ARTICLE

Acid attack victim Ya Soknim and her niece In Solyda at a press conference at LICADHO in September 2009

Acid attacks have become an increasingly common form of violence in Cambodia in recent years. This particularly vicious method of attack is generally directed against women, often by their own husbands, or the wives of their lovers, with the most common motive being jealousy or revenge for perceived infidelities. There are, however, countless other motives for such attacks, with male and female perpetrators and victims. The attacks are almost always premeditated, as the perpetrators must take the time to acquire caustic acids. Unfortunately, these chemicals are typically inexpensive and readily available on the open market. Acid is very popular weapon given that it almost invisible to the police and the public.

In a typical case, a perpetrator will douse his intended victim with the harsh chemicals, often targeting the victim's face. The consequences of such attacks can be catastrophic. At the very least, most victims receive serious burns that cause excruciating, and sometimes permanent pain. They are often disfigured for life -- typically a goal of the attacker. In addition to burns, the attacks can cause blindness, permanent respiratory problems, paralysis, and secondary infections, among other ailments. Some attacks are fatal, and some result in injuries to unintended victims.

Thus far, law enforcement and the judiciary have done little to curtail these cruel and tragic attacks.

LICADHO seeks an end to all such attacks, and has been working to investigate and report on occurrences, and to advocate for increased prosecution of perpetrators and harsher penalties for their actions. LICADHO also supports stricter regulations on acid distribution.

The following are summaries of three acid attacks that LICADHO investigated in 2008-2009. Some names have been altered to protect the identities of the victims.

▪ Koh Kong: A longstanding grudge led to a tragic attack here in January 2008. Two men working on behalf of the wife of a village chief doused Sarom, 48, and her granddaughter, Pisal, 4, with acid around midnight as they lay in bed, having just gone to sleep. Both victims sustained critical injuries and later died after being transported to the hospital. The chief's wife had apparently harbored a grudge against Sarom for four years, convinced that Sarom was having an affair with her husband.

▪  Phnom Penh: In May 2008, two unidentified assailants doused Ya Soknim, 36, with acid while she was coming out of a health clinic. Ya Soknim is the aunt of beauty pageant contestant and actress In Soklyda. It is believed that the attackers were working on orders for then-National Military Police Deputy Chief of Staff General Chea Ratha. In Soklyda had previously had a lesbian relationship with the General. Ya Soknim was seriously injured, and was left permanently disfigured, suffering major burns on one side of her face and body.

▪  Siem Reap: In January 2009, Pich Dara, 39, poured a full bottle of acid over the head of his sister-in-law, Piseth, a cook at a karaoke parlor. Piseth, 20, suffered burns over large portions of her body. Pich Dara had been habitually violent with his wife, who was Piseth's sister, prompting Piseth to seek help for her sister. This in turn led Pich Dara to retaliate against Piseth.

LICADHO is alarmed by what appears to be a dramatic increase in acid attacks in recent months. In addition to the attacks that have been investigated by LICADHO, numerous additional attacks have been reported in the media. According to the Phnom Penh Post, there were eleven reported attacks in just a two-month period from December 2009 through January 2010. The following are brief accounts of five of those attacks:

▪  December 10, 2009, Phnom Penh: Two assailants on a motorcycle doused two sisters, Kim Sodine, 18, and Kim Sonita, 17, with acid near American Intercon Institute along Mao Tse Tong Blvd. (Deumampil, December 11, 2009)

▪  December 15, 2009, Phnom Penh: Two assailants on a motorcycle doused 16-year-old talent show winner Hang Srey Leak with half a liter of acid. (Phnom Penh Post, December 16, 2009)

▪  January 04, 2010, Phnom Penh: Hor Tin, a 22-year-old man, was doused by a female dentist as the result of an argument over a parking sign. (Kampuchear Thmei, January 7, 2010)

▪  January 18, 2010, Phnom Penh: A security guard of Naga World Hotel, Yin Sarun, 33, was doused with acid at 3 am by his wife while he was falling asleep. (Koh Santepheap, January 19, 2010)

▪  January 28, 2010, Phnom Penh: A former karaoke worker, Sim Chanthy, 27, was doused with acid on her face and body while she was cooking at her rental room at 11:20 am in Kien Khlaing village, Prek Leap commune, Russei Keo district, by two assailants on a motorcycle. (Koh Santepheap, January 30-31, 2010)

The Cambodian government, courts and police have not done enough to prevent and punish these attacks. For instance, Chea Ratha former National Military Police Deputy Chief of Staff General and her suspected accomplices were initially acquitted in a trial before the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, in spite of overwhelming evidence of guilt. Only after a continually delayed appeal and intense lobbying by civil society was this acquittal reversed by the Appeal Court (27 November 2009).

Chea Ratha was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment for attempted murder and her accomplices received varying sentences ranging from 15 years to 18 years. The group was also ordered to cover the medical costs of Ya Soknim and pay her USD$100,000 in compensation. Despite all this Chea Ratha and her accomplices remain in hiding. Chea Ratha had been implicated in two previous acid attacks, which she has never been prosecuted for and now it appears that she will never serve her prison sentence. Chea Ratha's initial acquittal and eventual escape from justice, only signals to the public that those in power are above the law.

While LICADHO acknowledges the government's current efforts to draft a Law on Acid Attacks, LICADHO urges the government to use existing legislation to ensure acid attacks do not go unpunished. The current climate of impunity for acid attack perpetrators is not the result of a lack of legislation but rather weak law enforcement.