MAY 7: PROSECUTORS WILL HEAR PLAINTIFF ARGUMENTS

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