Cambodia’s government has accused Western countries of political interference and arrogance after foreign diplomats expressed concern over a 27-year prison sentence handed to popular opposition leader Kem Sokha after his conviction for treason in what was described as a highly politicized trial.
Kem Sokha, the 69-year-old co-founder of the country’s now-banned opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), was found guilty of hatching a secret plan in collusion with foreign entities to topple the country’s Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has ruled Cambodia with an iron fist for almost 40 years. The United Nations, European Union, Canada, France, Australia, and the United Kingdom all expressed concerns after the sentencing on Friday, while analysts view the treatment of Kem Sokha as symptomatic of Cambodia’s stifled democracy ahead of elections in July that look set to return Hun Sen’s ruling party to another five years in power owing to repression of the political opposition.
Human rights groups say Hun Sen—among the world’s longest ruling leaders of a country—has systematically demolished Cambodia’s political opposition, eroded democratic freedoms guaranteed by the constitution, and has used the country’s courts to stifle his opponents and critics.
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