VZCZCXRO7589
OO RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHPF #0295/01 1261156
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 061156Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0682
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PHNOM PENH 000295 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS, P, D, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KJUS CB
SUBJECT: MAY 7: PROSECUTORS WILL HEAR PLAINTIFF ARGUMENTS 
IN BOTH PM HUN SEN AND MP MU SOCHUA CASES 
 
REF: A. PHNOM PENH 279 
     ¶B. PHNOM PENH 273 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY:  On the eve of deposition-taking in 
politically charged defamation cases involving Prime Minister 
Hun Sen and opposition parliamentarian Mu Sochua (refs), 
Charge May 6 called on Minister of Justice Ang Vong Vathana 
to urge restraint in how the Cambodian justice system handles 
these cases.  The minister emphasized there was no prospect 
of jail time for Mu Sochua, but did note that defamation is a 
petty criminal offense subject to criminal procedures, thus 
raising the prospect of maneuvers over parliamentary 
immunity.  The attorneys for both PM Hun Sen and Sam Rainsy 
Party (SRP) MP Mu Sochua will appear before the Phnom Penh 
Municipal Court on May 7 in support of the complaints each 
filed on behalf of their clients at the end of April.  Both 
attorneys will be questioned by prosecutors and asked to 
provide additional details about the complaints.  There is no 
indication, yet, of when each side might be called as 
defendants. END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  Mu Sochua has stated several times over the past 
few days that she is "ready to defend herself" in court, 
although this stage of the process appears limited to 
clarifying the plaintiff positions in each case.  Hun Sen's 
lawyer, Ky Tech, will appear at court the morning of May 7. 
Lawyer Kong Sam Un told local embassy staff (LES) that he 
will appear at the Phnom Penh municipal court on behalf of Mu 
Sochua the same day at 2:30 p.m. in response to a summons 
letter from the investigating prosecutor, who will question 
him.  The proceeding is conducted behind closed doors and 
becomes part of a privileged, close-hold record, according to 
Cambodia's French-based civil code procedure. (NOTE:  Embassy 
will send an LES to show a presence and secure a read-out of 
the proceedings.  END NOTE.) 
 
More Serious Cases Afoot? 
------------------------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Kong Sam Un, told Poloff that Mu's case was filed 
pursuant to Article 63 of the UNTAC code, for defamation (Ref 
B).  While the news accounts thus far have stated that the 
Prime Minister's suit against Mu is also for "defamation," 
some journalists have speculated that the Prime Minister may 
pursue his complaint under the UNTAC Articles for incitement 
and disinformation, which are much more serious charges. 
While the prison sentence provisions for defamation were 
removed in 2006, they still exist for both incitement and 
disinformation. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) One reliable but unconfirmed report circulating in 
Phnom Penh suggests that this more serious government 
response to the  Mu Sochua complaint came as the result of a 
letter to Hun Sen from the Assembly of the 
Inter-Parliamentary Union (AIPU),  (NOTE:  This is the 
strongly worded foreign-sourced attack on Hun Sen that Khieu 
Kanharith mentioned to the DCM -- see Ref A. END NOTE.) 
While the facts on the ground in Cambodia had not changed, 
and Hun Sen initially had a more moderate response, the PM 
unleashed his vitriolic rhetoric on Mu Sochua (Ref A) 
reportedly after he saw the AIPU letter. 
 
Minister of Justice: Mu Sochua Can Find a Way Out 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) The Charge noted to the Justice Minister that the 
U.S. Embassy has a strong interest in the Mu Sochua case and 
that it was time to lower the rhetoric, and resolve the cases 
as expeditiously as possible with no threats or charges that 
could lead to arrest.  Minister Ang expressed his agreement, 
stating that Mu Sochua could help herself by writing a letter 
to PM Hun Sen stating her regret at their mutual 
misunderstanding and noting their need to return to the work 
of the country.  On the defamation charge, the Minister noted 
he himself had helped "de-criminalize" the count so that it 
carried no jail time.  However, he clarified that despite the 
government's claims to have "de-criminalized" the law, the 
defamation charge actually remained a "petty crime" and so 
was subject to the criminal procedures code.  The minister 
repeated that there would be no jail time associated with 
that charge, nor would pre-trial detention apply, though it 
remained unclear whether the prosecutor would seek to lift 
her immunity in pursuit of the defamation case. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) COMMENT:  The May 7 court appearances are routine 
at the start of court actions in Cambodia, and can be viewed 
as the information-gathering stage of the process.  It is, 
 
PHNOM PENH 00000295  002 OF 002 
 
 
however, a serious step in the process, because both 
investigating prosecutors have the power to pursue criminal 
indictments, or to dismiss the cases, based on their 
findings.  While Mu's parliamentary immunity may indeed be 
lifted, there are no indications that her arrest is imminent. 
 But the mention of using the incitement and/or 
disinformation articles is worrisome.  Council of Ministers 
spokesman Phay Siphan said on May 5 that the insistence on 
interpreting the Prime Minister's "cheung khlang" comment to 
mean "prostitute" (Ref B) would make "people hate Samdech 
(Hun Sen)," which may be an attempt to lay groundwork for the 
stronger charges, particularly incitement.  In the meantime, 
the account of the AIPU letter suggests that quiet diplomacy 
remains the best tactic for moderate forces in the government 
to prevail on the future course of these cases.  END COMMENT. 
ALLEGRA