Human rights

In the mid-1970s, when the city crashed and burned in a warped socialist uprising led by Communist Party of Kampuchea leader Pol Pot, untold fear gripped the people. Today, although less menacing, the fear is surreal as Covid-19 does a number on the economy. It has resulted ...

Authorities in Vietnam and Laos have arrested several Facebook users on charges related to the coronavirus, with Hanoi punishing posts that challenge official reporting on the pandemic and Vientiane acting against a lockdown violation streamed live. The two arrests in Vietnam come as the Communist Party ...

Writing in Asia Times last year about the state of Cambodia’s media (“A bad day all around for Cambodian media,” published July 2019), I opined: “If the relationship of a journalist to politicians is supposed to be that of a dog to lampposts, as one ...

The coronavirus outbreak casts a shadow over the future of approximately 300,000 soon-to-be graduates this year. The bleak prospect of unemployment and layoffs as the economy staggers back to growth is expected to persist for at least two years. Minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation ...

On the eve of World Press Freedom Day, journalists in Cambodia expressed concern that a new law authorizing a state of emergency to contain the spread of the coronavirus will be used by the government to restrict their ability to work. The “Law on Governing the ...

Thai authorities should immediately stop using “anti-fake news” laws to prosecute people critical of the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Human Rights Watch said today. A state of emergency, slated to go into effect on March 26, 2020, heightens concerns of greater repression of free ...

The Finance Ministry is seeking a lifeline for the 2 million disabled and underprivileged people who are adversely affected by the coronavirus outbreak, says finance permanent secretary Prasong Poontaneat. The ministry is working out the details with the Social Development and Human Security Ministry, which has ...

Legislation authorizing a state of emergency to contain the spread of the coronavirus in Cambodia risks violating the right to privacy, free speech, and peaceful assembly, a United Nations expert said Friday, as lawmakers gave their final approval of the bill. “Emergency measures must be necessary ...

 Myanmar authorities should immediately drop all charges against an editor for broadcasting an interview with an armed group representative, Human Rights Watch said today. On March 30, police arrested and charged Nay Myo Lin, the editor-in-chief of the Mandalay-based Voice of Myanmar, under Myanmar’s overly broad Counter-Terrorism Law for an interview ...

In late January, Cambodia’s Prime Minister, Hun Sen, made a televised statement about the spread of misinformation regarding the COVID-19 virus outbreak originating from Wuhan, China. He also threatened to “kick out” reporters or officials seen wearing a face mask. He said that the real illness ...