“Union Leader and Strikers in Cambodia Casino Convicted: A Setback for Worker Rights and Democracy”

The Conviction of Cambodian Labor Union Leader Chhim Sithar and Members

Background

A Phnom Penh court recently handed a two-year prison sentence to Chhim Sithar, leader of the Labor Rights Supported Union (LRSU) of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld, while eight other union members or former members received one to one and a half years of jail time. These individuals were convicted on criminal code articles 494 and 495 under the charge of “incitement to commit a felony or disturb social security,” which Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) have deemed politically motivated.

The charges stemmed from Sithar and the LRSU’s work defending workers’ rights, which constitute a blatant violation of Cambodia‘s international human rights obligations. Trade unionists claim that NagaWorld, the sole legal casino operator in Phnom Penh, unfairly laid off 1,329 workers, including the union leadership, in April 2021, leading to strike actions that have been ongoing ever since then.

The Verdict and Sentencing

Montse Ferrer, Amnesty International’s Interim Deputy Regional Director for Research, remarked that “The convictions of Chhim Sithar and the others are a blatant attack on unions and workers fighting for their fundamental rights.” Phil Robertson, the deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, added that the Cambodian government has used every repressive trick possible to intimidate union leaders to side with corporate giants.

The authorities have already arrested 28 additional members of the LRSU, and six more were arrested in February 2022, following a government order that everyone participating in the NagaWorld strike action ought to undergo Covid-19 testing. The government later charged three of the workers with “obstruction of Covid-19 measures,” which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison under Covid-19 regulations introduced in 2021.

NagaWorld filed baseless criminal complaints against those arrested in the April 2021 layoff, attempting to scare other union members into submission. The Cambodian government has the obligation to respect the rights of workers and to protect these rights from abuse by private actors, obliged under international human rights laws, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, as well as International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention No. 87 and ILO Convention No. 98 on the right to organize and collectively bargain.

Editorial and Advice

The crackdown on unionists and the arrests of LRSU members constitute harsh violations of human rights. Cambodia must cease its violent tendencies against dissenters and guarantee the rights to freedom of association and to organize and collectively bargain across the country. This imprisonment of a union leader not only violates human rights principles but also harms workers’ rights to organize, bargain collectively, and take industrial action.

The Cambodian government has an obligation to stand by workers while protecting human rights. As ACTU President Michele O’Neil stated, “We stand in solidarity with Chhim Sithar and the LRSU and call on the Cambodian government to release her immediately, stop persecuting trade unionists and respect workers’ rights to freedom of association.”

It is the responsibility of all concerned actors to come together and take tangible steps to put an end to the oppression of workers and to protect their rights. The government of Cambodia must quash all convictions and release incarcerated union members without further ado.

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