VZCZCXRO9669
PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHPF #0010/01 0051145
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 051145Z JAN 09
FM AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PHNOM PENH 000010 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS, DRL/IL - DOL FOR ILAB 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB ECON PGOV PHUM CB
SUBJECT: SUPREME COURT RULING ON CHEA VICHEA CASE - A STEP 
FORWARD, OR SIMPLY GOOD TIMING? 
 
REF: A. 2007 PHNOM PENH 586 
     ¶B. 2006 PHNOM PENH 1404 AND PREVIOUS 
 
SENSITVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY: In a surprising turn of events on the 
final day of 2008, Cambodia,s Supreme Court ruled against 
the controversial April 2007 Appeals Court decision to uphold 
the original convictions of two individuals in the murder of 
popular labor leader and opposition party supporter, Chea 
Vichea.  The announcement releasing the defendants on bail 
and returning the case to the Appeals Court was met with 
tears of joy and applause, as well as shock that a judicial 
system plagued with corruption and controversy made what many 
felt was the correct decision in a highly politicized case. 
This ruling by the highest court in Cambodia leaves many 
wondering if a new era of judicial reform is forthcoming, or 
if it was merely the right case at the right time.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
BACKGROUND 
---------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) On the quiet morning of January 22, 2004, 
well-known trade union leader Chea Vichea was gunned down in 
an assassination-style killing at a news-stand not far from 
the previous U.S. Embassy in downtown Phnom Penh.  Chea 
Vichea, President of the Free Trade Union (FTU) and staunch 
supporter of workers rights as well as one of the founding 
members of the main opposition party, had received several 
death threats in the years and months preceding his murder. 
Under intense pressure from human rights organizations and 
diplomatic missions to find and bring the perpetrators of the 
murder to justice, the Cambodian Police, headed at the time 
by Hok Lundy and former Phnom Penh police chief, Heng Pov, 
quickly announced they had arrested two suspects.  Born 
Samnang confessed to the murder, but almost immediately 
recanted stating police beat, coerced and bribed him in order 
to elicit the confession.  Sok Sam Oeun has claimed innocence 
since his arrest.  Both men had alibis at the time of the 
murder. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun spent 1799 days in 
jail after being arrested one week after the murder of Chea 
Vichea.  They were sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2005. 
Both the police and court investigations into the case were 
marred by allegations of procedural flaws and legal 
violations.  The case was originally dismissed due to lack of 
evidence by Judge Heng Thirith, who said in his decision that 
he had been subject to political pressure to convict the two 
men.  However, that decision was immediately revoked and the 
judge removed from his position and transferred to a remote 
area of Cambodia.  After reversing the ruling, the Appeals 
Court returned the case to the Phnom Penh court for further 
investigation.  In the subsequent trial, the two were 
convicted. In April 2007, Cambodia,s Appeal Court upheld the 
convictions.  Local and international human rights and labor 
organizations, including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty 
International, and the International Confederation of Free 
Trade Unions, criticized the decisions and have worked to 
keep the spotlight on this case, issuing statements up to the 
day of the trial which called for its dismissal due to 
irregularities in the police investigation and "deeply flawed 
court proceedings" in the subsequent trial.  Moreover, the UN 
High Commissioner for Human Rights submitted a detailed brief 
to the Supreme Court in June describing a series of 
"fundamental breaches of international human rights law 
committed by the lower instance court." 
 
 
FREEDOM - FOR NOW 
----------------- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) On December 31, a Supreme Court panel of five 
judges which included Cambodia,s Supreme Court President 
Dith Munty, ordered the provisional release of Born Samnang 
and Sok Sam Oeun and remanded the case to the Court of 
Appeals for reinvestigation and retrial.  After questioning 
the defendants at length and hearing from lawyers and 
prosecutors, the Supreme Court panel deliberated for 
approximately one hour before returning a verdict which 
rejected the previous Appeals Court decision on both legal 
and evidentiary grounds.  Dith Munty cited insufficient 
evidence and gaps in procedures, and relied on the 
constitution and new penal code as grounds for the decision. 
Many of the approximately 100 spectators, which included 
family members, civil society, labor unions and 
representatives from the embassies of the United States, 
 
PHNOM PENH 00000010  002 OF 003 
 
 
Sweden, France, United Kingdom, Germany and the European 
Union, broke into applause when the verdict was read.  A 
crowd of supporters, which included the current president of 
FTU and brother of Chea Vichea, Chea Mony, waited outside the 
prison until the release of Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun 
that same evening. 
 
