Two Paris Peace Accord Activists Released from Prison After Serving Sentences in Cambodia

Phnom Penh, Cambodia – On July 24, 2024, two individuals identified as activists of the Paris Peace Accord were released from prison by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court after completing their two-year sentences. They had been convicted of incitement to affect national security and have now returned to their families. Court officials in Phnom Penh stated that the two individuals released are Phung Sophal, a 35-year-old female, and San Sith, a 40-year-old male. Both were granted their freedom after serving their two-year prison terms related to expressing opinions concerning the CLV (Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam) development triangle region. However, a third individual, Srun Sron, a 45-year-old male, who also completed a two-year sentence, has not yet been released. He faces an additional two years of imprisonment in a separate case of "incitement to commit a crime," which was filed by the Ministry of Justice in 2023. It is noted that on May 29, 2023, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced Srun Sron, Phung Sophal, and San Sith – who presented themselves as knowledgeable in law and interpreters of the Paris Peace Agreement of October 23, 1991 – to two years in prison each and fined them four million riels each, to be deposited into the national treasury. They were charged with incitement to commit a crime, as stipulated in Articles 494 and 495 of the Penal Code, and were arrested in June 2024. Source: CEN Cambodia