Uwazi

Two organisers of the protest held by Amanah against the rising prices of goods were questioned by police today, with eight more summoned to give their statements tomorrow.

Amanah communications director Khalid Samad confirmed that he had given his statement at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters at 10am today in connection with the protest yesterday at Kampung Baru.

“Yes, I chose to go after they summoned me. The police asked about my role in the protest and who else was present,” he told FMT.

The former federal territories minister said besides providing his contact details to the police, he responded to every other question with “I choose to reply in court”.

Fadhli Umar Aminolhuda of the party’s legal bureau told FMT that besides Khalid, DAP central executive committee member Sheikh Umar Bagharib Ali had also been quizzed by the police today.

Others scheduled to be questioned at the Dang Wangi police headquarters at 10am tomorrow are Amanah vice-president Adly Zahari, secretary-general Hatta Ramli, Selangor state exco Izham Hashim, mobilisation bureau director Sany Hamzan, Amanah Youth chief Hasbie Muda, Permatang Pasir assemblyman Faiz Fadzil, women’s wing chief Aiman Athirah Al Jundi and Wanita Youth wing head Nurthaqaffah Nordin.

Fadhli said they are being investigated under Section 9(5) of the Peaceful Assembly Act for failing to provide prior notice of the rally to the authorities.

Yesterday, about 100 people took part in the protest over the rising prices of goods, which started at 2pm after Friday prayers and ended after 3pm.

Some 15 police personnel were there to ensure the rally remained orderly as the participants called for the government to resolve the issue.

At the rally, Faiz warned that Amanah would hold another protest if Putrajaya did not address the issue by July 16.

Police formed a human barricade along Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman to stop the “Turun Malaysia” protesters from marching towards Dataran Merdeka.

About 500 people had gathered at the Sogo shopping complex from 2pm to protest against the rising cost of living.

Activist Sevan Doraisamy and other protesters attempted to negotiate with the authorities to continue their march but were unsuccessful.

Protesters chanted “Hidup Rakyat” and demanded that ministers take a pay cut.

Several youth leaders from political parties, including Adam Adli (PKR Youth chief) and Amir Abd Hadi (Muda co-founder), joined in the protest and gave speeches.

Also present were International Islamic University Malaysia student union president Aliff Naif and members of various NGOs.

Police had earlier blocked vehicles from entering Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman in anticipation of today’s protest.

On Thursday, a group calling itself “Turun Malaysia” said it would stage a protest and called on students and other young Malaysians to gather at the shopping complex to make their voices heard over the hike in the price of goods and the rising cost of living.

Yesterday, Dang Wangi district police chief Noor Dellhan Yahaya said the authorities were not notified about the protest as required under the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012, and that action would be taken against those involved.

However, the organisers led by Selangor Amanah Youth chief Abbas Azmin, Undi18 co-founder Qyira Yusri and Universiti Malaya students’ union president Ooi Guo Shen said they would go ahead “because the right to assemble is guaranteed under the law”.

Adam told the crowd that the protest today is to “remind” the government to look into the people’s plight.

“Our demands are very clear,” he said.

Meanwhile, Amir said the people will not stay silent over the rising cost of living which is affecting them badly.

He said the protesters are also demanding for the removal of ministers who are not performing, adding that it could help the government cut down on its expenses.

The five key demands by the protesters were for ministers to take a pay cut, government subsidies to be continued, control on the price of goods, to check the issue of food security, and to provide proper assistance to the people.

The protesters started dispersing shortly after 3pm when the police barred them from marching to Dataran Merdeka.

Authorities in the southwestern Chinese region of Guangxi have jailed a prominent critic of the ruling Communist Party for four-and-a-half years after he spoke out about a woman found chained in an outbuilding in Jiangsu earlier this year, RFA has learned.

The Guigang Municipal People's Court on Nov. 20 handed down a four-year, six-month jail term to Lu Huihuang -- who has previously also called for democratic reforms -- after finding him guilty of "incitement to subvert state power," the rights group Weiquanwang reported.

"[Lu] refused to accept the judgment and has expressed his intention to appeal," the report said, describing Lu as a "freelance and online writer, a dissident citizen, rights activist and political prisoner."

He was taken away from his home in Nanning city by police from Guigang on Feb. 18, 2022 "for calling on the ruling Chinese Communist Party to thoroughly investigate the case of the chained woman in Xuzhou," the site reported.

Lu is currently being held in the Guigang Detention Center in Batang township, Guigang, it said.

Guangxi resident Nong Dingcai said Lu's friends had been informed of his sentence, and of his intention to appeal, by the detention center.

"The detention center called some of his friends in China, saying that Lu Huihuang had been sentenced to four-and a half years," Nong told RFA.

"The charge was 'incitement to subvert state power.' He has requested an appeal."

Nong said not all of the information about Lu's case has been released, and his family members are under close surveillance.

Authorities have yet to release any official information about Lu's case. In China, the crime of "incitement to subvert state power" is considered confidential and related trials are held in secret.

Suggesting democratic reforms

According to Weiquanwang, Lu has written a number of essays and open letters to the Communist Party leadership since 2013, proffering suggestions on democratic reforms to China's political system.

"[The articles] suggested that the Communist Party carry out democratic and constitutional reforms as soon as possible, and found resonance with people online," it said, adding that the articles were extensively forwarded and read via groups on the QQ and WeChat social media platforms, as well as being published on overseas websites like Beijing Spring and China Labor Watch.

It said Lin had previously served a two-and-a-half year jail term in Guangdong's Conghua Prison, during which he was tortured with electric shocks, kept in manacles and forced to sleep on the floor for long periods of time because he refused to plead guilty or make a "confession."

Fellow dissident Lin Shengliang said Lu's criticism of the case of the chained woman was likely just an excuse for the authorities to re-detain him.

"It's thought that Lu Huihuang's secret detention was linked to the case of the chained woman, because he published too many posts about it on his group chats," Lin told RFA. "But given the harshness of the sentence, there were probably other baseless accusations too."

He said supporters who had tried to visit Lu's parents had also been detained.

"Given that his parents are under security measures, a lot of people who went to visit them were immediately taken away by local police and village officials," Lin said.

He said Lu has been unable to hire an independent lawyer, because his family are being "cooperative" with the authorities, which generally means agreeing to have him represented by a government-appointed lawyer.

"Lu Huihuang actually asked a prison guard to get a message to me asking me to help him find an attorney, but the local state security police didn't allow us to mail the instruction letter to Lu Huihuang so he could sign it," Lin said.

"We don't know what is happening with him, how legal the investigation, prosecution or trial were, nor whether he was tortured."

New era of authoritarian rule

Lin said the authorities have entered a new era of authoritarian rule.

"Under the new authoritarianism, the government uses a powerful state machine to crush dissidents," he said. "As the social and political environment continues to deteriorate, the crime of inciting subversion of state power will be more widely and freely used by China’s powerful agencies."

In December 2021, authorities in Guangxi handed down a three-year jail term to outspoken rights lawyer Chen Jiahong for "subversion," amid fears for his safety in detention. Chen had been a prominent critic of the government.

On China's tightly controlled internet, Chen was known for inscribing the slogan "Set up an assassination detail, liquidate this evil bureaucracy and promote democracy" in Chinese calligraphy and posting it to social media.

Fellow Guangxi lawyer Qin Yongpei was detained in early November 2021 by the Nanning municipal police department during a raid on his Baijuying legal consultancy company, after speaking out many times about misconduct and injustices perpetrated by police and local judicial officials.

A Vietnamese court in Dong Nai Province on November 22 sentenced a Vietnamese couple to prison on the charge of “abusing democratic freedoms to infringe on the State and individuals’ interests” under Article 331 of the Penal Code, RFA reported. Nguyen Thai Hung, a local Youtuber running his personal channel called “Telling the Truth TV,” where he discussed multiple social and political issues in Vietnam, received a four-year prison sentence. At the same time, Vu Thi Kim Hoang, Hung’s wife, received a two-and-a-half-year sentence on the same charge. RFA reported that both were tried without the presence of a lawyer. Hoang, 44, told RFA that she and Hung first hired lawyer Nguyen Van Mieng as their defense lawyer, but they had to dismiss their lawyer after being pressured by the police. Hoang added that although the trial was open to the public, only their daughter was allowed inside the courtroom, while other relatives had to remain at the building entrance. According to the indictment via RFA, from June 2020 to January 2022, Hung used his YouTube channel to host 21 online discussions that contained content “speaking badly of the [Communist] Party and the State, distorting the government’s socio-economic policy, slandering the Party and State’s high-level leaders, and distorting recent high-profile incidents.” Meanwhile, Hoang was accused of “being a related and supportive person” for providing Hung with accommodations and letting him use her laptop and access her bank account. It was reported that Hoang admitted the acts in court, while Hung pleaded innocent, claiming that he was exercising his right to freedom of speech and democratic rights by live-streaming his talks on YouTube.

A primary school teacher from Sagaing Region’s Tamu Township has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for financing “terrorist” activities, according to a source close to her family.

Honey Su Kyi Zaw, 30, was arrested at her home in Tamu’s Saw Bwar 6 Ward on November 23 last year and accused of financially supporting the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) against military rule.

The Tamu District Court sentenced her on Monday, two days before the anniversary of her arrest, the family source told Myanmar Now.

She was prosecuted under Section 50j of Myanmar’s Counter-Terrorism Law for distributing funds provided by the shadow National Unity Government (NUG) for CDM teachers, the source said.

The military junta that seized power in February 2021 designated the NUG a terrorist organisation in May last year.

“She was collecting donations for teachers who had tested positive for Covid-19. It wasn’t as they alleged,” said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The source added that the evidence against Honey Su Kyi Zaw was provided by KBZ Bank, which submitted account information that allegedly showed transactions involving other accounts linked to the NUG.

“They didn’t find any evidence on her phone. She was unjustly accused and prosecuted,” the source said.

Honey Su Kyi Zaw was a teacher at Primary School No. 8 in Chauk Natgyi, a village in Tamu Township. Residents there say that she was likely targeted because she was a member of the ousted ruling party, the National League for Democracy (NLD).

“She didn’t like the military coup, so she joined protests and the CDM. She was an NLD member, but she also spoke out against party members if she thought they were acting dishonestly,” said one local resident.

