Commemoration of slain activist blocked
PHNOM PENH: Police here yesterday arrested an activist attempting to commemorate the murder of Kem Ley, a political analyst gunned down in the Cambodian capital four years ago this week.
Cambodian rights group Licadho said the activist, wearing a T-shirt with Kem Ley’s face on it, was seized by officers as he arrived at a memorial at the scene of the murder, a Caltex petrol station.
Security personnel and police also formed a chain to block monks and activists from praying at the site.
While the activist was later released, the crackdown continues a trend of suppression of those seeking justice for the murdered analyst.
Ley, an analyst critical of the government, was shot point blank by a former soldier, Oeuth Ang, who was sentenced to life in prison in 2017.