A/HRC/39/73
(a)
It is understood that recent discussions on implementation of the
recommendations of the universal periodic review have focused on preparation of the next
report of Cambodia under the third cycle, which is due for review early in 2019. The
Special Rapporteur welcomes the submission this year of the combined fourteenth to
sixteenth periodic reports to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
and the sixth periodic report to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against
Women;
(b)
The Sustainable Development Goals localization plan was supposed to be
finalized at the end of the second quarter of 2018; however, the national high-level
committee, at its meeting on 24 April 2018, requested revisions and a reduction of the
number of indicators. Approval of the Council of Ministers is now scheduled to be sought
during the third quarter of 2018. An action plan for ensuring peace, justice and strong
institutions (goal 16), with the elaboration of comprehensive indicators to measure
achievement, would support the work of the ministries, including, for example, the Ministry
of Justice, in strengthening the independence of the courts. The localization plan should
also include action plans for reducing poverty (goal 1), ensuring health and well-being
(goal 3), ensuring full and productive work for all (goal 7), addressing food security and
clean water (goals 2 and 6) and reducing inequalities (goal 10). These goals are key for
protecting marginalized persons and promoting their enjoyment of rights and freedoms;
(c)
The process for granting communal land titles remains unchanged. The
Special Rapporteur encourages further discussions on refining the process and accelerating
recognition of indigenous groups and their land claims;
(d)
Court fees are still not publicly displayed in all courts, as the Ministry of
Justice is reportedly finalizing the list;
(e)
Notices that no payments are to be paid to staff in prisons are not displayed at
all detention centres; posters listing detainees’ rights have been distributed but are not
displayed at all detention centres (some are displayed only in English);
(f)
Pretrial detention and custodial sentences continue to be extensively used.
The Special Rapporteur reminds the Government that a fair trial must be held within a
reasonable time of the initial arrest. This is particularly pressing when people are held in
pretrial detention. In view of the dramatic increase in prison overcrowding (due in part to
the anti-drug campaign), the Special Rapporteur urges the Government to reconsider the
plans to increase the use of non-custodial sentencing in those situations in which it is
deemed appropriate. The Special Rapporteur also encourages the Government to promote
the use of the pretrial detention form to ensure appropriate reflection by judges on whether
pretrial detention is appropriate (article 203 of the Criminal Procedure Code notes that
provisional detention should be exceptional);
(g)
Some human rights defenders have been released from pretrial detention
although they remain under judicial supervision; other defenders continue to be held in
pretrial detention. The Special Rapporteur, while welcoming the release of the five serving
and former staff members of the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association
(ADHOC) in June 2017, reiterates her call for the charges against them to be definitively
dropped. It is a violation of the right to be tried without undue delay for charges to linger
indefinitely and be reactivated seemingly at random. Further high-profile examples include
Tep Vanny (2013 charges reactivated in 2017 with arrest, conviction and custodial
sentence) and Nhek Bun Chhay (2007 charges reactivated in 2017 with arrest in August,
released under judicial supervision in May 2018);
(h)
Measures on the human rights environment around the elections are outlined
below and in the addendum. There is concern over threats, arrests and acts of intimidation
in the current period.
14.
With regard to the recommendations contained in paragraph 69 of her previous
report:
(a)
Work remains to be done on strengthening judicial mechanisms for
addressing domestic violence and trafficking. Concerns continue to be raised over the
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