“After joining the CDM, she made handicrafts and sold them online to support herself. She was an honest and peaceful teacher,” he added.

Honey Su Kyi Zaw has been held at the police station in Tamu since her arrest. She remains there for the time being due to the poor security situation on the road from Tamu to Kalay, where she will later be transferred to prison, sources said.

Since last year’s coup, the junta has prosecuted hundreds of people under Section 50j of the Counter-Terrorism Law without concrete evidence. Conviction carries a sentence of 10 years to life imprisonment.

After Ah Hla Lay Thuzar, a Burmese journalist better known by the pseudonym of Ma Thuzar, received a two-year jail sentence today, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on UN officials tasked with monitoring Myanmar to take tougher action to get the leaders of its military junta to stop normalising the terror they have been imposing on media personnel.

A freelance reporter based in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, Ma Thuzar, was sentenced this morning to two years in prison with hard labour by a court inside Insein prison, which is located in a Yangon suburb. Arrested on 1 September 2021, she had spent nearly 15 months in pretrial detention.

Initially reported by Burmese-language social media, her sentence was confirmed by RSF at midday. She was prosecuted under Section 505 (a) of Myanmar’s penal code, which – inter alia, – punishes inciting “hatred against the army forces.”

“Ma Thuzar’s totally arbitrary conviction is another sign of the normalisation of terror against journalists that the ruling junta in Naypyidaw has managed to impose,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk. “We call on Tom Andrews, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, to take action to toughen international sanctions on Myanmar’s generals and to prevent them, once and for all, from regarding their treatment of journalists as just one of the variables of their absolute despotism.”

Constant threat of arrest

The State Administration Council, as the military junta is officially known, announced “pardons” on 16 November for several thousand detainees including five Burmese journalists – Mya Wun Yan (also known as Hla Yin Win), La Pyae, Than Htike Aung, San Myint and Ye Yint Tun – and for Toru Kubota, a Japanese documentary filmmaker, who was immediately expelled.

Although they were “pardoned,” their convictions were not overturned, with the result that the five Burmese journalists could easily be jailed again on any spurious grounds cooked up by the military.

These pardons are just a drop in the ocean alongside the number of journalists still detained in Myanmar, which currently stands at 61, according to RSF’s press freedom barometer. This makes Myanmar the world’s second biggest jailer of media personal, second only to China. In proportion to its population, it is the biggest.

Myanmar is ranked 176th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2022 World Press Freedom Index.

After Fact Focus, a Pakistani investigative website was rendered totally or partially inaccessible on 21 November when it reported that the army chief’s family had become extremely rich in recent years, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on Pakistan’s civilian authorities to ensure respect for its citizens' right to journalism that serves the public interest.

“This site can't be reached.” That’s the message that Pakistanis have repeatedly encountered when trying to access the Fact Focus site, which was completely blocked on 21 November after it posted its “Bajwa Leaks” story about the extraordinary wealth accumulated by Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa’s family since he became Chief of Army Staff, as the army’s top general is known.

“It is unacceptable in a mature democracy that a perfectly sourced and careful investigative report about an issue of considerable public interest for Pakistanis should be brutally censored in this way,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk. “We call on information and broadcasting minister Marriyum Aurangzeb to ensure that Fact Focus remains fully accessible to Pakistani citizens and is able to continue publishing its reports with complete freedom. The credibility of the civilian government and the rule of law are at stake.”

The Fact Focus site remained completely inaccessible for more that 20 hours on 21 November. After RSF and other civil society representatives reported the ongoing censorship, it finally became partially accessible again.

“More loyal to the king than the king himself”

Fact Focus editors told RSF that the site’s blocking was carried out by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, a governmental agency, on the orders of the prime minister and the minister of information and broadcasting.

“This is what we were told by our contacts in these offices,” said a senior editor, speaking on condition of anonymity. “It is not clear if this was done under pressure from the military or if the government decided to be more loyal to the king than the king himself.”

In this case, the “king” is Gen. Bajwa, whose family has acquired assets worth 12.7 billion rupees (55 million euros), according to the Fact Focus investigation. Since he took over as army chief six years ago, the worth of his wife’s assets alone have gone from zero to 2.2 billion rupees (9.5 million euros), the website said.

Deep state

With this investigation, Fact Focus has put precise and sourced numbers to a reality that many Pakistanis have sensed without knowing it, namely the military establishment’s stranglehold on a commercial empire worth billions of rupees.

A sort of “state within the state,” Pakistan’s armed forces rarely tolerate any form of scrutiny by the media. In an analysis published in July, RSF showed how – beneath the surface of a change in the civilian government in April – the Pakistani military had stepped up its intimidation of journalists who dare to criticise it.

Pakistan is ranked 157th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2022 World Press Freedom Index.

More than a dozen Afghan women protested briefly in Kabul on November 24, calling for their rights to be recognized on the eve of the UN's International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Afghan women have been squeezed out of public life since the Taliban's return to power in August last year, but small groups have staged flash protests that are usually quickly shut down, sometimes violently. Earlier this month the Taliban barred women from entering parks, funfairs, gyms, and public baths.The veiled women carried pickets with slogans decrying the deprivation of their rights under the Taliban. The march organizers said the Taliban had briefly detained three of the demonstrators.

Unknown assailants have broken a window at the offices of the Elmedia television channel in Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty. The attack came weeks after a similar attack shattered the office's glass doors and a large inscription was left in red on the sidewalk in front of the office in what employees believe was a warning to independent media. Elmedia said on Telegram on November 23 that the office's doors were also broken in the overnight attack. Intimidation and attacks on independent media outlets in the country have been frequent for years.

On November 10, Jurnalisa, the chief editor for online media outlet Kabargayo.com, was threatened by two project managers overseeing the construction of a traditional market in the Ketol district of western Indonesia’s Aceh province. Arriving at the journalist’s home in the early morning, the two assailants attempted to strike Jurnalisa and allegedly said they wanted to kill him.

The day before the incident, Jurnalisa published an article detailing several budgetary and scheduling issues with the ongoing development of the Rejewali traditional market, due for completion on December 15. Jurnalisa had attempted to obtain a quote from the project administrator before publishing the piece but received no answer.

In Indonesia, many journalists in both metro and regional areas face incidents of harassment. On October 29, police officers from Polres Tomohon, North Sulawesi, summoned local Manado Pos journalist Julius Laatung for his coverage of an illegal lottery. En route to the police station, police officers interrogated Laatung, demanding that he betray the confidentiality of his sources and accused him of publishing the story to discredit the police.

In a separate incident on November 7, North Sulawesi police harassed and arrested Sulawesian reporter Noufriadi Sururama while he was at a land dispute protest in Mandolang.

On 23 November 2022, the Bishkek City Court reviewed the appeal filed by the State Prosecutor against the decision to partially acquit human rights defender and journalist Bolot Temirov. The Court of Appeals upheld the decision of the Sverdlovsk District Court of Bishkek declaring that Bolot Temirov is guilty of document fraud and unprecedentedly ruled to deport human rights defender to Russia. Bolot Temirov was violently detained on site in the court room. At around 7:40 PM, Bolot Temirov was noticed in Manas International Airport accompanied by six law enforcement officers heading to the border control section

Bolot Temirov is a Kyrgyzstani human rights defender and prominent journalist, investigating corruption. In January 2020, the human rights defender founded the YouTube-based media outlet “Temirov Live”, that investigates and reports on corruption of state and non-state actors. In 2021, he was recognised by the U.S. State Department as an anti-corruption champion and was awarded the International Anti-Corruption Champions Award for his work to combat corruption in Kyrgyzstan.

On 23 November 2022, the Bishkek City Court reviewed the appeal filed by the State Prosecutor against the decision to partially acquit human rights defender and journalist Bolot Temirov and ruled to deport human rights defender to Russia. The Court ruled the Bolot Temirov is guilty of illegally obtaining his Kyrgystan passport and his military ID, and ruled in favour of human rights defender deportation to Russia, since Bolot Temirov also has Russian citizenship. The judge of the Court of Appeals unprecedentedly added a sanction to the decision of the First Instance Court in the form of deportation, despite the fact that the statue of limitation on this violation has passed.

Previously, the Sverdlovsk District Court of Bishkek found Bolot Temirov guilty of document fraud, but did not set up any punishment as the statute of limitation on the document fraud crime has expired. Bolot Temirov was violently detained in the court room and was raken away by a police vehicle. At the moment, human rights defender’s whereabouts are unknown even to his legal team.

On 22 September 2022, the Sverdlovsk District Court of Bishkek acquitted human rights defender and journalist Bolot Temirov from charges on drug posession and illegal border crossing. The human rights defender was charged with document fraud, however, due to the expiration of the statute of limitation on this crime, Bolot Temirov did not face any penalty. The State Prosecutor accused Bolot Temirov with two counts of documents fraud, one count of illegal border crossing and one count of drug possession and asked for 5 years of prison time.

On 20 January 2022, Bolot Temirov Live published a video investigating the alleged involvement of the family members of State Committee for National Security Head, Kamchybek Tashiev, in a corruption scheme relating to a state-owned petroleum refinery. On 22 January 2022, nine masked police officers raided for three hours the office of the YouTube-based outlet, Temirov Live, in Bishkek, without a warrant. During the raid, police officers confiscated all computers and forced male staff members to stay on the ground. According to Bolot Temirov, the officers planted a bag of drugs in his back pocket while pinning him down. Bolot Temirov was arrested without being given any reasons, and his lawyer was unable to meet him for several hours. While the human rights defender was detained, he underwent questioning and a urine test that resulted negative for drugs. According to Bolot Temirov, his arrest was in retaliation for an investigation where he denounced state corruption, which he published on Terminov Live in January 2022. The State Committee for National Security (CNS) officers confiscated Temirov Live’s security camera footage, showing the raid, including the planting of the drugs on the human rights defender.

In April 2022, Temirov Live published another investigation concerning Kamchybek Tashiev and their involvement in the corruption schemes with state tenders. On 17 May 2022, Bolot Temirov was stripped of his Kyrgyzstan citizenship by the Ministry of the Interior. Bolot Temirov’s passport was listed on the database of the National Registration Agency of the Kyrgyztan Republic Government as invalid, without any official court decision. The state launched new criminal cases against human rights defender concerining alledged document fraud and illegal border crossing.

