US ambassador chastises Cambodian government on Human Rights

 US Ambassador Joseph Mussomeli slated the Cambodian government in a reader's letter to The Cambodia Daily, published last Thursday, for eroding Human Rights. " The international community and the Cambodian government have a special interest in ensuring that human rights and democracy are protected in this country, where the population has suffered so grievously from the abuse of fundamental freedoms," the ambassador commented. With these comments, the Joseph Mussomeli backed the criticism of US congressman Jim Leach who blasted the Cambodian government of "backsliding on human rights"

The ambassador was not referring to the bombing of rural Cambodia in 1970-1972 in which hundreds of thousands of Cambodian farmers were massacred, nor of the American culture of impunity which allowed and still allows the criminals responsible for this slaughter to go unpunished.

Neither was he referring to the US support for the Khmer Rouge in the eighties and early nineties. None of these he mentioned as human rights violations, as one would have concluded from his remark that "the tragedy of Cambodia is ultimately a tragedy of human rights."

Instead, he commented on the arrest and prosecution of Cheam Channy for trying to raise an illegal militia to overthrow the government and on the arrest of Mam Sonando for defaming Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen.

US funded human rights groups condemned the judicial procedure against Cheam Channy as unfair and not in line with international standards of justice because of the absence of cross-examination in Cambodian court proceedings and the fact that Cambodia follows the example of its former colonial rulers in that it is a professional judge who examines the guilt of the convict, based merely on documents, rather than a jury based on a spectacular performance. Cheam Channy's defence was that his efforts to raise a militia were in line with the fact that he was defence minister in a "shadow cabinet".

Ambassador Mussomeli did not comment on the formation of the militia, he seemed unaware of the accusations. He however appealed to the government to release Mam Sonando and Rong Chun, who were arrested for defaming the Prime Minister when they accused him of "selling Cambodian territory to Vietnam", even before the nature of the border agreements between Cambodia and Vietnam were made public.

"We strongly believe that the use of criminal defamation charges against people who speak out on important public policy issues does not support the rule of law," the ambassador wrote.

While criticising the Cambodian government for human rights violations, he did not comment on the secret overseas CIA prison network, referred to as "black sites" in classified White House, CIA, Justice department and congressional documents, reported in the Washington Post. Very likely, he does not regard holding captives in secret prisons without access to justice as a human rights violation. When Vice President Dick Chainy and CIA director asked congress to exempt CIA employees from legislation that would bar cruel and degrading treatment of any prisoner in US custody, there was probably no human rights issue involved neither.

Maybe, Prime Minister Hun Sen should take some lessons from the US administration in the proper way to uphold respect for human rights. It is all so very easy, once you understand how to make people legally disappear.

About the author:

The author lives and works in Cambodia since more than 10 years. Currently he lectures Cultural studies un the CUP university in Phnom Penh. Besides his academic job, he maintains the website of Taxi Vantha, a Phnom Penh taxi company, in which he publishes information about Cambodia and comments on current news issues.

 Marc Vanhemelryck

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