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| Thirteen women hastily convicted in May after their arrest in a land demonstration were released from jail on Wednesday, June 27, 2012. (Photo: by Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer) |
Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer | Washington, DC
“If the court system is not independent, impunity and the influence of politicians on the court will continue.”
Sok Khemara hosts “Hello VOA” 05 July, 2012
Last month’s release of 13 women jailed for protesting a housing
development in Phnom Penh was good news for the women incarcerated, but by upholding the lower court’s judgement, the Appeal Court set a bad precedent, observers say.
The Appeals Court did not overturn a guilty verdict hastily handed
the women by Phnom Penh Municipal Court, but released them with time
served, after they were arrested for constructing a house on the Boeung
Kak site of a forced eviction in May.
Analyst Lao Monghay told “Hello VOA” Thursday the Phnom Penh court’s decision had little basis in law. The Appeals Court decision to uphold the judgement—though reduce the sentence—was “a bad example of the Cambodian court, which did not try them based on legal procedures,” he said.
The court “did not find clear evidence, had no witnesses, and so on,”
he said. “And the Appeals Court upheld the Phnom Penh court as making
the right judgement. Then others will do the same, meaning that in the
future they will not need to investigate a great deal but immediately
try them when police arrest them and imprison them.”
That will cause worry among the populace, he said, that they can be immediately imprisoned after their arrest. “This is a bad sign for people in general.”
Even though the women are now free, he said, they are still convicted
of a crime. “Releasing them I don’t think was justice for them all, but
it was compassion,” he said.
The women were arrested as they tried to reconstruct a house at the
Boeung Kak development site following a forced eviction and destruction
of their homes. They were charged with illegally occupying land and
defying local authorities.
Am Sam Ath, head investigator for the rights group Adhoc, said the
charges against them did not fit the act. “What we regret is that
although the Appeals Court decided to let the 13 people out of prison,
it still upheld the verdict of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court,” he said.
“It’s not justice for 13 people who did not commit anything like the
charges.”
Instead, he said, the Appeals Court decision underscored the need for reform in the Cambodian judiciary.
“If the court system is not independent, impunity and the
influence of politicians on the court will continue,” he said. “So NGOs
have urged the government to speed up reform, especially judicial
reform, and make the court independent.”
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