Paris Peace Agreement (PPA) activist Srun Srorn and three others, were arrested by the Siem Reap Provincial Police on July 23 after posting a live video discussing the cooperation between the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam (CLV) development triangle area (DTA). Former Prime Minister Hun Sen later went on a special live session to clarify the “accusation” by the activists.

National Police spokesperson Chhay Kim Khoeun confirmed that four people were arrested, consisting of PPA activist Srun Srorn, Pheung Sophea, San Sith and Chak Ban Mony. They were sent to Phnom Penh and taken in for questioning.

He told CamboJA News that the four people were involved in incitement to cause social unrest on Monday in Siem Reap.

Hun Sen, now Senate president, went live on Facebook to confirm the arrest of the activists whom he said “twisted” the issue and accused Cambodia’s leaders for ceding territories in northeast provinces to Vietnam.

The verification came after public and opposition groups abroad took to Facebook to disagree with Cambodia’s alleged ceding of four provinces – Stung Treng, Ratanakiri, Mondulkiri, and Kratie – to Vietnam as part of CLV-DTA.

“There are no agreements relating to Cambodia ceding [its] territory, apart from socio-economic and security of national defense where each party has to control their territory and ensure that development of connectivity complemented each other,” Hun Sen said.

“I would like to announce that we have already arrested three people,” he said, pointing out that the arrest of Srun Srorn and the other three was a result of their twisting the situation.

“There was a twist [of the facts] in the last few days that cannot be tolerated. Anyone who has twisted the facts has accused leaders of Cambodia, especially myself and Prime Minister Hun Manet as traitors for ceding territory from four provinces to Vietnam.”

“The accusation is very insulting and cannot be pardoned. I ask the court, if there was a conviction, it should be a maximum sentence. [As for the] Justice Ministry and Prison Department, please do not consider reducing and pardoning the sentence. Please make sure they serve in prison until they complete the jail term,” he said.

He has also ordered the Commerce Ministry to prepare the documents relating to the CLV agreement for evidence in court against the four.

In March this year, Commerce Minister Cham Nimul, and chairwoman of CLV DTA participated in the signing ceremony of the minutes of the 13th CLV Joint Coordination Committee, which was hosted in Lao. The minutes were preliminary documents with the aim of continuously promoting social-economic development, economic cooperation and keeping a closer relationship for the heads of government of the three countries.

Hun Sen explained that five agreements were previously signed, including a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which focused on the promotion of commercial development triangle areas, commercial trade exchanges and land transportation along the Vietnamese border. There was also an MoU on land transportation services with Laos and Vietnam, and other MoUs signed between government institutions.

He said the CLV agreement was different from the ones signed by “traitor” Sam Rainsy, which allegedly ceded northern provinces to Kork Ksor of the US-based Montagnard Foundation. The agreements also included articles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People on minorities’ self-determination rights.

Hun Sen underscored that Cambodia does not have Montagnard indigenous people and a leader by the name of Kok Ksor. He added that Cambodia’s indigenous people exercised their rights as stipulated in the constitution and other Cambodian laws.

“I would like to inform you that even if there is change in the prime minister and power in [hand] the prime minister, Hun Sen​ ‘s power still exists on the back of the ruling party and as the president of the Senate,” he asserted.

“Even [I] have no right to issue orders but we still have influence in domestic and international affairs. I have not quit politics,” he said. “No rebel force activity [can] happen in Cambodia, you can wait and see,” Hun Sen said.

Interior Ministry spokesperson Touch Sokhak told CamboJA News that PPA activists were arrested for posting live on social media and analyzing the CLV-DTA issue, and accusing the government of carving out four provinces to another country, which led to social unrest and confusion.

It was a criminal offense when they talked and analyzed “something that was not true” and “different from the principle of law”. It was incitement and caused social unrest.

He said the arrest was directed by the Siem Reap provincial court prosecutor.

“What they did was not an expression, but a red line that counts as a criminal offense, and can result in major issues involving territorial integrity that could lead to chaos,” he said.

San Sith’s wife, Svay Pov, told CamboJA News that she was not at home when her husband was arrested. But she knew that Srorn and Sophea went live on Facebook at 7.30 a.m and ended the session around 8.30 a.m. Around 9.30 a.m, her niece called to tell her that about 10 policemen in two cars and two motorbikes came to arrest Sith and other PPA activists.

Once she got home, they had already been brought to the commune police post, while there were still three police officers at her home. Pov asked them why they were there, to which they replied they were ordered to be there.

She then went to the commune police post and asked a police officer why they arrested her husband but was told that her husband did not do anything wrong. They also told her that the people who made a live video at her home also “did not do anything wrong” because they only spoke about the PPA.

But the police informed Pov that “only a man with a beard did something wrong”. The man mentioned by the police was Srorn. The police asked PPA activists to delete the live video.

After that, the police called her to the back to talk, but a few minutes later, they brought her husband and Srorn to the commissariat of the Siem Reap Province Police and received information that they had been sent to Phnom Penh.

With regards to the CLV development area, Pov said Srorn talked about its positive and negative aspects, not just the negative aspect.

“If [the government] focuses on the negative side, there would be no solution,” she said. “If that’s an incitement, it is not right.”

“It [the arrest] violated human rights,” she added.

Hang Sengheng, a citizen who learned about the PPA from Srorn, told CamboJA News that when she arrived at the commissariat police, she and other supporters saw the PPA activists but were not allowed to meet them.

The three of them arrived at the provincial police commissariat around 11.15 a.m.

About 30 minutes later, the police told her that the three of them were being sent to Phnom Penh and there was no need to wait. She saw a black car leaving at 11.40 a.m, but she did not know whether they were in the car.

“I did not see [the three PPA activists] with my own eyes, but I saw a black police car drive away, but we did not see their faces,” she said. “There are about 10 of us at the commissariat. We have not gone home yet because we have not seen him [Srorn].”

She said the police did not tell her the reason why they arrested PPA activists, although she asked the police why they were not allowed to meet them. The police told her that if the case was related to drugs or an accident, it was okay, but the PPA activists’ case was related to a national issue.

“Whenever he [Srorn] speaks, he always addresses the positive and negative sides; he highlights them so that people can consider the issue themselves,” she added.

Another citizen, who learned about PPA from Srorn, Eak Norin, said he too did not know the reason why they were arrested, but if the arrest was related to knowledge about the law, it was a “tragedy” which should not happen in a democratic society.

He added that Srorn always taught citizens national and international law.

“He [Srorn] explained the cause and effect, which was according to the law. If his arrest was based on the issue of the triangle between Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos, I think that is a serious violation of rights,” Norin said.

Meanwhile, Hun Sen confirmed that he was invited to establish CLV-DTA in 1999, which had the support of Laos and Vietnam.

It initially covered 13 border provinces within the three countries. In Cambodia, border provinces Stung Treng, Ratanakiri, Mondulkiri and Kratie, were part of the CLV-DTA.

Hun Sen added that Cambodia will discuss with Laos to include Preah Vihear province as part of CLV to boost the economy.