Grassroots Groups and Unions Call for Release of Chhim Sithar

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Around 50 people from grassroots groups and unions this morning gathered in front of Correctional Center 2 (CC2) prison to call for the release of Chhim Sithar, President of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld (LRSU).

Participants included supporters from the LRSU, Cambodian Alliance of Trade Unions (CATU); Cambodian Food and Service Workers’ Federation (CFSWF); Independent Democracy of Informal Economy Association (IDEA); Cambodia Tourism Workers' Union Federation (CTWUF); Cambodian Informal Economic Workers Association (CIWA); and Cambodian Youth Network (CYN); and LICADHO. Many joined with banners, balloons, and loudspeakers. They were monitored by approximately 10 plainclothes authorities, who photographed and videoed participants throughout.

Chhim Sithar, alongside eight other current and former union activists, was convicted of incitement by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court in May 2023 for her peaceful union activity and received the maximum sentence of two years in prison. The Phnom Penh Appeal Court upheld this verdict in October 2023.

While Sithar remains jailed, her fellow LRSU members have continued to strike on a near-daily basis outside of the NagaWorld casino since December 2021 in what has become the longest-running strike in modern Cambodian history. This action followed mass layoffs at the NagaWorld casino, which included the LRSU’s entire leadership and a significant number of its members.

• Topics
• Labour rights