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After UN Visit, Increased Stakes for Tribunal Credibility
Following the visit of the UN’s top legal representative to Cambodia last week, the Khmer Rouge tribunal is facing increased pressure to regain its credibility, court observers say. Patricia O’Brien, flew to Phnom Penh last week to warn Cambodian officials to refrain from speaking against two cases before the investigating judges. Continue reading
Journalists Fear Media Environment of Self-Censorship
Journalists in Cambodia are currently facing problems of self-censorship, lawsuits and a competitive market, media experts said Thursday, but they said news organizations must continue to hold to principles of professional and a duty to the public. The trend in oppression of Cambodian journalists have shifted from street attacks, threats of violence and murder to one of punitive legal measures by powerful interests, Mean Chhean Narith, director of the Cambodia Institute for Media Studies, told “Hello VOA.” In recent years, journalists have had to face a number of lawsuits or jail terms, especially under a criminalized defamation law. This has created an environment where journalists self censor by avoiding issues like corruption and human rights abuses, he said Continue reading
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Tagged Cambodia, court, international, internet, media-studies, news, truth
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Prosecution of Khmer Rouge Leaders Concludes Preliminary Stage
The Khmer Rouge’s former head of state has promised to tell the truth about his country’s descent into destruction under the top leader Pol Pot. His trial, along with three more leaders for genocide and other serious crimes, will begin hearing testimony later this year. Robert Carmichael reports from Phnom Penh. Continue reading
For Filmmaker, Truth Will Be Hard for the Court
As a trial of Khmer Rouge leaders moves forward, a journalist and filmmaker who spent years with regime leaders warns of the elusive nature of truth. Speaking on an extra “Hello VOA” Tuesday, Thet Sambath, who conducted extensive interviews over more than 10 years with Nuon Chea and other Khmer Rouge cadre, said the court is facing a huge mandate of truth while only pursuing a case against four top leaders. “There were not just a few Khmer Rouge leaders involved in starvation, torture and killing,” he said. Continue reading
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Tagged association, Cambodia, government, issues, khieu-samphan, khmer, khmer-rouge, killing, learn-the-truth, news, really-involved, sambath, truth, victims, work
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‘Red Wedding’ Shows Lasting Scars of Forced Marriage
A new documentary film premiered in Phnom Penh on Thursday reveal forced marriages ordered by the Khmer Rouge ahead of the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s initial hearing of its four senior leaders late this month. Red Wedding, which last 58 minutes, follows the current life of a woman who is bitterly describing her sufferings during the Khmer Rouge period when she was forced to marry one of their soldiers. Her unwanted husband raped her under the Khmer Rouge’s orders, she said in the film. Continue reading
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Tagged clarification, khmer-rouge, news, person, sokchan, story, tears, time, tribunal, truth, victims, wedding
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Hip-Hop Artist Prach Ly Joins ‘Freedom-to-Write’ Festival
[Editor’s note: Cambodian hip-hop star Prach Ly has joined writers and playwrights at Brown University, in the US city of Providence, Rhode Island, for a three-day festival to celebrate the literature and culture of Cambodia, as well as free speech. “Khmer Voices Rising,” which is sponsored by the university, will include discussions and readings with writers from Cambodia, Vietnam and the US, among other events. Prach Ly spoke with VOA Khmer by phone from Providence on Tuesday.] What do you think about the International Freedom-to-Write Festival? Continue reading
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Tagged Cambodia, event, freedom, international, songs, truth, words, write-festival
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