On Thursday, March 16, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the respect for human rights in Cambodia.
Parliament calls on the authorities in Cambodia to immediately and unconditionally release the opposition leader Kem Sokha as well as all opposition activists convicted or held in custody on politically motivated charges.
MEPs urge the authorities to ensure free and fair elections in July 2023, allowing all political parties to carry out an equal, free and transparent electoral campaign under a more inclusive and transparent National Election Committee. The largest opposition party, Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), must be reinstated immediately to be able to participate in the 2023 elections.
The resolution also calls for VOD, one of Cambodia’s last independent media that has been closed in February, to be reinstated immediately. It urges the Council to adopt targeted sanctions, under the EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime, against officials, to hold accountable all persons responsible for serious human rights violations and the dissolution and subsequent repression of the Cambodian opposition.
