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Feb 8, 2007
Justice Still Needed in Chea
Vichea Murder Case
 Unions,
NGOs call for new investigation into shooting death
of FTUWKC president
 Cambodian
NGOs and trade union have launched a public campaign
to demand the release of two men they say are unjustly
imprisoned for the murder of trade union leader
Chea Vichea. Signboards, such as the one above,
with photos of the two men and bearning the slogan
"They need justice" have been placed throughout
Phnom Penh.
Marking the third anniversary of the murder of 36-year-old
Chea Vichea, the president of the Free Trade Union
of the Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC),
the union renewed its calls for the release of two
men they say were falsely convicted of the 2004
murder and have urged the government to launch a
new, unbiased investigation into the killing. The
CCC supports this call for action, which also has
the support of the International Trade Union Confederation
(ITUC) and Amnesty International. Add your voice
to these calls for justice - demand the arrest and
conviction of Chea Vichea's real killers and support
respect for trade union rights in Cambodia. Please
send a letter of protest to the Cambodian government
and to European embassies/the EU representative
in Cambodia requesting their follow up.
Take action now! >>
BACKGROUND
 Chea
Vichea, outspoken union leader who pushed for
garment workers' rights in Cambodia, was gunned
down on a Phnom Penh street in 2004. Local and
international unions and NGOs,as well as his family,
are calling for the arrest of his real killers
and the release of those falsely imprisoned for
the crime. [compiled from AI, ICFTU,
and FTUWKC reports]
On January 22, 2004 union leader Chea Vichea,
who pushed for better working conditions for Cambodian
garment workers, including payment of a living
wage, was shot dead while reading a newspaper
at a roadside newsstand in Phnom Penh. Two men
were arrested days after the shooting and later
were sentenced to 20 years in prison for carrying
out the killing. However the investigation and
trial have been widely deemed to be seriously
flawed. Both the criminal investigation and the
court hearings were denounced by the then Special
Representative of the United Nations' Secretary
General for Human Rights in Cambodia, Peter Leuprecht,
as lacking any credibility. In addition to Amnesty
International and the International Trade Union
Confederation (ITUC), Human Rights Watch has also
called for the release of the two men and a new
investigation to bring the real killers to justice.
During the time prior to his death, Chea Vichea
had received death threats and had sought police
protection. At the time, the police denied him protection
and instead suggested that he leave the country
because a high-ranking government official wanted
him killed. A thorough investigation into the murder
of Chea Vichea must determine not only who killed
the rights defender, but also who commissioned the
killing.
 Chea
Mony, younger brother of slain FTUWKC leader Chea
Vichea, now heads the union and has been subject
to police detention and forced to remain for months
in exile.
Both men convicted of Chea Vichea's murder have
appealed the verdict. Though their appeals were
set to be heard on October 6, 2006, at the last
minute the court delayed the hearing because the
judge was allegedly sick. It is unclear why no substitute
judge was assigned at the time. No new court date
has been set. New evidence available at that time
included a four-page statement from the newsstand
owner, who witnessed the murder, in which she called
the two convicted men "fake killers" who
bore no resemblance to the real killer. Ms. Var
Soth, who reports that she was visited one month
after the killing by the real murderer, gave up
her newsstand and fled the country, seeking asylum
in Thailand, because she feared for her life. Safety
concerns also forced Chea Vichea's pregnant wife
and his daughter to flee Cambodia.
No Credible Investigation to Apprehend
Real Killers
 Sok
Sam Oeun (above) has been imprisoned for three years,
despite evidence that he is innocent. Photo LICADHO
According to an
Amnesty International report on Chea Vichea's murder,
there were many irregularities during the original
investigation into the killing. Instead of investigating
the killing, the police reportedly focused on threatening
and rounding up those who provided alibis for the
two charged with the crime and witnesses to the
killing were intimidated. Eyewitnesses to Chea Vichea's
murder were not called by police to identify the
arrested suspects. When shown photographs of the
two suspects by journalists and human rights workers,
they said the two men - Born Samnang and Sok Sam
Oeun -- bore no similarities to the men at the scene
of the crime. No eyewitnesses were consulted when
a police sketch of the alleged gunman was drawn.
Original Judge
Dismissed Case
 Numerous
witnesses have stated that Born Samnang (above),
was 60 kilometers away from Phnom Penh at the time
of the murder. Photo LICADHO
The judge who originally heard the case against
the suspects on March 19, 2004, Judge Heng Thirith,
dismissed the case for lack of evidence. He admitted
that he had been subject to political pressure and
that Born Samnang's confession was "irregular".
