PHNOM PENH: Cambodia accused western countries on Saturday of political interference and arrogance after several governments condemned a 27-year prison sentence handed to opposition leader Kem Sokha for treason.
The 69-year-old co-founder of the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) was accused of hatching a secret plan in collusion with foreign entities to topple longtime Prime Minister Hun Sen.
The United States characterised Friday’s conviction and sentence as a “miscarriage of justice” based on a “fabricated conspiracy”.
The United Nations, European Union, France, Australia and the United Kingdom also expressed concerns about the case and Cambodia’s ailing democracy ahead of July polls.
But the foreign ministry dismissed the condemnation as “prejudiced and hypocritical” and denied there were political motives at play.
“Crime is a crime, and it cannot be justified for other aspirations,” a foreign ministry spokesperson said in a statement sent to journalists on Saturday.
The trial was conducted transparently, the spokesperson said, defending the veracity of the evidence.
The ministry accused foreign envoys of a political narrative potentially based on “delusion or arrogance” and said diplomats had a duty not to meddle in internal affairs.
“Cambodia remains steadfast in holding July’s general elections in a free, fair, just and transparent manner,” the spokesperson added.
Kem Sokha — who denies the charges against him — was immediately placed under house arrest and barred from speaking to people outside his family.
He has one month to launch an appeal.
His daughter Kem Monovithya said Saturday her parents’ internet and phone services had been cut off.
“He is calm and committed to finding justice and hoping to reverse this course,” she told AFP, adding the verdict had been somewhat expected.
Asked if the family were hopeful for a political deal to free her father, she said there had been unsuccessful discussions for three years.
“I call on the international community to respond with actions, lip service has not worked,” she said.
Rights groups say Hun Sen — one of the world’s longest serving leaders — has wound back democratic freedoms and used the courts to stifle political opponents.
Two months after Kem Sokha’s arrest in 2017, the Supreme Court dissolved the CNRP, once considered the sole viable opponent to the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP).
That paved the way for the CPP and Hun Sen to win all 125 parliamentary seats in 2018, turning the country into a one-party state.
Scores of opposition figures were convicted of treason last year and Hun Sen ordered the shutdown of Voice of Democracy, one of the country’s few remaining local independent media outlets last month.
