A/HRC/12/41 page 8 26. Cambodian law contains specific guarantees against arbitrary or illegal detention, yet numerous cases of unlawful detention are reported each year and fail to be addressed by the competent institutions. One noteworthy case involved the enforced disappearance and illegal detention of a policeman on the orders of the National Police Commissioner in order to coerce him into conceding his claim to property in Kep to a prominent public figure. Although the man was released after intervention from OHCHR, he was subsequently charged and convicted of criminal damage with regard to the disputed property. 27. Cases of excessive pretrial detention, excessive detention pending appeal and tardy release at the end of sentence are commonplace. Limited capacity at the Court of Appeal is a major cause of excessive pretrial detention since many accused people, whether convicted or acquitted, wait long periods for appeals to be heard. OHCHR is working with the President of the Court of Appeal, alongside several development partners, on ways to increase capacity and reduce the backlog of appeals pending. 28. In the context of the implementation in early 2008 of the new anti-trafficking law, sex workers were arbitrarily arrested by the police, assisted by Ministry of Social Affairs personnel, during night-time “sweeps” in Phnom Penh. Together with the homeless, beggars, street children, drug addicts and people with disabilities they were sent to two rehabilitation centres (Koh Romduol and Prey Speu) run by the Phnom Penh Department of the Ministry of Social Affairs. These sweeps have occurred for years in Phnom Penh ahead of important holidays and events for “beautification” purpose, but were exacerbated in the context of the enforcement of the new law. People in the centres were illegally confined and subject to a variety of abuses of power by the staff that included sub-humane conditions of detention, extortion, beating, rape, sometimes resulting in death, and suicide. OHCHR worked closely with the Ministry of Social Affairs, as well as with NGOs, in response to these serious allegations in order to verify them and recommend appropriate action. It visited these centres and observed the appalling conditions in which people were held. It submitted its initial findings confidentially to the Ministry of Social Affairs, which took prompt steps to release the estimated 60 people being held and, on 8 August 2008, the Minister issued an internal instruction ordering Ministry staff to stop involvement in the police sweeps. The instruction also reiterated the principle that admissions to the centres should be on a strictly voluntary basis. OHCHR was authorized by the Ministry to visit these centres on a regular basis, so as to report to the Minister any concerns it might have. By September 2008, it observed that no further abuses were being reported, that Ministry staff had stopped their involvement in the police sweeps, and the practice of rounding up poor people in the streets had come to a halt. In March 2009, it submitted a confidential report to the Minister, confirming some of the most serious allegations of abuses prior to July 2008. In May, it discussed these concerns confidentially with the Secretary of State at the Ministry. It welcomed the measures taken to prevent further abuses and recommended that past abuses be investigated and sanctioned in order to deter further abuse. 29. In May 2009, the Phnom Penh police began again to forcibly round up sex workers and other poor people “to clean the streets” and take them to rehabilitation centres ahead of a high-level summit with the European Union. The Ministry of Social Affairs did not participate in these actions and respected the principle of voluntarism set out in its August 2008 policy. OHCHR is exploring with the Ministry further solutions to address the difficult issue of poor people living on the streets.