Rights attacks

Rights group Adhoc is waiting to be told whether legal action will be taken against its senior investigator, Chan Soveth, following a complaint filed by a commune chief in Pursat province, a staffer said yesterday.

“We are waiting for the prosecutor handling this case to decide whether or not he will initiate legal proceedings,” said Nicolas Agostini, a technical assistant. “We reiterate that [Soveth] has done nothing wrong.”

On Friday, Adhoc said the complaint against Soveth, filed by Prom Ngoun, chief of Thmor Da commune, was in response to an article in the Post on April 3 about a land dispute involving villagers and a rubber company.

“The people in remote areas like this are easily threatened by authorities and the rich and powerful,” he was reported as saying.

Soveth was accused of aiding a “ringleader” in the so-called Kratie secession last year, but the case against him was dropped in February. Rights groups called those allegations blatant intimidation.