The former prime minister of Cambodia announced the pardon of former opposition leader Kem Sokha, who was serving a 27-year sentence for treason. On behalf of King Norodom Sihamoni, Hun Sen, the acting head of state of Cambodia, issued an order pardoning his political foe. In a video released in 2017, Sokha, the former head of the now-dissolved Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP), claimed to have gotten backing from pro-democracy organizations in the United States.
Since his conviction for treason in 2023, he has been under house arrest. Human rights organizations have generally mocked the accusations as being politically driven. Hun Sen said on Facebook that Sokha had been “pardoned” and included a picture of the royal proclamation that he had signed. The pardon, according to his son Hun Manet, who succeeded his father as prime minister in 2023, is “one more step towards strengthening national unity”.
It followed the denial of an appeal against Sokha’s sentencing last month. However, it did not involve lifting the politician’s five-year restriction from leaving Cambodia. “Hun Sen’s decision to pardon Kem Sokha after more than eight years in arbitrary detention partially reverses a grievous injustice, but it is deplorable that Sokha remains barred from participating in politics or leaving the country,” stated Elaine Pearson, Human Rights Watch’s Asia director.
Also Read:
Rubio: Cuba Is Challenge To U.S., Havana Says Rubio Is Lying
