Journos held for ‘fake news’

THE Veal Veng district authorit y i n P u r sat prov i nce on Tuesday sa id t wo repor ters f rom TNM on l i ne T V had been sent to t he prov i ncia l police station for “incitement a nd broadca st i ng d isi nformation”, while another TNM reporter in Mondulkiri provi nce was sent to cou r t for “public defamation”.

Vea l Veng d i st r ic t pol ic e stat ion deput y chief of sta f f Soley Mesa said the two TNM repor ters were a r rested i n Thmor Da commune’s Sangkum Thmey v illage after the MDS Compa ny ow ned by prominent t ycoon Tr y Pheap lodged a complaint.

He said police are deciding whet her to send Min Phon, 39, from Kampong Speu province’s Samrong Tong district, and Sara k Dara, 38, from the capita l’s Mean Chey district, to court.

TNM editor Men Socheata sa id t he repor ters had not c o m m i t t e d t h e a l l e g e d of fence. He sa id t hey wrote t hei r repor t s based on t he situation on the ground and according to the accounts of people who had prov ided the tip-of f and inter v iews.

Reporter questioned

“I request t he aut hor it ies relea se t hem because t hey had col lec ted i n for mat ion based on reports from people who had suffered from land disputes.

“Before the arrest, they had broadcast news about MDS Company excavating around 30 metres of a rice field. The authority had not solved the dispute, so they reported the incident to us,” he said.

Pursat provi nci al c our t spokesman Heng Donin said on Wednesday that he had not received information on the two reporters’ arrest.

“I just heard f rom news media, but I haven’t seen them in court yet,” he said.

In a similar case on September 12, deputy Mondulkiri provincial court prosecutor Mam Vanda summonsed Khin Sokhorn, a TNM reporter based in the province, for questioning in relation to a defamation lawsuit filed by Keo Seima Wildlife Sanctuary office head Din Bunthoeun.

T he compla i nt sa id t hat Sok hor n w rong ly acc used Bunthoeun of colluding with traders to log and haul lu xur y timber in the Keo Seima protected area.

Va nda s a id t he ac c u s e d journalist had been temporari ly released pending f ur t her investigation.