Cambodia’s parliament on Monday passed a controversial law allowing the state to revoke the citizenship of individuals convicted of treason, a move critics say deepens the government’s crackdown on political opposition.
The legislation, endorsed by 120 of 125 lawmakers in the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP)-dominated National Assembly, targets those accused of conspiring with foreign powers or plotting against national interests.
The law comes against a backdrop of years of political repression. In 2017, Cambodia’s Supreme Court dissolved the opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP), paving the way for CPP dominance in subsequent elections. Since then, mass trials have seen more than 100 opposition figures prosecuted, many in absentia, on charges of treason and incitement.
Prominent dissidents such as CNRP co-founders Sam Rainsy, who lives in France, and Mu Sochua, now in the United States, have faced repeated convictions. Rainsy, long a fierce critic of former prime minister and CPP leader Hun Sen, has accused the government of corruption and mishandling a recent border dispute with Thailand that escalated into armed clashes. Phnom Penh has denied the allegations.
Hun Sen, who stepped down as prime minister last year but remains CPP president, signaled in June that Cambodia should act against nationals who “side with foreign nations.” The government maintains that prosecutions are lawful and rejects accusations of politically motivated repression.
Western governments and rights groups, however, have condemned the CPP’s tactics, arguing they have reduced Cambodia’s elections to one-sided contests while silencing dissent.
Written By Rodney Mbua
