Mech Dara, 36, whose reporting has appeared in several international news outlets, including Al Jazeera, the South China Morning Post and Nikkei Asia, was apprehended by military police who intercepted his car while he was driving with his family to the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, local media reported. According to the Cambodian Journalists Alliance Association, Dara's charges relate to a social media post from September that reportedly showed damage caused by a quarry operation to the concrete stairs leading to Ba Phnom, a pagoda and monastery located in Prey Veng province. “We urge the Cambodian government to immediately drop the charges against Mech Dara, release him from prison, and stop all forms of harassment against media organizations and journalists,” Licadho said. An award-winning Cambodian freelance journalist known for investigating the cyber scam industry was arrested on Monday on charges of “incitement to disturb social security,” according to a statement from local authorities. The Cambodian human rights group Licadho said that following his detention, Dara reached out to them with a message saying, “I was arrested and sent to military provincial police,” before his phone was allegedly taken away. Among the sanctioned individuals is Cambodian businessman and senator Ly Yong Phat, also known as the “king of Koh Kong.” Dara has documented links between him and Cambodia’s scam compounds. “Journalist Mech Dara’s arrest and detention show just how far Cambodia’s government is willing to go to squelch independent reporting,” stated the Committee to Protect Journalists. “The charges are a clear attempt to silence a brave journalist whose investigative work has routinely called for accountability in cases of human rights violations,” said Licadho in their statement.
This Cyber News was published on therecord.media. Publication date: Tue, 01 Oct 2024 15:50:05 +0000