Front Line Defenders is deeply concerned with the unprecedented decision of deport human rights defender and journalist Bolot Temirov to Russia. Front Line Defenders sees this judicial harrassment as a retaliation for Bolot Temirov’s human rights work as investigative journalist and as a part of the newly emerging pattern of targetting human rights defenders and journalists for their non-violent human rights work. Such targeting undermines access to free and independent press and limit the freedom of speech and expression in Kyrgyzstan. Front Line Defenders call upon the Kyrgyzstan authorities to fully acquit human rights defender Bolot Temirov.

Protesters pushed to the brink by China's strict COVID measures in Shanghai called for the removal of the country's all-powerful leader and clashed with police Sunday as crowds took to the streets in several cities in an astounding challenge to the government.

Police forcibly cleared the demonstrators in China's financial capital who called for Xi Jinping's resignation and the end of the Chinese Communist Party's rule — but hours later people rallied again in the same spot, and social media reports indicated protests also spread to at least seven other cities, including the capital of Beijing, and dozens of university campuses.

Largescale protests are exceedingly rare in China, where public expressions of dissent are routinely stifled — but a direct rebuke of Xi, the country’s most powerful leader in decades, is extraordinary.

Three years after the virus first emerged, China is the only major country still trying to stop transmission of COVID-19 — a “zero COVID” policy that regularly sees millions of people confined to their homes for weeks at a time and requires near-constant testing. The measures were originally widely accepted for minimizing deaths while other countries suffered devastating waves of infections, but that consensus has begun to fray in recent weeks.

Then on Friday, 10 people died in a fire in an apartment building, and many believe their rescue was delayed because of excessive lockdown measures. That sparked a weekend of protests, as the Chinese public’s ability to tolerate the harsh measures has apparently reached breaking point.

Hundreds of demonstrators gathered late Saturday in Shanghai, which experienced a devastating lockdown in the spring in which people struggled to secure groceries and medicines and were forcefully taken into centralized quarantine.

On a street named for the city in China's far west where the fire happened, one group of protesters brought candles, flowers and signs honoring those who died in the blaze. Another, according to a protester who insisted on anonymity, was more active, shouting slogans and singing the national anthem.

In a video of the protest seen by The Associated Press, chants sounded loud and clear: “Xi Jinping! Step down! CCP! Step down!” Xi, arguably China’s most dominant leader since Mao Zedong, was recently named to another term as head of the ruling Chinese Communist Party, and some expect him to try to stay in power for life.

The protester and another, who gave only his last name, Zhao, confirmed the chants. Both insisted on having their identities shielded because they fear arrest or retribution.

The atmosphere of the protest encouraged people to speak about topics considered taboo, including the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre in which the ruling Communist Party had ordered troops to fire on pro-democracy student demonstrators, the unnamed protester said. Some also called for an official apology for the deaths in the fire in Urumqi in the Xinjiang region. One member of the Uyghur ethnic group that is native to Xinjiang and has been the target of a sweeping security crackdown shared his experiences of discrimination and police violence.

“Everyone thinks that Chinese people are afraid to come out and protest, that they don’t have any courage,” said the protester, who said it was his first time demonstrating. “Actually in my heart, I also thought this way. But then when I went there, I found that the environment was such that everyone was very brave.”

Initially peaceful, the scene turned violent in the early hours of Sunday. Hundreds of police surrounded the protesters and broke up the first more active group before they came for the second as they tried to move people off the main street. The protester said that he saw multiple people being taken away, forced by police into vans, but could not identify them.

The protester named Zhao said one of his friends was beaten by police and two were pepper sprayed. He said police stomped his feet as he tried to stop them from taking his friend away. He lost his shoes in the process and left the protest barefoot.

Zhao said protesters yelled slogans, including one that has become a frequent rallying cry: “(We) do not want PCR (tests), but want freedom.”

On Sunday afternoon, crowds returned to the same spot and again railed against PCR tests. People stood and filmed as police started shoving at people.

A crowdsourced list on social media showed that there were also demonstrations at 50 universities. Videos posted on social media that said they were filmed in Nanjing in the east, Guangzhou in the south, Beijing in the north and at least five other cities showed protesters tussling with police in white protective suits or dismantling barricades used to seal off neighborhoods. The Associated Press could not independently verify all the protests.

In Beijing, students at the nation's top college, Tsinghua University, held a demonstration Sunday afternoon in front of one of the school's cafeterias. Three young women stood there initially with a simple message of condolence for the victims of the Urumqi apartment fire, according to a witness, who refused to be named out of fear of retribution, and images of the protest the AP has seen.

Students shouted, “freedom of speech” and sang The Internationale, the socialist anthem. The deputy Communist Party secretary of the school arrived at the protest, promising to hold a schoolwide discussion.

Meanwhile, two cities in China’s northwest, where residents have been confined to their homes for up to four months, eased some antivirus controls Sunday after public protests Friday.

Meanwhile, Urumqi, where the fire occurred, as well as the smaller city of Korla were preparing to reopen markets and other businesses in areas deemed at low risk of virus transmission and to restart bus, train and airline service, state media reported.

Award-winning environmentalist Nguy Thi Khanh will have her prison sentence reduced by three months.

On November 21, Khanh’s sentence was reduced from 24 months to 21 months by an appellate court in Hanoi.

Khanh, one of Vietnam’s most prominent environmental experts, was sentenced to two years in prison in June on “tax evasion” charges. Khanh is the first Vietnamese person to receive the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize, in 2018, which came with a $200,000 prize. The tax evasion charge stems from the fact that Khanh failed to pay about $18,000 in taxes (10% of the prize). Khanh has said she was unaware of the tax obligation on the prize money. The reduction in her sentence was reportedly attributed to her admission of failure to pay the tax and her many contributions to society.

There is evidence to suggest that Khanh’s arrest and prosecution are politically-motivated. An outspoken critic of the use of coal, Khanh joined three other anti-coal environmental activists– Mai Phan Loi, Dang Dinh Bach, and Bach Hung Duong— who were convicted earlier this year on similar charges and handed multi-year sentences.

Vietnam’s tax laws for registered NGOs are confusing and cumbersome. Further, Khanh, like her counterparts, faced criminal, not civil proceedings, which have been supervised by state security. Khanh also did not receive notice of need for repayment prior to her arrest. The cases raise flags of a widening crackdown on civil society groups that contradicts Vietnam’s public rhetoric on the importance of fighting climate change.

Vietnam’s jailing of climate leaders seems to have been at least partly the reason why international donors recently awarded Indonesia, instead of Vietnam, with billions of dollars to fight climate change. If Vietnam is serious about its commitments to an energy transition, it cannot continue to hold its most valuable environmental voices behind bars nor force NGOs to navigate perplexing tax laws. We call on Vietnam to clarify its tax laws and to release Khanh, Duong, Loi, and Bach immediately. We will continue to closely monitor these cases until their release.

Footwear unionists in Takeo were summoned and questioned by military police after attending a Women’s Crisis Center training in Phnom Penh, saying officers asked who was behind them and warned them of illegal protests.

Union leaders from Tram Kak district’s Shoe Premier II, which has supplied boots to the U.S., attended a training course on November 16 on rights in the workplace, gender issues and sexual harassment, said Chhan Samoeun, president for the Workers’ Movement Union at the factory.

But once they returned, Takeo military police called them in for questioning, Samoeun said.

“We joined the training to gain experience and [to learn] to teach other workers to understand sexual harassment and gender,” he said.

Nget Rem, secretary for another union at Shoe Premier II, the Free Trade Union, said she had not even attended the Phnom Penh training hosted by the Cambodian Women’s Crisis Center but was summoned for questioning anyway.

Military police questioned her about what demands they had at the factory, whether there were previous labor disputes there, and if any NGOs were behind their union. Officers reminded her that the military police would stop them from holding any illegal protests at Shoe Premier II, Rem said.

“They said we just do whatever we want, but if there is any issue, who is going to take responsibility? They said this in a manner like they don’t want us to protest in this factory. They wanted it to mean that,” she said.

Takeo military police commander La Lai could not be reached for comment, but the unit issued a statement acknowledging that the force had called in representatives from three unions at Shoe Premier II: the Workers’ Movement Union, Free Trade Union and Cambodian Hope Workers’ Union.

Pav Sina, president of Collective Union of Movement of Workers, said the questioning was a threat and serious intimidation against the registered unionists.

An association that informs tuk-tuk drivers of labor rights says local officials won’t allow it to put up its logo outside a Poipet branch office.

Prom Bunthorn, president of the Cambodia Development People Life Association, said he had submitted letters to Banteay Meanchey provincial police and Poipet city administration on Monday, but the city authorities said the association would not be allowed without another letter from the property owner.

The group trains informal workers such as tuk-tuk drivers on labor rights in Poipet and Siem Reap, informs rural residents about their human rights, and conducts agricultural training with other NGOs, Bunthorn said.

The Phnom Penh-headquartered association is registered with the Interior Ministry and has offices in Kampong Speu, Kandal, Takeo and Siem Reap, and should only need to inform authorities about signage rather than seek permission, he said.

“I think the fact that local authorities require more complicated procedures is a kind of restriction against the freedoms of civil society, especially for my association in serving members in Poipet city,” Bunthorn said on Thursday.

Poipet city governor Keat Hul said he had not received any information about the incident, and did not see why there should be any problem putting up the association’s logo.

“I don’t know about this case, but generally, if he has proper legal standing, there’s nothing to ban,” Hul said. “Firstly, he has proper legal standing. Secondly, he is putting up a logo on his private land. So there’s nothing to ban.”

Human rights group Licadho’s spokesperson Am Sam Ath said denying a registered association from putting up signs would be unacceptable.

NagaWorld union leader Chhim Sithar was questioned at the Phnom Penh International Airport today and has been sent to prison, with a police official saying she violated her bail conditions.

Phnom Penh Police spokesperson San Sokseyha said the immigration police had arrested Sithar at the airport because the Phnom Penh Municipal Court issued an arrest warrant for the union leader.

He said this was because she had traveled overseas, which was against her bail conditions. He added that she had been taken to court.

