Responding to the fatal shooting of Cambodian-French former opposition MP Lim Kimya in Bangkok, Thailand, Amnesty International’s Interim Regional Deputy Director for Research Kate Schuetze said:
“The unlawful killing of former opposition MP Lim Kimya, who was a vocal critic of the Cambodian government, is deeply alarming.
“Although the circumstances are not yet clear, his death comes as Cambodian authorities continue to violate human rights by silencing opposition voices in Cambodia and outside the country, including in Thailand.
“The Thai government must launch an immediate, impartial, thorough and transparent investigation into Lim Kimya’s killing and bring the perpetrators to justice in a fair trial process without recourse to the death penalty.
“The Thai authorities should uphold their obligation under international law to ensure the security and safety of all individuals, including critics of the Cambodian government, within its territory.”
Background
According to media reports, a gunman shot Cambodian-French former opposition Member of Parliament Lim Kimya on 7 January 2025 as Kimya arrived in Bangkok from the Cambodian city of Siem Reap by bus with his wife and uncle. Thai authorities have reportedly issued an arrest warrant for a former Thai Navy marine in connection with the crime.
Lim Kimya was elected as an opposition MP for the Cambodia People’s Rescue Party in 2013. He remained in Cambodia following the banning of the party in 2017.
Members of the political opposition in Cambodia, including the banned Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) and other banned opposition political party supporters and members, have faced human rights abuses in the country and overseas, with many having been jailed.
In the lead-up to the 2023 Cambodian elections, political opponents of the ruling party were harassed, intimidated, beaten and jailed in mass trials. Party activists were attacked in the streets with metal batons on multiple occasions, with one political activist stabbed to death in 2021 in what many believe to have been a targeted attack.
Cambodian activists outside the country have reported being the subject of violent repression in Thailand including threats, harassment, surveillance and forced return to Cambodia by the Thai government. Most recently six adult refugees and a five-year-old child were forcibly returned from Thailand to Cambodia on 25 November 2024.
Across Thailand, Viet Nam, Cambodia and Laos, regional opposition figures, activists and human rights defenders seeking refuge have faced abductions, enforced disappearances, killings and forced return to places where they face persecution and other serious human rights violations.
Amnesty International and other civil society organizations have repeatedly called on governments in the region and other members of the international community to take action to stem this growing tide of transnational repression. Authorities such as the Thai and Cambodian governments have repeatedly failed to uphold their obligations under international human rights law to conduct prompt, thorough, impartial and independent investigations and hold individuals to account for suspected crimes and other grave human rights violations.