeal
No. 14, Boulevard Sothearos
Phnom Penh
Cambodia
Tel: +855-23-21 84 60

6. Justice Chiv Keng
President
Phnom Penh Municipal Court
N° 31, Monireth (St. 217), corner Street 213
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA

7. Mr. Uk Savuth
Prosecutor
Phnom Penh Municipal Court
N° 31, Monireth (St. 217), corner Street 213
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA

8. General Hok Lundy
National Police Commissioner
General-Commisariat of National Police
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA
Tel/Fax: +855-23-21 65 85/22 09 52

9. Ms Margo Picken
Director
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights - Cambodia
N¢X 10, Street 302
Sangkat Boeng Keng Kang I
Khan Chamcar Mon
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA
Tel: +855-23-987 671 / 987 672, 993 590 / 993 591 or +855 23 216 342
Fax: +855-23-212 579, 213 587

10. Prof. Yash Ghai
Special Representative of the Secretary-General for human rights in Cambodia
Attn: Ms. Afarin Shahidzadeh
Room 3-080
OHCHR-UNOG
8-14 Avenue de la Paix
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 91 79214
Fax: +41 22 91 79018 (ATTENTION: SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE CAMBODIA)

11. Mr. Ambeyi Ligabo
Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
c/o J Deriviero
OHCHR-UNOG
8-14 Avenue de la Paix
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9177
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTN: SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION)


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)

   

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-304-2006
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.