“This morning the Phnom Penh police cooperated with [immigration at] the airport because of an arrest warrant of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court for failure to comply with the court decision on March 14, 2022,” he said, referring to the day Sithar was released on bail.

“Sithar doesn’t have a right to leave Cambodia unless the court decides for her.”

Sithar and 10 others are on bail, but it was unclear whether they were prevented from traveling overseas, and whether there were restrictions on reasons she could leave the country.

Licadho, which represents some of the charged NagaWorld workers, said Sithar had been moved to Prey Sar prison this afternoon.

The rights group added that Sithar’s lawyers were not aware or informed of “any judicial supervision or probation conditions, such as travel restrictions.”

According to information from labor rights group Central, the union leader was returning from a labor conference in Australia when immigration officers at the international airport scanned her passport and then escorted her away for questioning.

Central added that Sithar was arrested at around 10 a.m. Saturday morning and that rights groups and her lawyers have not been able to reach the prominent union leader since.

Sithar was violently arrested near the National Assembly in January and jailed with at least 10 other union colleagues earlier this year. They were released in March after signing letters requesting the Labor ministry for bail and agreeing to suspend the strike to enable negotiations.

The union went on strike last December after NagaCorp terminated more than 1,300 workers. The nearly yearlong protest started off strong but has since withered down to less than 200 protesters, who have attempted to continue their protest on a weekly basis in the face of violence from the police.

25 people were arrested on Friday (18 November) after crowd control police forcibly dispersed protesters marching to the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre (QSNCC), the venue of the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting, to protest the government under Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha and its pro-corporation economic models.

Protesters and activists had been gathering at Lan Khon Muang square in front of the Bangkok City Hall since Wednesday (16 November) to protest what they see at the Thai government’s attempt to boost its legitimacy on the international stage and the lack of participation from civil society in determining policies being proposed at APEC meetings. They also spoke out against the Bio-Circular-Green Economy Model (BCG), raising concerns that the model would worsen community right issues facing marginalized and vulnerable groups, would take away their resources and land, and is an attempt at greenwashing the country’s major corporations with its carbon credit model.

During the two days of protests, activists spoke about various political and social issues, from freedom of expression and the royal defamation law to land rights, food security, community rights, and environmental justice. The events were organized by a network of activist groups and civil society organizations, including the Assembly of the Poor, the Northern Peasant Federation, the Chana Rak Thin Network, Neo Lanna and Thalufah.

On Friday morning (18 November), the protesters began marching from Lan Khon Muang to the QSNCC. However, they were blocked by a series of police barriers. As they were approaching the Democracy Monument via Dinso Road, they found that the road was blocked by rows of crowd control police in full riot gear and two police trucks. Protest leaders attempted to negotiate with the police, but were not successful.

At 10.10, after protesters tied a rope to the axle of one of the police trucks and pulled it out of the road, crowd control police rushed out from behind the blockade, pushing protestors with shields. Rubber bullets were also fired, and two rubber bullet casings were found on the ground at the site of the clash.

Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) reported at around 12.10 that at least 10 people were arrested and taken to Thung Song Hong Police Station, despite the protest taking place outside its jurisdiction.

After the clash, pro-democracy activist Patsaravalee Tanakitvibulpon said that the police need to explain why they fired rubber bullets at unarmed protesters at close range and after protest leaders tried negotiating with them.

"What happened under the Prayut Chan-o-cha government is that the police officers have no spine and chose to use violence against unarmed people," she said.

Patsaravalee condemned the police and Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha as Prime Minister, and called on the international community to send observers to the protest site.

"We would like to send a message to every country. Please send representatives to observe this location, so that you see the reality of what is happening, what the police are doing to people speaking out about their livelihood and about resources," she said.

Patsaravalee called on the public to pay attention to issues regarding resources, and demanded the release of all arrested protesters.

Protesters are now staying on Dinso Road while activists take turns giving speeches on a speaker truck, but said they will not return to the Lan Khon Muang square in front of the Bangkok City Hall since they have a petition to file with APEC leaders, while the police repeatedly order them to return to Lan Khon Muang and threaten them with prosecution.

At around 12.30, several protesters performed a traditional cursing ritual by burning chilli and salt and placed the stove on a police truck. The police then brought out a fire extinguisher to put out the flame. At around 12.35, crowd control police pushed into the protesters, many of whom were resting and having lunch. Shots were continuously heard.

More protesters were arrested during the second attempt to force protesters out of the area, including Assembly of the Poor’s Baramee Chaiyarat. The police also ordered reporters to separate from the protesters, claiming that some protesters were trying to harm officers. Several people were also reported to have been injured during the second clash, both from rubber bullets and from being assaulted by crowd control police.

At 13.30, activist Patsaravalee Tanakitvibulpon said that the injuries sustained by protesters and members of the press show that police commanders are not able to control their own subordinates. She called on the police to take responsibility and to explain why they fired rubber bullets at unarmed protesters.

Patsaravalee said that they would not end the protest and would not leave until everyone arrested is released, and until they are told where those arrested have been taken and where the injured are being treated. She also asked whether the world leaders attending the APEC meeting would still accept the policies proposed by a government that harms its own people.

At 14.45, TLHR said that 25 people were arrested and taken to Thung Song Hong Police Station. Meanwhile, Patsaravalee announced that the protest would move to the police station to demand the release of the arrested protesters and that they will not leave until everyone is released without charge. The protest database and observation site Mob Data Thailand also reported that at least 33 people were injured throughout the day.

Among the arrested was Worawan Sae-aung, or Auntie Pao, an elderly regular protest-goer popular with younger activists, who was arrested at around 9.30, before the first clash. Worawan was arrested after she was pulled behind the police lines and taken away in a police detention truck, prompting protesters to immediately demand her release.

During the second clash at 12.45, the Assembly of the Poor’s Baramee Chaiyarat and the NGO Coordinating Committee on Development’s Jekapan Phrommongkon were also arrested. Both were previously seen using a speaker truck to call for the police to open up the road to let them keep marching, and were heard giving instructions to protest guards.

From around 16.00 onwards, protesters gathered in front of Thung Song Hong Police Station to demand the unconditional release of the arrested protesters.

While protesters gathered at the police station, activist Lertsak Khamkongsak gave a speech alleging that the protest leaders were asked to have the protesters move 50 metres closer to the Bangkok City Hall because a royal motorcade was to go through Ratchadamneon Road, and speculating that this is why crowd control police became more violent towards the protesters.

He also noted that the police violated the Public Assembly Act, since they are required to request a court order to use crowd control weapons, such as tear gas, batons, rubber bullets, or water cannons, but did not do so.

Lertsak said that it would have been possible to plan for the motorcade. The protesters could have sat down when the motorcade went past, or the police could have lined up around them to block them from view without asking them to move, as that is what happened during an anti-NPO bill protest in May. He asked why they were now being asked to move, and said that there is no other reason why their protest would be so violently dispersed other than the royal motorcade.

In May 2022, activists and members of civil society organizations gathered in front of the UN headquarters on Ratchadamneon Nok Road to protest the new non-profit organization (NPO) bill due to concerns that the bill would be use to restrict freedom of association in Thailand. After protesters refused to move to another location as royal motorcades were passing through Ratchadamneon Nok Road on the way to and from Thammasat Univeristy’s Tha Prachan campus for for the university’s graduation ceremony, hundreds of police officers lined up along the street to block the protesters from view as the royal motorcade went by, and the protesters were not forcibly dispersed.

TLHR reported at around 21.15 on Friday night (17 November) that the 25 arrested protesters were charged with participating in a gathering of 10 or more people and causing a breach of public peace by an act of violence or by threatening violence, and not dispersing when ordered to do so by an official. They were also charged with not complying with an officer’s order given under the Public Assembly Act.

Payu Boonsopon, an activist from the Dao Din group, will also be charged, but since he was undergoing surgery after being shot in his right eye with a rubber bullet, he will meet the inquiry officer to hear the charges and give his testimony once his condition improves.

25-year-old Wittaya (last name withheld), who was also arrested, was given an additional charge of violating the Public Assembly Act and the Public Cleanliness Act, after he was accused of pouring water mixed with cement onto the street in front of the main office of the Siam Cement Group (SCG) and spray-painting “No APEC” on the street during a protest against the BCG model.

The protest was organized by the Chiang Mai-based activist group Neo Lanna, during which activists poured water mixed with cement onto a model of the Democracy Monument and spraying painting messages onto the street. They then shouted “Stop monopoly. Prayut get out,” while others held up a banner saying “No BCG, no free trade area, tax the rich.”

23 protesters were released at around midnight on Friday (18 November). Baramee and Jekapan, meanwhile, were released at noon on Saturday (19 November).

All were granted bail on a security of 20,000 baht each, covered by the Will of the People Fund, a bail fund for pro-democracy protesters and activists. They were also given the conditions that they must not join any political demonstration or invite people to join any gathering that may cause public disorder.

TLHR noted that 13 of the 25 arrested protesters were injured. Some show signs of being assaulted by crowd control officers, such as Wittaya, who has several cuts and bruises on his back, and Palathip, who was shot with a rubber bullet in his right arm and hit with batons, resulting in cuts and bruises on his body and his head, as well as a broken tooth.

Yupa, an elderly woman who was among one of the first protesters arrested, had a cut on her forehead above the left eyebrow, and needed stitches. Meanwhile, Waranyu Khongsathittum, a citizen journalist livestreaming for The Isaan Record, was assaulted by crowd control officers before being arrested. He had a cut on his head and several bruises and cuts on his body, and his glasses were broken. TLHR also said that Waranyu was made to wait 2 hours before hew as taken to a hospital for treatment.

Among the 33 people injured during the clashes between crowd control police and protesters marching to the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre on Friday (18 November), one was shot in the eye with a rubber bullet and is now very likely to go blind.

On Friday (18 November), several reporters were injured and a citizen journalist was assaulted and arrested during a violent dispersal of a protest march that was heading towards the APEC meeting at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre (QSNCC).

A 19-year-old activist was sentenced on Tuesday (22 November) to 2 years in prison after the Central Juvenile and Family Court ruled that the royal defamation law covers not only specific monarchs but also the monarchy as a whole.

