Reporter's home set on fire following his investigative reports on illegal logging activities in Cambodia
- From: Chim <ChimS1@xxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 25 Aug 2007 03:44:08 -0700
CAMBODIA: Reporter's home set on fire
In brief: Phon Phat's home set ablaze twice following his
investigative reports on illegal logging activities
By Amanda Natividad
AsiaMedia Staff Writer
Friday, August 24, 2007
Two arson attacks against a newspaper reporter have several media
watchdogs concerned about the country's press freedom.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Southeast Asian Press
Alliance (SEAPA), Cambodian Association for the Protection of
Journalists (CAPJ), International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), and
International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) have all called
for independent investigations and have condemned the attacks against
Phon Phat, reporter for the Khmer language Chbas Ka ("Accurate")
newspaper.
Media groups say that on Aug. 9, Phat received an anonymous phone from
someone who said he should expect a "gift." Unknown attackers lit
Phat's house on fire at approximately 4 a.m. the next morning. The
blaze was quickly extinguished and Phat and his family escaped
unharmed. Arsonists struck again a week later on Aug. 17.
According to CPJ, Commune Police Chief Sann Ly told Cambodian media
that the attacks were most likely revenge for Phat's recent reports of
illegal logging activities in the Bakan district. District Police
Chief Youk Yoen also told reporters that because the assailants used a
small amount of gasoline, it is likely they did not intend to kill
Phat or his family. Yoen said that authorities will deal with the
incidents as "an attack on the free press."
"There is strong reason to believe that the attack on Phat was
motivated by his work as a journalist," said CPJ Executive Director
Joel Simon. "Cambodian authorities must act quickly and decisively to
uncover who is responsible."
The attacks against Phat come after Free Asia radio journalist Lem
Piseth received death threats after he had reported on deforestation
in the Kompong Thom province on Jun. 13. The bilingual daily Cambodge
Soir shut down two days after its editor, Soren Seelow, was fired for
publishing a detailed article on illegal logging.
Date Posted: 8/24/2007
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