This move was hailed by the Cambodian Human Rights
Action Committee (CHRAC), a coalition of human rights
organisations, as a step towards an independent
judiciary. However the judge's decision was immediately
appealed by the prosecutor. Within days, the Supreme
Council of Magistracy, mandated to take disciplinary
actions against judges and prosecutors, had Heng
Thirith removed from his post at the Phnom Penh
Court. Appeal
Court Reversal Severely Criticized On July
1, 2004, the case was heard at the Appeals Court.
Born Samnang maintained that police had beaten,
coerced, and bribed him into falsely confessing,
while Sok Sam Oeun continued to plead his innocence.
Judge Thou Mony, now a trial chamber judge in the
Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia,
reversed Heng Thirith's ruling and returned the
case to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court for further
investigation.
CHRAC issued a statement criticizing the judge's
decision, and linking the lack of independence of
the court to the need for judicial reform. The UN
Secretary-General's Special Representative for Human
Rights in Cambodia expressed concern at the "numerous
procedural irregularities" in the investigation
and prosecution including arrests without a warrant;
lack of evidence against the suspects; a confession
allegedly made under duress after beatings and inducements,
and indications of entrapment.
Detention of Accused Violated
Cambodian Law; Trial Irregular Born Samnang
and Sok Sam Oeun remained in pre-trial detention
until their trial in the Phnom Penh Municipal Court
on 1 August 2005, a detention period exceeding by
a full year the legal six-month maximum under Cambodian
law.
In the Phnom Penh Court, fundamental principles
of international fair trials standards such as the
presumption of innocence, the rights to cross examine
witnesses and challenge evidence, and the impartiality
of the judiciary were completely ignored.
Other serious irregularities were observed. According
to international human rights law, Cambodia's constitution,
and its criminal law, confessions which are obtained
under duress, as is alleged in this case, are not
admissible as evidence in court. Furthermore, according
to Cambodian criminal law confessions cannot be
used to convict persons unless they are corroborated
by other evidence. No such evidence was presented
in support of Born Samnang's initial confession,
which was not only the central evidence against
him, but also against Sok Sam Oeun. The same confession
had been referred to as "irregular" by
the first investigating judge.
No witness testimony linked the two accused men
to Chea Vichea's murder and neither defendant was
tied to the scene of the crime by prosecution witnesses.
In contrast, multiple defense witnesses, prepared
to testify before the panel but denied the opportunity,
provided an alibi for Born Samnang, supporting his
testimony to the Court that he had been in Neak
Loeung, some 60 kilometres south of Phnom Penh at
the time of the murder. Additionally, no evidence
refuted the two men's claims that they had never
met before. There has been no inquiry into the allegations
of the police brutality reported by both men.
FTUWKC Demands New Investigation
Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun were sentenced to
20 years in prison and ordered to pay 5,000 USD
to the victim's family. Chea Mony, Chea Vichea's
brother and his successor at the Free Trade Union
of Workers, believes the men are innocent and rejected
the compensation:
"I was at the court hearings and there was
no evidence against Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun.
I would not want to accept any money; they were
not the real killers," he said, again restating
the need for the authorities to find those who murdered
his brother.
Workers' Rights Advocates at
Risk in Cambodia Sadly the violence against
trade union activists in Cambodia has not ended.
During the same year Chea Vichea was killed there
were other reports of intimidation and violence
against FTUWKC representatives. On May 7, 2004 Ros
Sovannareit, 42, president of the FTUWKC-affiliated
Trinungal Komara Garment Factory trade union and
a mechanic at the factory was murdered. The following
month the president of another FTUWKC-affiliated
union at a garment factory in Phnom Penh, Luen Thai,
was brutally attacked after attempting to organize
a strike. Lay Sophead, 29 years old, had tried to
negotiate improvements to working conditions earlier
that day, particularly for pregnant women to work
in a seated position and to undergo medical checks
as per the law. The employer rejected these demands,
which led to a brief work stoppage by the staff
in the afternoon. A second strike was planned for
the following day. Union activists have also been
unjustly detained and dismissed from their jobs.
In 2005, Chea Mony, the current president of the
FTUWKC, was arrested without charge by police. Though
eventually released, another arrest warrant, charging
him with libel against the government, issued while
he was out of the country forced him to remain in
exile for a period. For profiles of Lay Sophead
and Chea Mony, see: www.icftu.org/displaydocument.asp?Index=991221538&Language=EN.
