A Cambodian court heard opening statements on Tuesday in a case against members of a union fighting for better wages and working conditions at the NagaWorld Casino. An international rights group dismissed the incitement charges as baseless and called for his release.
The case is the latest against members of the NagaWorld union and part of what observers are saying is a broader crackdown by Prime Minister Hun Sen’s ruling Cambodian People’s Party on unions in the Southeast Asian nation ahead of elections. generals scheduled for July 23.
The Phnom Penh Municipal Court held a trial hearing in the case against Chhim Sokhorn, president of the NagaWorld Khmer Employees Union which supports labor rights, Kleang Soben, the union’s general secretary, and seven of the union’s members.
The court reportedly questioned union members about their strike activities and sources of financial support, before announcing the resumption of the hearing on March 21.
Kleang Soben told RFA Khmer that the judge also questioned why the union refused to accept compensation for its members to quit their jobs and settle the dispute out of court.
She said the ongoing strike by casino workers is aimed at forcing NagaWorld to obey Cambodian labor laws, not pay money to circumvent them.
“I would like the court to drop all the charges against the workers because all the protests are the result of actions by the casino management, which refused to obey the labor law,” he said.
“It’s less about money than getting employers to follow the law.”
RFA’s attempts to reach Labor Ministry spokesman Heng Suor went unanswered on Tuesday.
call for release
Tuesday’s hearing came as New York-based Human Rights Watch called on authorities to “immediately and unconditionally release” the nine union members, whom it said are victims of a broader crackdown. government against trade unions in Cambodia.
“The Cambodian authorities are misusing the criminal justice system to target a union president and other labor rights activists,” said Phil Robertson, the organization’s deputy director for Asia.
“People like LRSU’s Chhim (Sokhorn) and other labor rights advocates face an increasingly uphill fight to protect workers’ rights as civic space shrinks ahead of national elections scheduled for July” .
Chhim Sithor was arrested after returning to Cambodia from a labor conference in Australia on November 26 for breaching bail conditions that apparently prevented her from leaving the country.
His arrest was condemned by NagaWorld strikers, civil society officials and the US State Department.
Police initially arrested Chhim Sithar in December 2021, charging her with “inciting social chaos” for leading a strike at the NagaWorld Hotel and Entertainment Complex, one of the world’s most profitable gaming centers located in the capital Phnom Penh.
Chhim Sithor’s defense lawyer has argued that he was never properly informed of the travel restrictions against him.
Thousands of NagaWorld employees walked off the job during that walkout, demanding higher wages and the reinstatement of eight jailed union leaders and nearly 370 others who they said were unfairly fired from the casino, owned by Malaysian billionaire Tan Sri Chen Lip Keong.
Cambodian authorities have since claimed the strike was illegal and the product of alleged foreign donations.
The escalation of attacks before the elections
Robertson of Human Rights Watch said the case amounted to discrimination against workers for participating in union activities, which is a violation of international human rights law and standards.
“Prime Minister Hun Sen’s government should reverse its escalation of attacks against trade unions, independent media, the political opposition and human rights defenders as national elections in July approach,” he said.
“The European Union, the United States, the United Kingdom and other key Cambodian trading partners must make it clear that such a continued crackdown will strain ties well before Election Day.”
Translated by Samean Yun. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster.
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