A/HRC/18/46 United Nations General Assembly Distr.: General 2 August 2011 Original: English Human Rights Council Eighteenth session Agenda item 10 Technical assistance and capacity-building Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia Surya P. Subedi Summary This year marks the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of the Paris Peace Agreements in 1991, which set in motion the peace process in Cambodia. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur has its origins in these Agreements. It is commendable that Cambodia has achieved significant milestones in a number of areas. However, it still has a long way to go to fulfil its obligations under international human rights treaties ratified by the country. The international community should continue assisting Cambodia in its efforts to establish the rule of law and reconstruct State institutions. The Special Rapporteur is particularly concerned by the state of various human rights issues, and especially freedom of expression and land and housing rights. He is of the view that the peaceful expression of opinion should not be dealt with under the Penal Code as is currently the case with crimes such as defamation and disinformation. He is also concerned about the narrowing of space for people, including those belonging to different political parties, to express their views peacefully and without fear. He is particularly concerned in this regard by the charges of incitement, defamation and dissemination of information that have been brought against human rights defenders, land rights activists and individuals of communities defending their land and housing rights in the face of eviction. Cambodia has enacted a number of laws designed to protect human rights, but it is lagging behind in their implementation. Many of the laws passed by Parliament and its own internal rules fall short of the standards required by the principle of the rule of law. What prevails in Cambodia in a number of areas is rule by law rather than rule of law. The present report focuses on an assessment of the independence and capacity of Parliament as one of the State institutions responsible for upholding people’s rights. Parliament in Cambodia has not been able to safeguard the freedom of speech of some of GE.11-15363