ARTICLE

Garment factory workers were gathering in front of the factory during legal striking to demand an increase in wage

Cambodian Opposition Leader, Sam Rainsy Convicted of Disinformation

23 September 2010. The Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced opposition leader Sam Rainsy to 10 years imprisonment for forgery of public documents and dissemination of false information and also ordered him to pay 65 million riel (USD$16,250); 5 million riel (USD$1,250) in fines to the court and 60 million riel (USD$15,000) to the government for compensation. The charges relate to Sam Rainsy's publication of maps of disputed Cambodian-Vietnamese border territory.

The court's decision follows a separate January conviction that saw Sam Rainsy sentenced to two years in prison after he removed a border marker along a stretch of the Cambodian-Vietnam border in protest of alleged Vietnamese encroachment. He was convicted in absentia in both cases, living in self-imposed exile in France.

Garment Factory Workers Strike

13-16 September 210. For four days approximately 200,000 garment workers from the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Union (CCAWDU), the National Independent Federation of Textile Unions of Cambodia (NIFTUC), and 13 other unions went on a nationwide strike. The workers were seeking an increase in the current minimum wage of $61 to $93.

Garment workers were met with intimidation, harassment and physical assault by police, employers and factory security guards, including seizure of communication equipment and the public announcement of legal threats. The strike ended after a dialogue was established between the Minister of Social Affairs, Veteran & Youth Rehabilitation and union representatives. Workers returned to work as normal however approximately 200 workers were suspended for their role in leading the strikes, a move that angered unions and threatens to destabilize the current truce.