During the past year the CCC has received reports
from various unions in Cambodia of repression against
workers seeking to exercise their rights to organize,
including cases involving violence against trade
unionists. For example at the Bright Sky factory,
where several unionists were attacked and one worker
was shot. For more information on the challenges
facing those who seek to exercise trade union rights
in Cambodia and information on specific violations
of trade union rights there, please see the ICFTU's
Cambodia: Annual Survey of Trade Union Rights, 2006:
www.icftu.org/displaydocument.asp?Index=991223973&Language=EN.
Given the ongoing and increased pressure on workers'
rights advocates in Cambodia, it remains urgent
to press for justice in the Chea Vichea murder case.
Local and International Action
Ongoing
At the time of the murder, the CCC launched an
international appeal for action calling upon the
Cambodian government to bring to justice those
responsible for the murder. The International
Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU, now
part of the ICTU), has continuously pushed for
a new investigation into the murder and has filed
a formal complaint about the case with the International
Labour Organisation (ILO) committee on Freedom
of Association. See: www.cleanclothes.org/urgent/04-01-22.htm
The UN Secretary-General's Representative for
Human Rights in Cambodia and the ILO have also
condemned the outcome of the trial. A coalition
of Cambodian NGOs and unions, including the Cambodian
League for the Promotion and Defense of Human
Rights (LICADHO), the Cambodian Human Rights Action
Committee (CHRAC), and the Cambodian Defenders
Project (CDP) have launched a campaign for the
release of Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun. For
more information on this initiative see: www.licadho.org/articles/20070129/50/index.html.
"We urge the Court of Appeal to urgently
set a new hearing date as soon as possible, and
to carefully consider all the available evidence
in this case," said Kong Pisey, acting director
of CDP, quoted in a recent statement. "We
believe that an impartial examination of all the
facts will lead to the release of Born Samnang
and Sok Sam Oeun."
To read the full Amnesty International statement
has released January 2007 on this case, VISIT:
http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGASA230022007?open&of=ENG-2AS].
For a recent report on the case from AI, visit:
http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGASA230082006?open&of=ENG-KHM]
ACTION REQUEST
1. Please sign the online
petition to the Cambodian prime minister, Hun
Sen, demanding the release of the two men unjustly
imprisoned for the murder of Chea Vichea and requesting
a new investigation into his killing.
Petition
Samdech Hun Sen
Prime Minister
Phnom Penh
Kingdom of Cambodia
Fax Number: +855 23880624
Dear Prime Minister,
We the undersigned are contacting you to request
that you immediately reopen the investigation
into the murder of trade union leader Chea Vichea.
It is now three years since he was brutally killed
in Phnom Penh, however his killer and those responsible
remain unpunished. We believe you have a duty
to follow up on this very serious matter.
Although two men, Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun,
have been imprisoned for the killing of Chea Vichea,
president of the Free Trade Union of the Workers
of the Kingdom of Cambodia, there is evidence
that suggests that these men did not commit this
heinous crime. They had strong alibis for the
time of the crime and an eyewitness to the killing
has provided a sworn statement that they were
not the killers. We believe that Born Samnang
and Sok Sam Oeun are entitled to a new court hearing
without further delay. It is of the upmost importance
that such a hearing is conducted in a fair manner,
with the opportunity for all relevant testimony
to be presented. The trial which led to their
conviction has been widely discredited due to
numerous irregularities in the proceedings. In
your capacity as prime minister, We urge you to
call upon your judiciary to promptly arrange a
retrial for Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun which
complies with international standards.
We believe that it is of the utmost urgency that
you initiate a new, serious, and independent investigation
into the murder of Chea Vichea to be carried out
as soon as possible. The new investigation should
include a thorough and impartial examination of
all aspects of the murder, including indications
that it was a contract murder. Not only those
who carried out this killing, but also those who
were behind it must be brought to justice.
We believe that if this case remains unresolved,
doubt will continue to be cast upon your government's
committment to legal and judicial reform and to
ensuring that the hard-working women and men of
Cambodia can safely exercise their trade union
rights. We are saddened to learn that since the
killing there have regularly been serious incidents
of garment workers' rights violations in your
country.
Please inform us as soon as possible as to the
steps you will take to ensure that a new court
hearing is held, that the two unjustly convicted
are released pending the outcome of new, fair
trial, and that trade union rights are respected
in Cambodia.
Sincerely,
[insert your name]
2. Please
send a letter to your country's embassy/consulate
in or covering Cambodia; with a copy to the EU,
to urge them to put pressure on the Cambodian
government to reopen this case, bring Chea Vichea's
real killers to justice and to ensure respect
for trade union rights.
Sample Letter
Dear [insert/select name],
I am contacting you to draw your attention to
the continued detention of Born Samnang and Sok
Sam Oeun for the murder of Chea Vichea, president
at the time of his death of the Free Trade Union
of the Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC).
