After heavily-armed soldiers on military vehicles circled the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) headquarters at 9pm last night, the party called on the government to stop its intimidation of people opposed to them and continued to plan a mass demonstration – despite government threats to stop any protest against them with force. Dozens of soldiers were mobilized around the CNRP headquarters in Chak Angre Leu commune on Monday night, terrifying opposition party members and causing panic among activists and supporters.
 

But despite continuing threats by the government, the CNRP did not shy away from its original idea to hold a large protest and moved forward with plans for the demonstration yesterday. In a statement yesterday, they slammed the government for attempting to instill fear in their own citizens for political gain and asked the government to refrain from similar military action against those participating in voter registration drives.
 

CNRP spokesman Yim Sovann told Khmer Times yesterday that the opposition remains firm in its desire to hold a peaceful demonstration as a way to resolve the moribund political situation in the country.   “We did nothing wrong. We only want justice,” he said.

 

read more http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/29714/cnrp-defiant-amid-threats/

 

 

-- © Copyright Khmer Times 14/09

Hun Sen’s Bodyguard Unit threatens to continue to hound CNRP

Wed, 14 September 2016

Mech Dara, Shaun Turton, Meas Sokchea and Bun Sengkong

 

Troops from the Prime Minister’s Bodyguard Unit will descend nightly on the opposition’s Phnom Penh headquarters, the unit’s commander warned yesterday, as senior military and police lined up to back the premier’s threatened crackdown on a planned “mass demonstration” by the CNRP.

 

Political tensions continued to rise yesterday on the back of the Cambodia National Rescue Party’s decision to mobilise supporters in response to a raft of legal cases against its members and senior leadership, which many see as state-backed litigation designed to neutralise the government’s opponents.

 

Just hours after Prime Minister Hun Sen warned he would “absolutely not” allow any opposition protests, truckloads of armed troops from his personal bodyguard unit descended on CNRP HQ at about midnight yesterday.

 

read more http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national

 

 

-- © Copyright Phenom Pen Post 14/09