VZCZCXRO0138
OO RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHPF #0709/01 2640539
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 210539Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1199
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PHNOM PENH 000709 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KJUS CB
SUBJECT: CAMBODIAN GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES NEW CRIMINAL 
JUSTICE WORKING GROUP 
 
REF: PHNOM PENH 628 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY:  Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) 
officials announced the creation of a working group focusing 
on cooperation and consistency between the Ministry of 
Interior (MOI) and Ministry of Justice (MOJ) in the criminal 
justice process.  The announcement by Prime Minister Hun Sen 
reflects a pledge by Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Sar Kheng to 
address problems areas between the two Ministries, which he 
mentioned to Ambassador during the 2009 TIP Report rollout. 
The formation of the group is designed to improve 
coordination in the criminal justice process, preventing 
courts from dismissing or downgrading charges without 
investigating cases, and to prevent pre-trial detentions that 
sometimes exceed allowed limits.  Sam Rainsy and a few 
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have spoken out against 
the new group, calling it further evidence of the RGC's 
control of the judiciary.  END SUMMARY. 
 
Task Force Formation Part of Pledge by DPM 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  Although the new task force will focus on all 
types of cases, including robbery and anti-corruption cases, 
direct applicability to human trafficking cases has been the 
Embassy's clearest window into the formation of the group. 
In June, during the rollout of the 2009 TIP Report, 
Ambassador and the DPM discussed the problem of 
inconsistencies in data reporting and difficulties tracking 
cases from the initial police investigation phases into 
judicial proceedings phases.  At the time, the DPM instructed 
his staff to gather statistics on all arrests and ensure 
cases were being forwarded to the courts properly.  During a 
TIP-focused meeting with staff delegation Lerner in August, 
the DPM spoke about meeting with the Minister of Justice to 
review TIP cases and indicated his intention to continue 
these joint reviews.  Finally, during a September 1 meeting, 
the DPM told Ambassador Rodley and G/TIP Ambassador CdeBaca 
that MOI and MOJ were forming a working group to address 
consistency and regularly explore solutions to problem areas 
between the two Ministries. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) MOJ Undersecretary of State Ith Rady has been named 
by the Prime Minister to head the new working group, assisted 
by two deputies, Deputy Commissioner General of the National 
Police Kang Sakhorn and Deputy National Military Police 
Commander Sin Sophany.  Both Ith Rady and Kang Sakhorn work 
frequently on TIP issues and are well-known contacts.  Ith 
Rady told Poloff that DPM Sar Kheng nominated the three men 
for their positions on the working group, and the Prime 
Minister thereafter approved. 
 
Task Force Cannot Oversee or Overrule Courts 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Ith Rady told Poloff that the working group does 
not have any oversight of courts or judges, nor can it 
overrule decisions made by the courts.  Rather, he said, the 
task force's mandate is to collect statistics from police and 
courts in all provinces for review.  If the group suspects a 
problem of coordination based on its reviews, the group is 
empowered to receive case details from the police or court, 
after which it sends a report to the responsible Minister, 
Justice or Interior.  The Minister would then be responsible 
for further action and follow up, including bringing the case 
to the attention of the Prime Minister or to the Supreme 
Council of the Magistracy (SCM), the nine-member body 
appointed by the King that has administrative oversight for 
the courts.  Ith Rady said the purpose of the group is not to 
supersede the authority of the courts or the SCM, but to 
locate points where the system is breaking down, and bring 
those to the attention of senior leaders who have authority 
in those areas. 
 
Opposition Party and NGO Reaction 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Opposition Parliamentarian Sam Rainsy excoriated 
the idea of the task force in local media reports, saying 
that "the judiciary will now lose whatever independence is 
left to it." 
 
¶6.  (SBU) But local NGOs have adopted a more measured 
response.  Several NGO leaders told Poloff that they 
recognized the existence of entrenched problems between the 
Ministries of Interior and Justice, and believed that some 
kind of review was necessary.  Nonetheless, they feared that 
 
PHNOM PENH 00000709  002 OF 002 
 
 
a formal task force presented the potential for misuse that 
could "scare" judges into making decisions based on what they 
thought the government leaders wanted, rather than based on 
the facts.  Sok Sam Oeun, Executive Director of the Cambodian 
Defenders Project, told Poloff he believed that a working 
group could be effective, if it impartially looked at all 
angles of all cases.  He said the task force cannot focus 
solely on acquittals as indicators of corruption, but should 
look at convictions, too, to ensure that those convictions 
were valid.  As an example, he cited land cases where wealthy 
developers are suspected of bribing police and court 
officials to arrest and convict villagers who lack the 
resources to fight a lawsuit. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶7.  (SBU) This move toward increased cooperation between two 
Ministries that have historically failed to communicate and 
have blamed each other signifies that the RGC is aware of the 
breakdown in the criminal justice system such lack of 
coordination causes, and that it is serious about resolving 
those problems.  Particularly in anti-TIP efforts, Post has 
witnessed numerous questionable incidents where apparently 
strong cases were dismissed, or charges were downgraded to 
lesser offenses, sometimes simply because the police failed 
to show up to testify, and other times with little or no 
apparent justification.  RGC officials believe this task 
force will also help resolve the issue of pre-trial 
detentions that extend beyond the legally allowed limits 
(often because the case is lost in the bureaucracy), and we 
continue to urge law enforcement and judicial authorities to 
cooperate in resolving these issues.  But NGO leaders also 
raise important concerns about the ability of the courts to 
rule independently if they fear consequences of executive 
review, and about whether the task force is prepared to 
examine all angles of cases and not simply assume that 
acquittals are a sign of corruption.  As usual, constructive 
implementation of this positive policy development will be 
key to its ultimate success, and we will continue to support 
RGC efforts toward that end.  END COMMENT. 
RODLEY