CAMBODIA READY TO DECRIMINALIZE DEFAMATION, BUT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PHNOM PENH 000531

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SENSITIVE
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DEPT FOR EAP/MLS; GENEVA FOR RMA
NSC FOR HOLLY MORROW

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL CB
SUBJECT: CAMBODIA READY TO DECRIMINALIZE DEFAMATION, BUT
FRANCO-JAPANESE RESISTANCE



1. (SBU) SUMMARY. Prime Minister Hun Sen and Minister of
Justice Ang Vong Vathana both expressed their willingness to
decriminalize defamation, though actually moving defamation
from the criminal code to the civil code is unexpectedly
problematic. Ang Vong Vathana has proposed an acceptable if
somewhat awkward solution -- leaving defamation in the
criminal code but without the possibility of a prison
sentence and with a clear statement that it is a civil, not a
criminal offense. We will meet with the French technical
advisors to the MOJ on March 29 to discuss the issue further.
END SUMMARY.

We Eliminated Prison Terms, What More Do You Want?
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2. (SBU) In a March 16 meeting, the Ambassador and PM Hun
Sen spoke at length about the issue of criminal defamation,
with the Ambassador encouraging the PM to make defamation
part of the civil code rather than the criminal code. The
Ambassador noted that, in many countries around the world,
criminal defamation is often the weapon of choice for leaders
who seek to sideline their political opponents. The
Ambassador relayed USG interest in and praise for the PM's
promising public statements about decriminalizing defamation.


3. (SBU) Hun Sen initially responded by saying that people
had to be free to criticize their opponents without fear of
imprisonment, and that the Ministry of Justice had already
ensured that defamation would be punishable only by fines,
not by prison terms. The Ambassador acknowledged the
importance of eliminating prison terms, but also noted that
the stigma of being labeled as a criminal could limit or end
a politician's career, even without a prison term. Moreover,
the U.S. could not laud Cambodia's efforts to decriminalize
defamation if it maintained such an ambiguous position. Hun
Sen then responded that there are two ways to resolve the
situation -- eliminate prison terms or move the entire
provision to the civil code. He had heard that the latter
option was technically more difficult, but it was the
alternative he preferred. He committed to personally
speaking to the Minister of Justice to urge this approach.

In the Criminal Code, but not a Criminal Act
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4. (SBU) Minister of Justice Ang Vong Vathana also
emphasized the difficulty of moving defamation from the
criminal code to the civil code, but proposed an alternative.
Speaking with the Ambassador on March 17, Vathana said that
such a move would be strongly opposed by the Japanese and
French advisors assisting the Ministry with legal reform.
The Ambassador gently challenged this objection, saying that
as a sovereign nation, Cambodia could write its laws without
the permission of other countries. The Minister countered
that while moving the defamation provision to the civil code
would be difficult, it could remain as a provision in the
criminal code without a prison term and with an explicit
statement that defamation is not a criminal charge.
Defamation charges would not appear as part of a criminal
record, and a defamation conviction would not preclude anyone
from running for office.


5. (SBU) The Minister also referred to a circular outlining
the RGC's interest in notifying judges that the government is
no longer interested in imprisonment in defamation cases.
The circular urges judges to apply fines in such cases. What
is not clear is how defamation with an intent to incite the
public will be treated under the new criminal code -- a
charge levied against a number of the border activists last
October. We plan to meet with the French technical advisors
assisting the MOJ on March 29 to better understand the
ramifications of the proposed changes to the law surrounding
defamation.

Comment
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6. (SBU) Cambodia seems prepared to take a significant legal
step in the right direction, but we would be premature to
announce victory. The solution proposed by the Minister of
Justice -- making defamation a civil charge but leaving it
within the criminal code -- may be an acceptable if somewhat
cumbersome solution. The importance of decriminalizing
defamation will not be that it makes political repression
through the courts impossible -- a future Cambodian

PHNOM PENH 00000531 002 OF 002


government could always find new loopholes -- but that it
continues the recent positive trend towards
institutionalizing democratic change. Cambodia could also
then serve as a good example to other developing democracies
that are reticent to discard this "legal" mechanism to
control freedom of expression.
Mussomeli