Social monitors urge government to consider pardon | RSS.com
Social monitors in Cambodia are urging the government and the courts to consider granting pardons to activists linked to the Paris Peace Accords, saying such a move would demonstrate a genuine commitment to democracy and full respect for human rights in the eyes of the international community.
Speaking to The Cambodia Daily on Tuesday, development and research adviser Sek Socheat said the continued prosecution and detention of social activists, including Srun Srorn and Pheung Sophea, along with others, was widely viewed by both domestic and international observers as unjust and brought no benefit to Cambodia.
He argued that the cases were particularly damaging at a time when the country was facing pressure linked to actions by a neighbouring state, and warned that ongoing legal action over the activists’ public statements could harm Cambodia’s long-term national interests.
Sek Socheat said arrests and prosecutions over criticism of government shortcomings were not a solution, but instead risked deepening the problems being raised. He added that such measures also increased Cambodia’s exposure to international criticism, even as global standards around democracy and universal human rights were under strain.
On February 2, 2026, the Supreme Court of Cambodia rejected appeals seeking the release or bail of three Paris Peace Accords activists, Pheung Sophea, Srun Srorn, and San Seth. They are charged with incitement to cause serious disorder to social security under Articles 494 and 495 of the Criminal Code.
The court upheld a December 2025 decision by the Appeal Court, which ruled that the bail applications were filed outside the legally permitted time frame.
The three activists were arrested on July 23, 2024, in Siem Reap province while livestreaming on Facebook about the Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam Development Triangle Area, known as the CLV DTA.
This marks the sixth time that courts have rejected bail requests for the three, who have now spent more than a year and a half in pre-trial detention.
As of February 4, 2026, they have been held for 560 days across three separate facilities: Correctional Center 1 and Correctional Center 2 in Phnom Penh, and Correctional Center 3 in Tbong Khmum province.