Thanakorn (last name withheld) was charged with royal defamation for a speech given at a protest on 6 December 2020, in which they said that Thailand is not a democracy but an absolute monarchy and spoke about the role of the monarchy in military coups. They also called for a national reform. At the time, Thanakorn, who identifies as being part of the LGBTQ+ community, was 17 years old.

Activists Wanwalee Thammasattaya and Chukiat Saengwong were also charged for speeches given during the same protest, but since both were over the age of 20, Wanwalee and Chukiat’s cases are being heard by the Thonburi Criminal Court.

The complaint against the three activists was filed by Chakrapong Klinkaew, leader of the royalist group People Protecting the Institution.

Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) reported that the Central Juvenile and Family found Thanakorn guilty on the grounds that the royal defamation law coves not only specific monarchs but the entire monarchy and sentenced them to 2 years in prison. Given that they were charged at the age of 17, Thanakorn is now the first minor to be charged and convicted for royal defamation.

The court said that, since it believes it would be more beneficial for Thanakorn to go through “training” to improve their behaviour than for them to go to prison, it commuted the prison sentence to a juvenile training centre under the Department of Juvenile Observation and Protection of the Ministry of Justice for a minimum of 1 year and 6 months or a maximum of 3 years, but not after they turn 24 years old.

The court prohibited representatives of human right organizations and anyone not related to the case to observe the trial, claiming that it cannot allow third-party observers because the case involved a minor. After Thanakorn told the court that they wanted trusted persons and rights groups to be present in the court room, the judge said that organizations wishing to observe the trial must request permission from the court.

However, after representatives from Amnesty International told the judge that they have already submitted a request to observe Thanakorn’s trial and presented their letter to the judge, they were told that their request is denied, claiming that Thanakorn was to be tried in secret.

Thanakorn then left the courtroom and filed a petition themself to have representatives from human rights organizations attend the trial so that they would feel safe, and said that it would be in their best interest to have observers in the room. However, their request was denied.

Following Thanakorn’s sentencing, Amnesty International issued a statement noting that at least 283 protesters under the age of 18 have been prosecuted for participating in the protests, the majority of whom were charged with violations of the Emergency Decree, which has since been repealed, while others face charges of defamation, sedition, and dissemination of false information.

The statement noted that Thailand is a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), both of which guarantee children’s freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly. It said that during its Universal Period Review in 2021, Thailand received recommendations to uphold these freedoms for children and to avoid detaining or prosecuting minors who are exercising their rights. However, it also noted that the Thai government has always rejected these recommendations.

Amnesty International Thailand’s executive director Piyanut Kotsan said that Thanakorn’s sentencing sets “a worrying precedent” and creates “a chilling effect” for young people taking part in the pro-democracy movement, and while the prison sentence was commuted, Thanakorn should never have been charged to begin with, and they will still be held in official custody and take part in mandatory training for the duration of their sentence.

She noted that Thanakorn will still have a criminal record, which could affect their professional opportunities, and their sentence would deprive them of the time and resources they could use to pursue education like other young people.

“Young people peacefully expressing their opinions, views and thoughts about the future of the country should not face jail time or restrictive measures that limit their day-to-day activities. Thai authorities must stop intimidating and surveilling child protesters and end criminal proceedings against them,” Piyanut said.

Thanakorn was later granted bail in order to appeal the conviction on a security of 30,000 baht, which was covered by the Will of the People Find, a bail fund for pro-democracy protesters and activists.

The combined officers of the Tanjungpinang Police, Satpol PP, Kesbangpol and Tanjungpinang Immigration Detention again dispersed the demonstration of hundreds of asylum-seeking refugees from Afghanistan which was held at night in front of the shop complex, Jalan DI Panjaitan Tanjungpinang, Riau Archipelago, Tuesday (18/10/2022). The demonstration by hundreds of refugees was disbanded after previously the joint apparatus failed to negotiate so that the refugees would not take action in front of the shop complex because it disrupted traffic and public order. Tanjungpinang Police Chief Kombes Pol Heribertus Ompusunggu said, previously the police had sealed off their shelter at the Badra Bintan Hotel, so they could not hold an action in Tanjungpinang. "The Polres carried out insulation, but they left individually with the excuse of buying personal needs, after being traced it turned out that they had their gathering point, then they both headed to Tanjungpinang," said Kombes Pol Heribertus. Kombes Heribertus further said, the refugees went to Tanjungpinang on foot with the aim of the UNHCR and IOM representative offices. "They carried out the action on the road, but we have separated them earlier so they don't close the road, ended up in shophouses and it is now time for us to finally transport them and return them to the Badra Hotel where they are sheltering," continued the Head of the Tanjungpinang Police. Finally, Kombes Heribertus also said that he would coordinate with the Bintan Police and related agencies so that this refugee action does not happen again.

"Later, together with the Bintan Police, Kesbangpol, we will convey that there is guard in front of the Badra Hotel, so that this does not happen again. Because it disrupts the activities of the community and road users," explained the Tanjungpinang Police Chief. The demonstration was held late into the night by hundreds of refugees from Afghanistan This has been repeated many times in Tanjungpinang. Every action they take, often ends in an attempt to forcibly disband by the joint apparatus.

Farmers in Malin Deman District, Mukomuko Regency, Bengkulu Province have experienced another arrest and suspicion of criminalization. As many as 5 farmers in the district were criminalized, on charges of theft of palm fruit by PT Daria Darma Pratama (DDP).

On October 5, 2022, Hamdi and three workers harvesting oil palm from the land he was cultivating, were summoned by the Mukomuko Police to be questioned in an alleged case of theft of palm fruit. This summons is based on Police Report Number: LP/B/556/IX/2022/SPKT/Polres Mukomuko/Polda Bengkulu, dated 20 September 2022.

At around 14.30 WIB the three harvest workers appeared before the investigator Aiptu Madyana in the Mukomuko Police Headquarters room and were immediately questioned as witnesses. Then at 16.15 WIB the Criminal Investigation Unit asked Hamdi to enter the investigator's room to be questioned as a witness on PT DDP's report.

A few hours later, at around 20.30 WIB, Hamdi, Randa Fernando, Muhtar and Dosi Saputra finished being questioned by investigators and were asked to wait outside the room because a case was immediately being held.

At around 22.30 WIB, the investigators summoned the four of them back into the room, this time along with their attorney, and in the room it was announced that the four of them had been named suspects. The lawyer for the farmers, Saman Lating, questioned the basis for naming the suspect against his client, as well as PT DDP's legal standing as a reporter to Madyana, but these questions received no answer.

"I see that investigators have hidden something from the determination of our client as a suspect, because investigators cannot explain the basis for determining the suspect and the legal standing of PT DDP as the reporter, because the land that was harvested belonged to Hamdi's brother who was cultivated from around 1989, before the existence of PT BBS. especially PT DDP," explained Saman Lating, in his written statement to Betahita.

Apart from arresting farmers and farm workers, six days earlier, the police also arrested Rahmad Sidi, another farmer from Talang Baru Village, on the same charge of stealing PT DDP's palm fruit. The determination of the suspect without clear reasons then prompted dozens of Malin Deman residents to come to the Mukomuko Police.

Chronology of Land Conflicts

Back in 1986, before the existence of PT Bina Bumi Sejahtera (BBS) HGU, the land that became the object of conflict was the customary territory of Malin Deman District. This is evidenced by land tenure by local indigenous peoples. The people use the land to grow rice, coffee and jengkol in Talang Arah Village, Malin Deman District.

One of the indigenous people who manages the area is Darmin (65). In 1991-1992 PT BBS started measuring the land and began unilaterally evictions, because the farmers who worked the land did not want to sell the land that they had managed for generations.

On August 1, 1995, the North Bengkulu Regency National Land Agency (BPN) issued an HGU certificate for PT BBS, with Number 34 with an area of ​​1,889 hectares, with the commodity type cocoa/chocolate. Certificates are issued based on the Decree of the Minister of Land Number: 42/HGU/BPN/95. dated June 12, 1995.

The planting process is carried out by PT BBS. Approximately 350 hectares are planted with cocoa/cacao and 14 hectares are planted with hybrid coconut. However, since 1997 PT BBS has stopped managing its HGU land. The cessation of PT BBS's activities has forced the community to work on abandoned land by planting oil palm, rubber, jengkol, durian and other plants.

In 2005-2012 PT DDP conveyed verbally to the community working on the ex-PT BBS land, that the company had purchased the ex-PT BBS land. At that time 24 farmers were forced to accept compensation. The PT DDP company then cleared the land cultivated by the farmers and planted oil palm -- different from PT BBS's HGU commodity.

In 2012, farmers who did not want to receive compensation from PT DDP had their land forcibly evicted. A number of farmers, namely Ali Martopo (40), Abdullah (43), Sendri (29) and Darmin (65) experienced intimidation during the process of confiscating their cultivated land.

The intimidation received from the police was also experienced by other farmers who until now have managed to control the land. The farmers have tried to write to the Mukomuko Regency DPRD and the MukoMuko Regency DPRD has followed up by summoning PT DDP, the Mukomuko Regency Plantation Office, and the Mukomuko Regency BPN.

The chairman of the Mukomuko district legislature, Arnadi Pelam, stated in a hearing that PT DDP's control over the ex-BBS land was illegal, so PT DDP was asked to stop all its activities on the status quo land.

Four police officers in North Halmahera, North Maluku, allegedly tortured a student named Yulius Yatu alias Ongen (YY alias O) until he fainted. The victim was also put in a dog kennel and forced to apologize to a dog.

Quoted from Kompas.com, the inhumane actions of 4 North Halmahera Police officers against him were reported by the victim to the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS).

KontraS Deputy Coordinator Rivanlee Anandar said that the incident occurred on September 20, 2022, a day after the victim made a WhatsApp status related to securing a demonstration of rising fuel prices.

''A day later, 4 unidentified people came to look for victims at his residence at around 21.00 WIT. While the four perpetrators asked the victim about the identity of a photo, the perpetrators suddenly punched him right in the face, strangled the victim, and took him out of the house to a public road," said Rivanlee in a written statement received by Kompas.com, Thursday (6/10 /2022).

"When the victim was dragged away, the perpetrator continued to beat the victim causing bruises under the eyes, cracked lower lip, and strangled the victim again until the victim fainted," he added.

