A/HRC/15/47 urban or rural communities dispossessed of their lands, have increasingly been accused of “inciting” people to violence or “opposing the authorities” or “acting as political parties”. Some of their members have been intimidated, threatened or prosecuted. Official rhetoric has continued to associate critical voices with the political opposition, and to imply that civil society groups are acting outside of their legitimate role, thus giving rise to a need for stricter regulation. In this context, the plan to adopt a law on NGOs and associations during this legislature has been widely received with concern, by civil society, the United Nations and donors. 20. OHCHR observed the exercise of the right to freedom of expression. It worked with journalists and journalists’ associations, United Nations agencies, NGOs and donors to look for ways to improve the professional ethics of journalists and the protection of their profession. No one has been brought to justice for the murders of journalists since 1994. Similarly, the investigation into the latest killing – the murder of an opposition newspaper editor and his son on 11 July 2008 – has remained inconclusive. A number of persons affiliated with opposition parties or who simply criticized Government action were convicted either of defamation or disinformation. Examples of issues raised by these individuals included the possible adverse effects of a new lighting system on Angkor Wat (in the case of Moeun Sonn), allegations of corruption of senior officials (in the case of Hang Chakra) or the validity of diplomas distributed to army officers (in the case of Ho Vann). The Office monitored almost all high-profile defamation and disinformation trials, and provided interpretative and legal advice about relevant applicable international human rights standards to lawyers representing defendants, the defendants themselves, and the judges and prosecutors whose rulings were deemed incompatible with these standards. 21. The Office circulated a briefing note on freedom of expression, defamation and disinformation which sought to clarify the limits of the permissible restrictions on freedom of expression under international human rights law. The note cautioned that the use and abuse of defamation and disinformation lawsuits could dangerously undermine the constitutional freedoms of opinion and expression and the democratic development in the country. The note was submitted to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court in August 2009 together with an offer to meet the judges and prosecutors to help clarify the issue, to no avail. 22. The Office supported the initiative of the Cambodian Center for Independent Media, to develop a Code of Ethics for journalists. It co-organized with UNESCO a conference to mark World Press Freedom Day on 4 May 2010, at which some 250 journalists participated, to discuss freedom of information and access to information. The journalists drafted a public statement calling for the adoption of an Access to Information Law, which was submitted to the Government. The Office encouraged the Government to adopt such a law, which with the Anti-Corruption Law could have a positive effect on press freedom. 23. The provisions of the new Penal Code relating to freedom of expression were examined by the Office in terms of their compliance with human rights standards. Legal comments were submitted to the Parliament prior to its discussion of the law, and the Office proposed briefings to present its analysis and encourage lawmakers to improve the draft. The National Assembly did not take up the offer, but the Senate did. The Office shared its analysis with civil society, the United Nations and donors, as well as interested individual members of Parliament, to inform and stimulate discussion. The Penal Code was adopted without amendment. Opposition parliamentarians’ suggestions were rejected and the National Assembly refused proposals for consultation with civil society. 24. A positive provision of the Penal Code is the explicit reference to the media being subject to the Press Law, a combination of civil and criminal law, explicitly protecting opinions expressed by journalists. Once in force, the Penal Code may result in more 7