These two men have been imprisoned despite evidence
that suggests they did not commit this crime.
A new investigation into this murder is urgently
needed, therefore I urge you to take immediate
action to follow up on this case.
Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun were sentenced to
twenty years' imprisonment on August 1, 2005 for
Chea Vichea's murder, however both the criminal
investigation and the court hearings were denounced
by the then Special Representative of the United
Nations' Secretary General for Human Rights in
Cambodia, Peter Leuprecht, as lacking any credibility.
Their appeal hearing, scheduled for October 6,
2006, was postponed because the judge was allegedly
ill, no substitute was brought in to handle the
case, and no new court date was set. New and important
evidence had been submitted to the court, however
no follow up has taken place. The FTUWKC, as well
as the International Trade Union Confederation
(ITUC), Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch,
and the Clean Clothes Campaign have called for
the release of the two men and for a new and serious
investigation into the murder of Chea Vichea.
They have contacted the prime minister of Cambodia
to follow up on this case; I urge you to contact
the Cambodian government as well.
It is important that you add your voice to others
who have informed the Cambodian government that
if this case remains unresolved, doubt will continue
to be cast upon the seriousness with which they
are committed to much-needed legal and judicial
reforms and to ensuring that the women and men
of Cambodia can safely exercise their trade union
rights. I understand that many European brand
name garment companies and retailers source their
production in Cambodia, however I am concerned
that while they make large profits the workers
who actually make their products are working in
bad conditions and are punished for speaking out
about workplace reality. I am saddened to learn
that since the killing of Chea Vichea there have
been numerous incidents of serious violations
of garment workers' rights in Cambodia. For more
details on these events I refer you to the reports
released in 2005 and 2006 by the International
Confederation of Free Trade Unions, now part of
the ITUC.
Please inform me of the steps you take to raise
these important issues with the Cambodian government.
Sincerely,
[insert your name]
Adresses:
Embassy of Austria (Thailand)
Arno Riedel, ambassador
Fax: (662) 287 3925
E-mail: bangkok-ob@bmeia.gv.at
Belgian Consulate (Cambodia)
Thierry Dalimier, Ere-Consul
E-mail : belco@online.com.kh
Ambassador Donica Pottie
Canadian Embassy
Villa #9, R.V. Senei Vinnavut Out
(Former St. 254) Sangkat Chaktomuk
Khan Daun Penh
Phnom Penh
Kingdom of Cambodia
Fax: (855) 23-211-389
E-mail: pnmpn@international.gc.ca
Royal Danish Embassy (Cambodia)
Mogens Laumand Christensen
Minister Counsellor (Resident Representative Danida)
Fax: (855)23 993 065
E-mail: danida@online.com.kh
Embassy of the Republic
of France (Cambodia)
Yvon Roe D'Albert, ambassador
Fax: (855) 430 037, 430 038
E-mail: ambafrance.phnom-penh-amba@diplomatie.gouv.fr
Embassy of the Federal
Republic of Germany
Pius Fischer, ambassador
Fax: (855)23 427 746
E-mail: germanembassy@everyday.com.kh
Embassy of Italy (Thailand)
Ignazio Di Pace, ambassador
Fax: (662) 285 4793
E-mail: ambasciata.bangkok@esteri.it
Royal Netherlands Embassy
(Thailand)
P.J.Th. Marres, ambassador
Fax: (662)-3095205
E-mail: ban@minbuza.nl
Royal Norwegian Embassy
(Thailand)
Range Birte Lund
Fax: (662) 262 0218
E-mail: emb.bangkok@mfa.no
Embassy of Spain (Thailand)
D. Juan Manuel López Nadal, ambassador
Fax: 661 92 20 y 661 92 21.
E-mail: emb.bangkok@mae.es
Embassy of Sweden (Thailand)
Jonas Hafström, ambassador
Fax: (855)23 212 867
E-mail: ambassaden.bangkok@foreign.ministry.se
Embassy of Switzerland
(Thailand)
Rodolphe S. Imhoof, ambassador
Fax: (662) 255 4481
E-mail: Vertretung@ban.rep.admin.ch
British Embassy (Cambodia)
David George Reader, ambassador
Fax: (855)23 427 125
E-mail: : britemb@online.com.kh
Cc: Department of International
Development in Cambodia
c-khieu@dfid.gov.uk
Cc: Winston McColgan
Chargé d' Affaires, European Commission
Delegation to Cambodia
Fax +855 (0) 23 216 997
e-mail: Delegation-Cambodia@ec.europa.eu
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