The victim was then taken by 4 perpetrators to the North Halmahera Police, dragged and put in a dog kennel. It is said that the victim was even threatened with death until no one knew, before being beaten, kicked, forced to roll over again, until told to prostrate and do push-ups.

"Furthermore, the victim was forced to squat and run around the area of ​​the North Halmahera Police, until he rolled on the asphalt road, and again ran around the volleyball field 5 times," said Rivanlee.

"While forced to carry out the order, the victim continued to be intimidated and told to apologize to the sniffer dogs of the North Halmahera Police," he added.

The torture is said to have lasted 2 hours before the victim was taken home by one of the perpetrators.

KontraS also asked that this incident be investigated by the North Maluku Regional Police Chief and the perpetrators be given maximum punishment for the sake of a deterrent effect. They insisted that methods such as these should not be used in any case settlement.

"Apart from that, we also urge the victims and their families to be given the widest possible access to information regarding the ongoing legal process against the perpetrators," said Rivanlee.

The Perpetrator Has Been Detained

The North Maluku Regional Police admitted that they had followed up on the alleged violence committed by the person on duty at the North Halmahera Police against the victim YY.

Head of North Maluku Regional Police Public Relations, Kombes Pol Michael Irwan Tamsil explained, the case is now being handled both criminally and ethically by the police.

For criminal acts, it is handled by the Directorate of General Criminal Investigation while ethics is handled by Propam.

"The order from the Chief of Regional Police, we will act decisively, first we will do it criminally which was carried out by Crimem, secondly it will be handled ethically by Propam," said Michael.

He confirmed that there were four police officers who were currently detained.

"Four members were detained this afternoon at the North Halmahera Police," he said.

However, Michael denied that if the victim was forced to apologize to the dog. According to him, the person concerned was only asked to make a testimonial video apologizing for the upload he made on social media.

"That's not true (apologize to the dog), so we asked for a testimonial video of an apology for the post," said Michael.

The case, he said, started with a demonstration at the North Halmahera Regency DPRD Office, North Maluku.

The North Halmahera Police conducted security, and from Sabhara also used sniffer dogs, which were then photographed by the victim.

After the demonstration, the victim uploaded a WhatsApp status, 'can't use hands, uses sniffer dogs'

“That post. Then that night a member visited, asked what the post meant but they didn't admit that it was the post, so they took them from home to the office. Then action was taken, ordered to squat and so on," he said.

"Then the members are told to make testimonials, the members who recorded them, to apologize for their posts. But after that he admitted that he was the one who posted it," added Michael.

Mr. Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani is a human rights defender and President of the Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organization Malaysia (MERHROM), a non-profit organization based in Kuala Lumpur. As part of this work, Mr. Abdul Ghani advocates for the human rights of refugees and asylum seekers, combating human trafficking, and promotes the rights of the Rohingya minority, and the establishment of democracy in Myanmar. Mr. Abdul Ghani sought refuge in Malaysia in 1992 and was recognized as a refugee in 2004.

ALLEGATIONS

On 16 April 2020, the Malaysian Navy allegedly denied entry to a boat with 206 Rohingya people into Malaysia, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Following this, Mr. Abdul Ghani was contacted by local and international media for comments. On 21 April 2020, MERHROM issued a press statement in response to this incident, requesting the United Nations, ASEAN and world leaders to protect the rights of Rohingya minority and prosecute human traffickers in respective ASEAN countries. On the same day, the statement was posted on an unknown individual’s Facebook account, who allegedly urged the Malaysian Government to be stern with the Rohingya community and urged others to attack Mr. Abdul Ghani’s Facebook account. The account also reportedly stated that Mr. Abdul Ghani’s phone number was available.

On the same day, a picture of Mr. Abdul Ghani was uploaded on another unknown individual’s Facebook account, claiming that Mr. Abdul Ghani was demanding full citizenship rights for Rohingya living in Malaysia. Mr. Ghani’s social media account received almost 20,000 comments the same day, including threats and insults, including posts urging him and the Rohingya minority to leave Malaysia.

On the same day, an online petition was launched by unknown individuals, urging the Malaysian Government to send Mr. Abdul Ghani and all Rohingya minority back to Myanmar. On 22 April 2020, an open letter from Malaysian nationals was issued to MERHROM, demanding all Rohingya, including Mr. Abdul Ghani, be expelled back to Myanmar.

Since then, Mr. Abdul Ghani has reportedly received further threats and harassment, including death threats and threats of physical violence through phone calls, WhatsApp messages, SMS, Facebook and various other social media platforms. These attacks call for the killing and violent attack of Mr. Abdul Ghani, as well as for the Malaysian government to expel him and all Rohingya minority from Malaysia. Mr. Abdul Ghani’s family have also reportedly received threats and insults, with threats that they will find him, his wife and children and kill them all, and made serious threats against his mother.

On 23 April 2020, Mr. Abdul Ghani and his wife lodged a report at the Gombak police station based on the threats and harassment they had been receiving online. They were reportedly instructed to meet the Investigation Officer at Setapak police station, where they were allegedly confronted by three unknown individuals regarding Mr. Abdul Ghani’s alleged claim for Malaysian citizenship.

Mr. Abdul Ghani’s and MERHROM’s advocacy and community work has reportedly been increasingly affected following the harassment and threats against him. As a result of this harassment, he together with MERHROM’s committee members have had to cease their efforts in assisting Rohingya who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

On 5 September 2021, Mr. Abdul Ghani reportedly received a call from an unknown individual, believed to be a Myanmar national based on his accent, who told him to be careful, as the Myanmar Military Intelligence is allegedly following him. The caller told Mr. Abdul Ghani to stay at home and not leave.

Additionally, following the death of human rights defender and Chair of the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights (ARSPH) Mr. Mohib Ullah on 29 September 2021, in the Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh, Mr. Abdul Ghani has been receiving threats on social media platforms, urging him and Rohingya refugees in Malaysia to return to Myanmar. Although Mr. Abdul Ghani’s name is not always referenced, he is referred to on social media as the “President or Rohingya Leader in Malaysia”.

On 30 September 2021, the Sinar Harian Malaysian newspaper published an article on Mr. Ullah’s assassination. The article received over 1.3k comments, reportedly mostly negative and many targeting Mr. Abdul Ghani. Allegedly, some comments included threats of violence, including that Mr. Abdul Ghani should be shot, or that he should take Mr. Ullah’s place in the refugee camp where he was assassinated.

CONCERNS

In the communication, we expressed our deep concern at the death threats, harassment and intimidation against human rights defender Mr. Abdul Ghani, which appear to be directly linked to his legitimate work as a human rights defender in Malaysia, working on the protection of the rights of refugees and asylum seekers, combating human trafficking, the rights of the Rohingya minority, and promoting the establishment of democracy in Myanmar. Furthermore, we express our concerns regarding the targeting of Mr. Abdul Ghani for the legitimate exercise of his right to freedom of opinion and expression, as well as of peaceful assembly and of association. We express further serious concerns at the threats and intimidation against Mr. Abdul Ghani’s family members as well.

We also expressed concern with regard to the online targeting of, smear campaigns and xenophobia against refugees and migrants. We are concerned that such actions heighten the vulnerability of refugees, migrants and certain minorities, given the precarity of their status, and could result in the normalisation of xenophobia and discrimination against refugees and migrants in Malaysia. As such, this could also potentially inhibit human rights defenders in Malaysia from carrying out their legitimate work regarding minority, refugee and migrant rights, due to potential retaliation.

A Vietnamese court on Friday sentenced Facebook user Bui Van Thuan to eight years in prison–under vague rules that are often used by authorities to stifle criticism–for a series of posts in which he criticized the power struggle among local officials, whom he nicknamed “the dog fighting ring.”

In his final statement during the trial, Thuan, 41, gave up his right to appeal because he said he cannot trust the judicial system in Vietnam.

“The sentence for my husband may have met the authorities’ expectations, but it is utterly unconvincing to me,” his wife, Trinh Thi Nhung, told Radio Free Asia in a text message.

“My husband did not appeal, not because he pleaded guilty or surrendered,” she wrote. “The reason is: No political prisoners have appealed successfully so far.”

The People’s Court in the northern province of Than Hoa found Thuan guilty of “disseminating anti-state materials,” under Article 117 of Vietnam’s penal code. In addition to the time in prison, Thuan must also serve five years probation.

According to the indictment, Thuan penned 27 Facebook posts with “content against the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.”

The prosecution called 12 witnesses but only one, Le Quoc Quyen, who is a Facebook friend of Thuan and the head of Thuan’s local police station, showed up to the court.

According to the defense, the witness could not provide concrete details about the charges against Thuan. But when they requested that criminal charges be brought against the witness for false testimony, the judge denied the request.

“Sending a man to prison for eight years on the basis of a few Facebook posts indicates the government's total intolerance for any sort of criticism,” Phil Robertson, Human Rights Watch’s Deputy Asia Director, told RFA via text message.

“At this point, one wonders why the Vietnam government even bothers to send such cases to trial since the long sentences issued by these kangaroo courts are entirely predictable, and justice and rule of law in the country is a farce,” Robertson said.

According to RFA Vietnamese, Bui Van Thuan is the eighth activist sentenced on charges of conducting propaganda against the state this year. The rest were sentenced to five to eight years in prison and three to five years on probation.

A midwife who was arrested during a crackdown on healthcare workers in Mandalay late last month has died in regime custody, according to a doctor familiar with the situation.

Poe Thandar Aung, who was formerly employed at the Central Women’s Hospital in Mandalay, died on Monday night, said Dr. Soe Thura Zaw, who is taking part in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) against military rule.

“I heard the news from three sources. We learned this morning that Ma Poe was dead,” he told Myanmar Now on Tuesday.

Poe Thandar Aung was arrested in Mandalay on October 29 along with others accused of sending medical supplies to anti-junta forces.

Also arrested were Dr. Min Zaw Oo, of the Mandalay University of Medicine’s Surgery Department, nurses Zin Mar Win and Yoon Nandar Tun, a woman named Kyi Thadar Phyu, and three employees at a bus station in Aungmyay Thazan Township.

