Press Release
Aug. 21, 2014, Phnom Penh
Cambodian citizen journalists face continued intimidation from local authorities as they attempt to report on human rights abuses, they reported at a gathering of amateur reporters from across the country held in Phnom Penh on Wednesday.
“Some (loggers) and military (officials) tried to beat me because I was covering deforestation in Kon Domrey Village, Samrong District in Ratanak Rukha community forest,” said 25-year-old citizen journalist Li Nam from Oddar Meanchey Province. Nam is among 24 others citizen journalists who have received reporting training from the Cambodian Center for Independent Media in 2013. Some of Nam’s reports were published on VODhotnews.com and aired on VOD radio.
Citizen journalists come from all walks of life and include human rights defenders, community activists, garment workers, students and monks, but all share a common interest in reporting the events and issues that affect their communities.
Ms. Ung Niza, 22, a citizen journalist from Battambang Province trained by the Community Legal Education Center also faced a number of obstacles in filing her reports. “Covering some news is easy, but some specific kinds of news are difficult because authorities and powerful people do not want us to report and sometimes use violence against the journalists,” Niza said.
Niza and others are part of the first ever Cambodian Citizen Journalism Network, which was launched on Wednesday this week at the CLEC office where about 80 citizen journalists met to share their experiences and built a network of reporters. The opportunity also provided a platform for professional journalists to get in touch with citizen journalists who could become valuable on-the-ground sources in the future.
CCIM and CLEC call on government officials to recognize its citizens’ right to freedom of information in Cambodia. Intimidation of or violence against citizen journalists is a violation of citizens’ most basic human rights and must stop immediately. Citizen journalists play a crucial role in contributing to development and transparency in Cambodia, and should be applauded for their work.
CCIM and CLEC would like to take this opportunity to extend an invitation to the public to become citizen journalists and join the Cambodian Citizen Journalist Network. Those wishing to join should send their name, email address and phone number to the contact below, in order to receive more information on trainings.
For more information, please contact:
Mr. Kaing Tongngy, CCIM Communications & Advocacy Officer
Tel: +855 (0)60 411 777
Email: tongngy@ccimcambodia.org
Mr. Srey Sopheak, CLEC Media and IVR Officer
Tel: +855 (0)66 777 027
Email: sopheak@clec.org.kh
