Human Rights Party deputy president Son Soubert said yesterday he had been blocked from entering Vietnam on Friday despite having obtained permission for the visit from the Vietnamese embassy.

Soubert told the Post he had intended to visit a museum in Ho Chi Minh city for archaeological research and visit family in Kampuchea Krom’s Preah Trapaing province but was blocked at the Tay Ninh border checkpoint.

“We received all proper clearance [to enter Vietnam]. They prohibited me without giving a reason,” he said.

Soubert added that if the Vietnamese ambassador did not respond to his request for an explanation, Soubert would file a complaint to the United Nations accusing Vietnam of human rights abuse.

The Vietnamese embassy declined to comment.

Independent analyst Lao Mong Hay said this was not the first time Vietnamese authorities had blocked Cambodians with proper paperwork from entering the country, adding that such moves tended to target opposition figures due to the two governments’ friendship.

To contact the reporter on this story: Meas Sokchea at [email protected]