Cambodian PM sues commentator for linking ruling party to murder
Xinhua, February 13, 2017 Adjust font size:
Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen on Monday sued political commentator Kim Sok who accused the ruling party of killing political analyst Kem Ley.
Kem Ley, 46, was shot dead at a mini-mart in Phnom Penh on July 10 last year. A suspect was arrested soon after the murder and he claimed that he got furious with Kem Ley, who owed him 3,000 U.S. dollars but failed to pay him back.
On Saturday in a radio program, Kim Sok accused the ruling party of killing Kem Ley.
Hun Sen said his lawyer Ky Tech filed a lawsuit against Kim Sok to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Monday morning.
"I am demanding half a million U.S. dollars in compensation," Hun Sen said, adding that Kim Sok's groundless accusation had seriously affected the honor of the ruling Cambodian People's Party.
"The accusation is an incitement to cause social chaos, which is a crime that faces imprisonment," Hun Sen said, ordering the police to keep an eye on the commentator to prevent him from fleeing the country.
The prime minister on Monday also vowed to maintain the country's hard-won peace and warned the opponents to prepare coffins for themselves if they attempted to conduct the so-called color revolution.
It is the third lawsuit lodged by the prime minister. Hun Sen had previously filed two cases respectively against former opposition senator Thak Lany and former opposition leader Sam Rainsy. Endit