Amnesty asks Cambodia to dismiss 'killers' of union boss

Last Updated: 4 hours 20 minutes ago

PHOTO

Chea Vichea, president of the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia, addresses factory employees before he was assassinated in 2004. [FTUWKC]

Human rights group Amnesty International has called on Cambodia's highest court to release two people accused of killing of a prominent labour leader.

Chea Vichea, who led the country's largest labour union and was a vocal critic of Prime Minister Hun Sen's government, was shot dead in Phnom Penh in 2004.

The murder shocked the country and was condemned by Cambodian and international rights groups as a brutal attempt to silence the opposition-linked workers' group.

Just days after the killing, Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun were arrested, and quickly sentenced to 20 years each in prison.

They will make their final legal appeal at the Supreme Court next week.

Amnesty International is calling on the court to dismiss the case against Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun, and ensure that they are released without delay.

The group says it believes the true perpetrators of the murder remain at large.