The Cambodian Bar Association yesterday named former Council of Ministers legal councillor and ex-Ministry of Justice official Bun Honn as its new president.

Outgoing president Chiv Songhak said that under his leadership, the bar had provided lawyers for 4,916 cases and represented 6,944 clients.

The association’s roughly 700 members voted on October 12, choosing between Honn and human-rights lawyer Suon Visal.

Visal was elected president in 2004, but lost the position after being accused of forging a stamp. In a speech at the event, seldom-seen deputy prime minister Sok An said: “Lawyers play a very important role in pushing social justice, equality before the law for rich and the poor”.

To contact the reporter on this story: Kim Sarom at [email protected]