Cambodia leader warns of foreign interference

Cambodian leader Hun Sen said Monday he would not tolerate foreigners who threaten the country’s peace, days after the jailing of an opposition figure was internationally condemned.

“At any cost we will not tolerate any action by anyone who seeks to destroy the peace in Cambodia,” he said.

Kem Sokha, the co-founder of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), was sentenced last week to 27 years in prison for treason.

He was accused of plotting to overthrow Hun Sen’s government in collusion with international organizations.

The United Nations and the European Union condemned the verdict, with Washington calling it a “miscarriage of justice” based on a “fabricated conspiracy”.

France, Australia and the UK also expressed concern about the case and Cambodia’s ailing democracy ahead of July’s elections.

Hun Sen warned foreigners against any action that could plunge the nation into civil war “under the pretext of democracy and human rights.”

He then claimed nameless nations backed a 1970 coup against former leader Prince Norodom Sihanouk that plunged Cambodia into civil war.

His critics say Hun Sen, one of the world’s longest-serving leaders, has rolled back democratic freedoms since he came to power in 1985, using the courts to stifle opposition.

Dozens of opposition figures were convicted of treason in 2022, while one of the country’s few remaining local independent media outlets was shut down last month.