Phnom Penh (AsiaNews) – Cambodia's highest court today upheld the ban on Rong Chhun, an opposition politician and one of the (few) critics of the country’s leaders, while suspending his prison sentence, his lawyer announced.
Rong was sentenced on 5 May to four years in prison for “incitement”, reduced to three years and suspended. A senior advisor with the Nation Power Party (NPP), he is one of the few dissident voices remaining in the country opposed to the stranglehold exerted by the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) of Prime Minister Hun Manet.
His "crime" was meeting with residents of several villages negatively impacted by massive development projects, including the new international airport near the capital, Phnom Penh.
The NPP is the only political party with sizable support that could challenge the CPP, and for this reason, its members are subjected to legal action and intimidation.
Indicted on a charge often used by Cambodian authorities against activists, Rong was banned from voting, running for office, and holding public office for the next five years.
He filed an appeal on Monday, and the Supreme Court responded today suspending his prison sentence, but upholding the ban that prevents him from voting and running for the NPP leadership, this according to lawyer Em Chantha, speaking to journalists.
The court case began in 2024, after he met with victims of land disputes and spoke about Prime Minister Hun Manet's visit to a region bordering with Vietnam.
“It is an unjust ruling,” Rong told reporters outside the courthouse. In his view, this is an attempt by Cambodia's rulers to keep him out of the 2027 local elections and the 2028 general election.
“Just by today, I know that I am influential, that the rulers dare not to grant me freedom to compete in upcoming elections in 2027 and 2028,” he said.
He plans to consult with his legal team to decide what course of action to take, including a possible application for a royal pardon. “We are not running out of hope yet,” he said.
Some 200 supporters gathered near the barriers erected by police in front of the courthouse, chanting slogans and songs, including “drop the charge against Rong Chhun”.
“It is unacceptable for the supporters. We want him to have freedom, democratic space, and national reconciliation,” supporter Prum Chantha told AFP.
Activists and human rights groups have long accused the Cambodian government of using the law to silence opposition voices and legitimate domestic political dissent.
Opposition leader Kem Sokha, who was sentenced to 27 years for treason, was pardoned in May, but his political rights, including the right to hold public office, as well as the right to vote, were revoked.
