PHNOM PENH: A Cambodian court on Tuesday sentenced 10 environmentalists to between six and eight years in jail over their activism in a case condemned by rights campaigners as a “crushing blow” to the kingdom’s civil society.

The activists from Mother Nature, one of Cambodia’s few environmental advocacy groups, denied charges of plotting against the state, which they said were politically motivated.

Am Sam Ath, operations director of rights group LICADHO, said the court sentenced the activists to jail terms ranging from six to eight years.

He said three of them — including Mother Nature co-founder Alejandro Gonzalez-Davidson, a Spaniard deported from Cambodia in 2015 — were sentenced to eight years for plotting against the government and insulting the king.

Seven others were sentenced to six years in prison on unspecified plotting charges.

Four defendants were seized by police outside the court and taken away, according to a journalist, while LICADHO said a fifth was arrested later.

The remaining five defendants, including Gonzalez-Davidson, did not attend court and have not been detained. Ahead of the verdict the four activists and a few dozen supporters had marched to the court in a mock funeral procession, wearing white, a colour of mourning.

“We cannot see the justice anywhere because we did not do anything wrong,” Mother Nature member Phuon Keoraksmey, 23, told reporters outside the Phnom Penh court. The group were just young people working for social justice and to “protect natural resources”, she added. Am Sam Ath of LICADHO said the verdict was “very disappointing”.

“Today, the court has ruled that youth activists fighting for environmental protections and democratic principles are in effect acting against the state,” he said.

A lawyer for the activists condemned the sentences and said he would consult with his clients on whether to appeal against the ruling.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2024