BUT WHAT DOES ALL IT MEAN? 
-------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Many followers of this case, which had become a 
symbol of the inefficiency and impunity of the Cambodian law 
enforcement and legal system, were not overly optimistic 
leading up to the Supreme Court hearing.  The German First 
Secretary stated it would be a "show for the audience,s 
benefit, but with the same result" as the earlier hearings. 
The President of a local NGO who provided assistance to the 
accused and became close with the families also assumed the 
verdict would be upheld, with the only recourse being a 
pardon from the King.  Chea Mony, who denounced the 
convictions, boycotted the proceedings, stating he had lost 
faith in a judicial system which is "corrupt, unjust, 
political and not independent."  The executive director of 
the Cambodian Defenders Project (CDP), whose lawyers defended 
the accused, admitted he was stunned at the verdict because 
he had "never trusted the independence of the Supreme Court." 
 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Such statements are not surprising given the wide 
belief in Cambodia that judges are up for sale and verdicts 
can be easily manipulated to suit those with power and money. 
 Cambodia consistently ranks among the world,s most corrupt 
countries in Transparency International,s Corruption 
Perception Index.  A recent survey conducted by Pact Cambodia 
showed that Cambodians view the judiciary and the police as 
being the most corrupt institutions in the country, with 72 
percent stating they paid a bribe to receive a public service 
in 2007.  The internationally funded Khmer Rouge Tribunal, 
which was intended to be a model court, also has encountered 
allegations of corruption.  The International Labor 
Organization,s most recent Freedom of Association Report 
detailed a direct contacts mission finding of a "lack of an 
effective and impartial judiciary" in Cambodia which is 
"subject to political interference and has been unable to 
exercise its functions in an impartial and independent 
manner." 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Such a major ruling by the highest court in the 
land, therefore, could be seen as a sign that the government 
recognizes the problem and is working to change it.  The 
president of the Cambodian Independent Teachers Association 
and close friend of Chea Vichea felt the decision was "a new 
turning point in the court system in Cambodia."  He further 
expressed his optimism that "impunity will be eliminated in 
the future by the correct implementation of the law." 
According to Sok Sam Oeun from CDP (no relation to the 
defendant), the fact that Justice Dith Munty, who is a member 
of the ruling party,s steering committee, presided over the 
Chea Vichea case (he rarely takes criminal cases) may 
indicate there is room for some optimism regarding the future 
of Cambodia,s judicial system.  Mr. Oeun stated that by 
taking a stand on this case, Dith Munty has shown lower 
courts and fellow judges that the government intends to 
reform the judiciary.  Mr. Hong Kimsuon, lawyer to the 
defendant Sok Sam Oeun, also stated that by making the 
judgment to reverse the Appeals Court,s questionable 
decision, the Supreme Court has demonstrated to the lower 
courts that they can be independent and "should be careful 
with unjust decisions and work for the interest of the nation 
and common citizens." 
 
¶8.  (SBU) However, Mr. Kimsuon further explained that demands 
from the international community most likely played an 
integral part in pressuring the government to release Born 
Samnang and Sok Sam Ouen.  In addition to calls from NGO,s 
to reform the judiciary and release the accused, the lack of 
an independent court has been raised in several high level 
meetings by U.S. embassy staff and visiting diplomats.  In 
early 2008, FBI director Mueller raised the Chea Vichea case 
during a meeting with Prime Minister Hun Sen, offering to 
facilitate the interviewing of a witness who had received 
refugee status in the U.S. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Along with international pressure came the void of 
contrary local political pressure afforded due to the death 
and detention of the major police figures involved in the 
initial investigation.  National Police Chief Hok Lundy was 
killed in a helicopter crash in November 2008.  Former Phnom 
 
PHNOM PENH 00000010  003 OF 003 
 
 
Penh Police Chief Heng Pov, who led the murder investigation, 
is in prison for several crimes, including murder, 
kidnapping, and extortion.  His deputy, Ly Rasy, is in prison 
on charges of assassinating a judge, killing a woman during 
interrogation, and attempted murder.  Another police officer 
involved in the case, Hun Song, is also in prison for his 
involvement in the kidnapping and extortion of a Korean 
businessman.  According to the President of a local human 
rights NGO and the CDP lawyers, this group of officials had 
been seen as both powerful and brutal and their collective 
reversals of fortune may have paved the way for the Supreme 
Court to reverse past injustices albeit only after receiving 
a "green light" from the government. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU) This is a case the embassy has been closely 
following for almost five years, and while the verdict is 
welcome news, the reasons behind it remain unclear. 
International political pressure or prior authorization from 
the government to repeal the conviction both point to a 
justice system which is still heavily influenced by higher 
political powers.  However, alongside this cynicism must come 
at least a twinkle of optimism.  Any step forward by the 
highest branch of the judicial system to promote justice may 
have a trickledown effect and is certainly a step in the 
right direction. 
CAMBPBELL