The fundamental human right to freedom of expression is under threat in Cambodia. Yim Sokha, commonly known as Chan Rotana, the former editor of Samleng Yuvachen Khmae (“Voice of Khmer Youth”), was today sent to prison in Phnom Penh after the Supreme Court upheld a sentence of one year’s imprisonment and a heavy fine. He was convicted on charges of “disinformation” following the publication in his newspaper of a satirical article critical of Cambodia’s first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. He is a prisoner of conscience. Another newspaper editor, Hen Vipheak, may also face imprisonment on similar charges. A third newspaper editor facing imprisonment, Thun Bun Ly, was murdered in Phnom Penh on 18 May 1996. Chan Rotana’s predecessor as editor of Samleng Yuvachen Khmae, Nuon Chan, was shot dead in Phnom Penh in September 1994. Their killers have not been brought to justice.