The arrests were part of a crackdown launched after regime forces seized nearly 5 million kyat ($2,365) worth of medicine and other supplies from a truck travelling between the towns of Pale and Gangaw, west of Mandalay, on October 27.

More than a dozen people were taken into custody in the first wave of arrests, and at least 16 more have since been detained, according to CDM sources.

“Our whole country is suffering because of a general who doesn’t want to retire. Myanmar is the only country where nurses are executed for doing their jobs,” said Dr. Soe Thura Zaw, referring to junta leader Min Aung Hlaing.

Myanmar Now has been unable to reach Poe Thandar Aung’s relatives to confirm reports of her death.

On Monday, another person taking part in the CDM named Hein Zaw Nyo wrote on social media that Dr. Min Zaw Oo had also been tortured while undergoing interrogation and was vomiting blood due to the beatings he had received.

“We don’t take up arms. We only provide medical service to the people. The military is targeting the healthcare community for defying the junta,” he wrote.

Hein Zaw Nyo’s allegations could not be independently confirmed at the time of reporting.

Since seizing power in February 2021, the military has killed 58 healthcare workers and arrested more than 700, according to Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government (NUG).

The regime has also destroyed more than 50 hospitals and clinics and at least 40 ambulances, the NUG reported last month.

Media advocacy organizations decried officials’ unexplained decision to ban reporters from news outlets VOD and VOA from Prime Minister Hun Sen’s press conference following the Asean Summit on Sunday.

After four days of diplomatic meetings during the Asean Summit at Sokha Hotel — with media access limited or thwarted by technical errors — Hun Sen invited foreign and local reporters to the Peace Palace for a two-hour press conference to ask questions about the summit and Cambodia’s Asean chairmanship.

Reporters from Phnom Penh-based news outlets VOD and VOA registered with Information Ministry officials for passes to attend on Sunday. Two hours before the speech’s scheduled start, they were told that a “supervisor” would not allow access to reporters from the two outlets, according to a statement from three media advocacy organizations, including VOD’s parent organization, the Cambodian Center for Independent Media.

“We call on the ministry to explain this apparent discrimination against journalists for certain news outlets. However, we see no justifiable reason for denying any professional journalists the opportunity to openly access public officials and institutions, and report news in the public interest,” the statement said.

The reporters from VOD and VOA have been issued Information Ministry press cards — a condition also required for attending the Asean Summit.

Information Ministry spokesperson Meas Sophoan on Monday referred questions to the ministry’s general director Phos Sovann.

When asked by VOD why a reporter was banned on Sunday, Sovann responded he “wasn’t sure about this procedure.” He could not be reached on Monday.

However, Sovann defended the ban to the pro-government news outlet Khmer Times, saying that reporters from the two news outlets never attend these press conferences, and when they do they “cut only a few points” from a speech to publish.

Reporters are regularly blocked from covering speeches, said Sun Narin, a reporter for the U.S. government-funded news outlet VOA who was not allowed into Hun Sen’s speech. However, this time the event was on the international stage.

“We see that type of discrimination still happening, especially for journalists who dare to speak about social issues, which isn’t a good image for the country [that says it has] open access and freedom of information,” he said.

Pa Sokheng, a reporter for VOD Khmer who covered the entire Asean Summit, said she was disappointed to be banned from Hun Sen’s press conference, adding that this violates Cambodia’s constitutional protection of freedom of information and expression.

“Journalists aren’t an enemy to the government, and democracy requires transparency to reflect on issues and solutions,” she said. “[The government] also answers to the people through the press.”

CCIM’s media director Ith Sothoeuth noted that this ban on VOD and VOA appears to be an act of discrimination against independent media, and diminishes Cambodian citizens’ right to receive information.

“Freedom of information is a fundamental freedom that is guaranteed by the Press Law and the Cambodian Constitution. [This act] also undermines the right of the general public to access independent information,” he said.

Activists this week sought the attention of world leaders attending the Asean summit in Phnom Penh, while authorities on Saturday surrounded the home of a protester who has long campaigned for the release of her husband and other jailed opposition members.

As U.S. President Joe Biden, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern arrived in Phnom Penh to attend the Asean summit, some 20 uniformed officers and state security guards were surveilling the home of Prum Chantha, a leader of the Friday Women of Cambodia group, which has for months petitioned foreign embassies for support.

“They come to monitor me because they are afraid I will lead a protest during the arrival of President Joe Biden,” Chantha said.

Her husband Kak Komphear, a former commune councilor in Phnom Penh, was arrested in 2020 and sentenced to six years in prison on incitement and plotting charges in relation to his support for the outlawed opposition CNRP.

Uniformed district security guards were gathered 5 meters from her house in Meanchey district’s Boeng Tompun II commune beginning at 6 a.m., Chantha said. By about 5:30 p.m. several officers were still lingering outside her home, and one told her they would be there until Sunday morning.

“However, I have no plan to protest because I have been protesting for one year and [the U.S. government] already knows our issue,” she said. “Forces are only gathered at my house because I am a group leader.”

Chantha, who stayed home all day, said the surveillance restricted activists’ rights and freedom of movement.

“They are afraid our protesting will lead to a bad country image during the Asean summit,” she said.

Phin Phal, Boeng Tompun II commune police chief, acknowledged that some police and state security guards were deployed to prevent activists from disturbing public order during the summit.

“It does not matter that we have deployed to ensure security because we are afraid they will go anywhere [to protest],” he said. “I just follow the instructions of my superiors.”

Phnom Penh municipal police spokesperson San Sokseyha said during the Asean summit, authorities were focused on ensuring the safety of visiting world leaders — as well as Cambodia’s public image.

“We have focused on the security, safety and the reputation of our country,” he said, before declining to comment further.

Phnom Penh police chief Sar Thet could not be reached.

Am Sam Ath, operations director at human rights group Licadho, said his organization was monitoring police officials’ surveillance of activists, noting that it violated people’s rights and freedom of movement.

Authorities’ claims that their monitoring of activists was to ensure public order was “unreasonable,” Sam Ath said.

Mu Sochua, vice president of the dissolved opposition CNRP, posted photos of uniformed authorities outside Chantha’s house, noting that the surveillance was occurring as Biden arrived in Phnom Penh.

Sochua, a dual Cambodian-American citizen, also said on Twitter that Biden should meet with Friday Women activists as well as striking NagaWorld unionists.

On Friday, strikers outside the NagaWorld casino carried large posters calling for the Malaysian Embassy in Phnom Penh to accept their petition, after the embassy early this year declined to receive it, and urging Asean nations not to trample on rights to freedom of association like the NagaWorld CEO, a Malaysian national.

“I wear traditional clothes and carry these banners to show other countries that come to the Asean summit to help intervene and find a solution for us,” said unionist Chan Sreyroth, who worked at the casino for four years before she was fired last year.

Union members have been protesting for their jobs back for nearly a year, alleging the company behind the only licensed casino in Phnom Penh had targeted unionists in mass layoffs.

Members of advocacy group Khmer Thavrak also sought the attention of visiting world leaders, including Biden, this week.

The group began a weeklong hunger strike on Monday to call for the release of Cambodian-American lawyer Seng Theary, who has been imprisoned for nearly five months, after being sentenced to six years in prison over her opposition activism.

Hun Vannak, a Khmer Thavrak member, told CamboJA he hopes news of the group’s campaign will reach Biden and the U.S. will raise the issue of human rights during the summit.

“After a statement from the U.S. State Department [mentioning concern over Theary’s conviction], we are increasingly hopeful that President Joe Biden will discuss human rights issues related to Seng Theary and other political prisoners with [Prime Minister] Hun Sen,” Vannak said.

Their hunger strike this week was made more difficult by authorities monitoring them while they campaigned at Phnom Penh’s Freedom Park, he said. One Khmer Thavrak member was hospitalized, while another experienced stomach illness.

Vannak said he did not expect their campaign to have immediate results, but the action could raise awareness among the public and leaders from the U.S. and Asean nations.

“We do not expect the government to provide us with a solution any time soon, but what we are doing now is expected to have a positive impact in our society,” he said.

In a letter addressed to Biden and dated Wednesday, opposition Candlelight Party president Teav Vannol appealed to the U.S. president to urge the Cambodian government to “stop all kinds of political persecutions, harassments, [and] intimidations,” release “prisoners of conscience without conditions” and “revive democracy” ahead of next year’s national elections.

Thach Setha, Candlelight’s vice president, told CamboJA that party leaders had no plans to meet Biden during his visit to Cambodia, but said the U.S. should leverage its position as a world power and signatory of the 1991 Paris Peace Agreement to “uphold democracy.”

“I hope that after the Asean summit, there will be a change in the situation in our Cambodia,” Setha said.

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters prior to Biden’s arrival on Saturday that the U.S. president was “engaging” with Hun Sen because the prime minister is the host of the Asean summit, just as Biden was meeting with the presidents of Egypt and Indonesia at summits in those countries, before and after his visit to Cambodia.

“He’s going to engage across the board in service of America’s interests and to advance America’s strategic position and our values,” the adviser said.

Sullivan said Biden will discuss with Asean leaders the “need for freedom of navigation,” a reference to the U.S. position on the South China Sea, “lawful, unimpeded commerce,” and coordination in imposing costs and raising pressure on the Myanmar junta.

Biden met with Hun Sen on Saturday afternoon and raised concerns about Ream Naval Base, underscoring the “importance of full transparency” regarding activities by the Chinese military at the base, according to a White House statement.

Both China and Cambodia have repeatedly denied U.S. claims of a secret deal between China and Cambodia that granted China’s military exclusive access to parts of the base.

Asean summit spokesperson Kung Phoak told reporters late Saturday that Cambodia had already answered questions about Ream many times.

“We never hide,” he said. “We already allowed the U.S. to visit the location.”

In June 2021, the U.S. military attaché visited Ream, but said the Cambodian military did not grant U.S. officials “full access” — a charge Cambodian officials denied.

Biden also urged Hun Sen to “reopen civic and political space” before the 2023 elections, and “called for the release of activists detained on politically motivated charges,” including Theary, the White House said.

Phoak said if political activists abuse the law, they must face consequences for their actions.

“When we talk about extending democratic space, and at the same time we allow political activists to do whatever they want, even if it is illegal, I don’t think this democracy will last forever,” he said.

