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(RFA) – Authorities in Cambodia’s capital violently cracked down on a group of protesters on Friday who were demanding justice for a man shot dead by police at an opposition rally last month, witnesses said.
Security forces forcibly dispersed dozens of villagers and monks who had gathered at the landmark Buddhist temple Wat Phnom for a traditional ceremony to pray for Mao Sok Chan, a 29-year-old father of four who was killed on September 15 during clashes at a major intersection near Kbal Thnal Bridge in Phnom Penh following a massive demonstration by the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP).
“The security forces brutalized us,” complained Tep Vanny, a community leader in Phnom Penh’s Boeung Kak district, where villagers were evicted to make way for luxury developments. “One of them beat me and I almost passed out,” she told RFA’s Khmer Service.
Protest organiser Phea Sothea lamented that security forces were “abusing” people’s right to freedom of assembly.
The Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) said in a statement that the rally started peacefully but “turned into violent clashes with security forces, resulting in at least five people being slightly injured, including a foreign freelance journalist.”
Organizers held the ceremony before a march to a Phnom Penh court where they will present a petition calling for an investigation into the death of Mao Sok Chan, who was shot in the head and nine others injured in clashes on September 15.
More than a month after Mao Sok Chan’s death, authorities have yet to reveal details of their investigation into his case.
The petition also calls for greater independence of the TV station and the removal of censorship to allow it to “accurately report real events happening in Cambodian society,” the Cambodian Center for Human Rights statement said.
Security forces in Phnom Penh’s main district of Daun Penh “prevented the organizers from carrying out their plans” and disrupted the event at Wat Phnom.
“They refused to allow participants and monks to perform a ceremony for Mr. Maw Sozan and tried to confiscate the group’s materials,” the statement said. “Security forces also tried to seize the cameras of journalists and observers who were monitoring the event.”
CCHR said the conflict escalated as participants tried to protect their materials and equipment.
Some members of the group later managed to submit a petition with fingerprints of about 500 people to the court, seeking justice for Mao Sochan and compensation for his family.
His wife, Cheav Sokvy, said she was disappointed that authorities had not released the results of the investigation more than a month after her husband’s death.
Sochi Vi reported for RFA’s Khmer Service. Translated by Yun Samien. Written in English by Parameswaran Ponnudurai.
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