rainsy’s conviction a ‘legal matter, not a political one’ a picture taken outside of cambodia of sam rainsy c,l and the seven other former cnrp lawmakers convicted over the coup plot. a picture taken outside of cambodia of sam rainsy c,l and the seven other former cnrp lawmakers convicted over the coup plot. facebook government officials have defended the phnom penh municipal court’s conviction of former opposition leader sam rainsy and eight other senior officials over a plot to topple the government amid criticism over the move. ministry of justice spokesman chin malin said yesterday that the court’s decision against former opposition leaders was made according to the law, saying the court had enough arguments to prosecute them. “more importantly, the authorities have acted in accordance with legal procedures, and the courts conducted the trial based on procedure and made decisions based on the facts and existing legal aspects,” he said. presiding judge duch sok sarin on monday sentenced rainsy, who is living in exile, to 25 years in jail, while mu sochua and eng chhai eang, both vice-presidents and former lawmakers of the ex-cnrp, were sentenced to 22 years in jail each. the judge also sentenced six other ex-cnrp lawmakers to 20 years in jail each after they were found guilty of attempting to “attack” the government. they are rainsy’s wife tioulong saumura, ou chanrith, ho vann, long ry, men thavarin and nuth romduol. all of them are living in exile abroad. the convicts were deprived of their right to vote and the right to stand for election. rainsy vowed to return to the kingdom to restore democracy and human rights on november 9, 2019, but his planned return failed to materialise. however, the government accused him and his allies of planning a coup. in his statement on the conviction, rainsy said it was simply a “political statement” born out of weakness and fear. “cambodian prime minister hun sen is afraid of any risk of my returning to the cambodian political scene. he also dreads the prospect of any free and fair election which would inevitably lead to the end of his current autocratic and anachronistic regime,” he said. rainsy claimed mr hun sen has repeatedly refused to allow him and other leading figures of the ex-cnrp to return to cambodia, saying the sentence is simply intended to intimidate ex-cnrp supporters within the country. however, malin said ex-cnrp leaders have never acknowledged their wrongdoing. “it is normal for them to never admit their mistakes. as a justification, the perpetrator never admits that he has committed a crime,” malin added. in its statement, the court-dissolved cnrp described the verdict as: “cambodia’s politicised court confirms the coup and abolition of democracy”. it said it fully denies all charges and resolutely rejects the verdict. it added that 130 members of the ex-cnrp have been kept in pre-trial detention over the past year and charged as accomplices of the nine cnrp leaders. “the international community must respond to these intolerable developments in an equally determined way,” it added. “these sentences have to be denounced, rejected and ultimately withdrawn.” the us embassy in phnom penh yesterday said it was troubled by the sentences handed down against the nine cambodian political opposition leaders, including some who are also american citizens. “these sentences are part of a series of mass trials against more than 130 political opposition supporters and civil society activists, which lack basic due process,” it said. “we urge the government of cambodia to protect freedoms of expression and association, as enshrined in the country’s constitution, and call on authorities to take meaningful steps to reopen civic and political space in the lead up to the 2022 commune election and the 2023 national election,” it added. however, cambodian people’s party spokesman sok eysan said yesterday that the conviction will result in ex-cnrp leaders no longer being able to enter and participate in the 2022 and 2023 commune and national elections. he said the political life of the ex-cnrp leaders has come to an end because of their bad intentions against the people and nation. “the case is a legal matter, not a political one.”
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