A/HRC/24/36 was also an opportunity to celebrate what he had achieved during his lifetime for peace, stability, political reconciliation, democracy, rule of law and human rights and what Cambodia had achieved since the conclusion of the Paris Peace Agreements in 1991. This was a period for contemplation and demonstration of a new resolve to move forward in harmony and reconciliation for the greater good of the country. 5. Since his appointment as Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia by the Human Rights Council in March 2009, the Special Rapporteur has produced four substantive and substantial reports each with a thorough analysis of the situation of human rights and a series of constructive recommendations designed to assist the Government with its reform agenda and the process of democratization in the country. However, in spite of the progress made in a number of areas, there are a number of other human rights issues that remain a matter of concern for the Special Rapporteur. 6. For instance, land rights continue to be a major issue in this country. Another area of concern is freedom of expression which remains weak and has come under attack throughout the review period. Impunity is a long-standing issue. So are the independence of the judiciary and the ability of parliament to function as an effective check on the executive. It is in this context that the Special Rapporteur chose to focus both of his missions during the review period on the follow-up to his recommendations. II. Communications sent to the Government 7. During the reporting period, the Special Rapporteur addressed a number of communications to the Government on specific cases of human rights concern as outlined below. 8. On 4 June 2012, a joint urgent appeal was made in relation to the families in the Boeung Kak Lake dispute. The communication was sent jointly by the Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context, the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, and the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences. The appeal drew attention to information regarding the arrests and sentencing of 13 women from the Boeung Kak Lake community during their peaceful protest, including the arrest of two other representatives from the area, as well as the arrest of Venerable Loun Savath and exertion of undue influence on him to cease his human rights work. Concerns were expressed that the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly of the 15 representatives of the Boeung Kak Lake community and Venerable Loun Savath might have been violated, and that those violations might have been directly related to their activities in the defence of human rights. 9. On 13 August 2012, an allegation letter was sent jointly with the Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression, the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders. The communication addressed the situation of Mr. Pen Bonnar and Mr. Chim Savuth, two staff members of the human rights non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC) and the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) respectively. CCHR, along with other human rights NGOs, was the subject of a communication sent on 26 September 2011 regarding the events that took place on 27 July 2012. Mr. Pen Bonnar and Mr. Chim Savuth 5

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