“Democracy in Cambodia is moving step by step, which reflects the real situation of the country and we never go backwards. We push the democratic space more open,” he added.

During a summit speech in Phnom Penh on Saturday, the U.S. president called Asean the “heart” of his administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy, and said the U.S. was committed to Asean centrality and working with nations in the region to tackle threats against the climate, health security, the rule of law and a rule-based order, and address challenges in Myanmar and the South China Sea.

Earlier in his brief remarks, Biden mistakenly referred to Hun Sen as the prime minister of Colombia.

“I want to thank the prime minister of, from Colombia’s leadership, and as Asean chair, and for hosting all of us,” he said.

The Supreme Court on Friday upheld convictions against four human rights officials and an election body staffer — who previously worked at the same rights group — in a case related to a love scandal involving opposition leader Kem Sokha.

The five were arrested in 2016 when four Adhoc staffers, Ny Sokha, Nay Vanda, Yi Soksan and Lim Mony, assisted a woman who was accused of having a relationship with Kem Sokha. Ny Chakrya, who previously worked at Adhoc, was also involved in the case.

The five — who are known by the moniker “Adhoc 5” — were jailed and released in 2017. They were convicted in September 2018 for bribery. The woman received financial assistance from Adhoc when she approached the group because she had been summoned by the anti-terrorism police for questioning.

They were sentenced to five years in prison but had to serve suspended terms of 14 months. The Appeal Court then upheld the municipal court’s verdict in 2022.

The Supreme Court on Friday brought the case to conclusion by upholding the lower court’s verdict, with judge Nil Nonn rejecting an Appeal Court prosecutor’s demand that the five serve their entire sentences and by dismissing a motion from the defense to drop the charges.

Soeng Senkaruna, an Adhoc rights monitor, said all three levels of the judiciary could not find justice for the five defendants and said they had made a credible defense against the charges.

“It is a shame of the judicial system,” he said.

The case also ensnared Sokha and two other opposition officials who were charged for procuring prostitution for allegedly taking the woman to Bangkok, Thailand. Sokha spent months holed up at the Cambodia National Rescue Party headquarters and was convicted and pardoned in the case.

Siem Reap families set up camp on disputed land this week in protest of their former farms being used to resettle Angkor park evictees, but have left under threat from authorities, the residents said.

Authorities have this year asked around 10,000 families living within the Angkor Archaeological Park to relocate from the historical area, saying their presence could lead to the loss of Unesco world heritage status. Officials have warned residents that they would get no compensation if they didn’t agree to move.

One resettlement site designated for those families is Run Ta Ek, an area about 25 km northeast of Angkor Wat.

But last month, around 200 families near the resettlement site took issue with the plan, saying the state had taken the Run Ta Ek land away from them in 2005 without compensation. They had put up with the dispossession believing the land would be used by the state, but they could not accept their former farms simply being handed to other people, they have said.

Protester Sam Mom said the disputants had met with district officials and the Apsara Authority on Monday seeking compensation, but no agreement could be reached.

In response, about one member from each of the 200 families set up camp in Run Ta Ek that evening, Mom said.

Around 10 p.m., authorities arrived and threatened to remove them with force if they didn’t leave, he said.

“Last night we slept on our land at Run Ta Ek village, but village guards came and asked the people not to camp,” Mom said, referring to the resettlement site.

Another protester, Ran Ra, said the 200 families no longer had enough farmland. Officials were asking them for documents, including land titles, that they had never issued for them, he added.

Penh Pren, a village chief who participated in the protest, said compensation of $500-$700 per hectare had been promised in 2005, but the residents never received it.

“This is an injustice because I am the real landowner. They took my land and gave it to illegal Angkor residents. I am not happy,” Pren said.

Prasat Bakorng deputy district governor Nin Sovann denied that authorities made threats to the campers, saying they had only negotiated with them to remove their tents.

Officials would meet with the residents again on Friday to try to reach an agreement on the land, Sovann said.

A village chief in Siem Reap province has been fired after he joined a protest with around 210 families protesting the use of their former farms to resettle Angkor evictees.

Penh Pren, a village chief in Balaing commune in Prasat Bakorng district, told VOD Thursday that he was removed from his position after attempting to protest overnight at Run Ta Ek relocation site earlier this week. Run Ta Ek is located about 25 km north of the park and is one of the sites tagged for resettling around 4,000 people who are being forced out.

The village chief claimed that in 2005, the Apsara Authority — which oversees the park — had taken villagers’ farmland and promised them between $500 to 700$ in compensation per hectare. Now in 2022, villagers including him are still waiting for compensation and are outraged to see the same land promised to other people.

“I’ll tell you the truth. People were really disappointed after I was removed from my position, but for me, I’m not disappointed by those who removed me,” he said. “For the people, I am not scared, because they did nothing wrong, only those who encroach on people’s land and promised compensation for people.”

Sam Mom, a villager who joined the protest, said that Pren has always tried to protect the villagers in land disputes and that firing him was a threat to stop protesting the Apsara Authority’s decisions.

“He also has the land in the area. He tried to help people because people lost their land in Run Ta Ek and he wanted to help to get their farmland back,” Mom said.

Balaing commune chief Lem Nath said Pren was removed from the position for multiple “mistakes” dating back to when he assumed the role in 2019, accusing the village chief of taking people’s money and insulting monks and top leaders.

“He made a lot of mistakes in public service,” she said. “I received complaints from the villagers.”

After a Monday meeting with district officials about the conflict yielded no solution, one member each from about 200 families camped out at Run Ta Ek. Around 10 p.m. that night, they were ordered to leave or face removal by force.

Two NagaWorld unionists have been questioned in the Phnom Penh Municipal Court over breaking and entering, intentional damage and unlawful confinement — but they still don’t know what the casino company is accusing them of, they said.

Protesters Sok Sothavuth and Net Chakriya appeared at the court for questioning on Monday, Sothavuth in the morning and Chakriya in the afternoon, as around 40 casino protesters stood outside in support.

NagaWorld workers have protested since December over mass layoffs that they say targeted union members and leaders, facing arrest and violence over 10 months of labor action. What began as large rallies outside the Phnom Penh casino have mostly dwindled into small protests of fewer than 100 participants.

Sothavuth said she received her summons last week, and spent around 30 minutes during the morning being questioned by a prosecutor.

She was shown “evidence” of her crime from August 19 and 20: printed-out photographs showing her standing outside the NagaWorld casino building with other protesters.

“There are pictures, but nothing aside from us striking in front of Naga. It’s like a picture of us standing over there every day,” Sothavuth said.

She said the prosecutor had asked her whether she had committed each of the three charges of breaking and entering, intentional damage and illegal confinement on those days.

She had answered she did not, and was asked this repeatedly over half an hour, she said, adding that the court action would not dissuade her from continuing to protest.

“Even though I face this case, I will still keep coming until we can find a solution,” she said, referring to around 200 unionists who are seeking reinstatement from the mass layoffs. She was told she would need to wait to see if NagaCorp continues with its lawsuit, she said.

Ros Bunleng, a manager at NagaWorld, could not be reached on Monday. NagaCorp has not clarified what the court case is about.

Chakriya, who was questioned in the afternoon, said a court clerk and prosecutor questioned her in succession, but neither had presented any photos of her. They simply asked what happened on August 19, she said.

Chakriya said she had replied it was a normal protest: The strikers stood in front of NagaWorld with banners, then went home.

One more protester is set to be questioned tomorrow. At least seven in total have received summonses.

A third NagaWorld protester was questioned in court on Tuesday over alleged breaking and entering in a case that remains unclear.

Choub Sophorn said she was questioned during the afternoon at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, with a prosecutor showing her printouts of photographs of protesters outside the NagaWorld casino.

The prosecutor asked whether she had yelled at the company on August 19 and 20.

“I didn’t shout and yell. I only held a banner demanding a solution,” she said.

Workers have been protesting for 11 months following mass layoffs that they said targeted unionists.

At least seven workers have been summoned for questioning based on a complaint from NagaCorp alleging breaking and entering, intentional damage and illegal confinement. Two others were questioned on Monday, but said they were unable to get clarity on what they were accused of.

“They also asked when I want to stop striking,” Sophorn said.

Unionist Nop Tithboravy said another worker had received a summons for November 22. All of them asked for a delay on their initial summonses.

Last week, a group of activists in Nakhon Ratchasima were surrounded by police officers and prevented from protesting during the royal motorcade of Princess Sirindhorn, who was visiting a nearby school.

On Wednesday (9 November), the activist group Korat Movement went live on their Facebook page while they were holding protest signs saying “Free our friends” and “Person = person. Everyone is equal” while surrounded by a group of plainclothes police. The protest took place while Princess Sirindhorn, King Vajiralongkorn’s younger sister, was traveling to visit nearby Boonwattana School. The 15-minute video clip also showed the police trying to pull signs out of the activists’ hands.

“Paper,” a 15-year-old activist, said that the group went to the school with their protest signs, but they were followed by 2 – 3 plainclothes police who asked her and another friend to join two other members of the group waiting nearby. The officers also told them that the group would be taken to an area prepared for people to greet the Princess, but the activists told the police that they would not move.

As the royal motorcade was approaching, Paper said that the police tried to force the activists to move further away from the motorcade. Some of the activists in the group then held up their signs, and were told by the police to put them down since they have had the chance to display them. The activists refused, so the officers pulled their arms and pushed two activists, a 17-year-old and a 19-year-old, to make them put the signs down.

The activists were also initially told by the officers that one of their group members, named “Fa,” will be detained because she put up a sign saying “Going anywhere is a burden” in front of the hotel where Princess Sirindhorn was staying, but did not present a warrant or any evidence. However, the entire group was released after the royal motorcade had passed.

Paper also said that, while a member of the group was leaving their residence to run an errand, they were approached by a plainclothes officer. They were seen by another activist, who called the rest of the group. They went live on Facebook again, but were approached by a nearby traffic policeman who checked their drivers’ licenses and fined them before taking them to a nearby police station. They agreed to go to the police station and contacted a lawyer on the way there.

Once they arrived at the police station, the police tried to charge the activist accused of putting up a sign in front of the hotel with a violation of the Public Cleanliness Act, but they denied the charge. The police then made a record that the activists were brought to the police station before releasing them.