VOA慢速英语--柬埔寨称反对派领导人将继续被拘留

（单词翻译）

Cambodia Says Opposition¹ Leader to Stay Detained

The Cambodian government has rejected a demand from a major opposition party to release its leader from detention².

Prime Minister Hun Sen said Monday that Kem Sokha, leader of Cambodia’s National Rescue Party, will remain detained for now.

Kem Sokha has spent more than 18 months in detention. Party leaders are now demanding his release, noting that Cambodian law bans pre-trial detentions³ lasting⁴ more than 18 months.

The opposition leader was arrested in September 2017. He is accused of attempting to overthrow⁵ the government. But he has yet to be tried. Cambodia’s Supreme⁶ Court has banned the National Rescue Party. Those actions helped clear the way for Hun Sen’s ruling Cambodia People’s Party (CPP) to win all 125 seats in parliament during the July 2018 elections.

After more than a year in prison, Kem Sokha was released on bail⁷ but put under court supervision⁸, which is similar to house arrest. He is not permitted to leave the area immediately around his home. He is barred from speaking to other opposition members, including his daughters, as well as any foreigners.

Cambodian officials have argued that Kem Sokha can remain in detention because he is technically⁹ still on bail and awaiting trial.

On Sunday, the National Rescue Party repeated its call for the government to immediately and unconditionally¹⁰ release Kem Sokha. In a statement, the party called his continued detention “a conspicuous¹¹ violation¹² of the nation’s constitution.” It said the charges against him and his detention are completely driven by politics.

“Kem Sokha is the symbol of positive change and non-violent struggle for freedom, respect for human rights and democracy in Cambodia,” the statement said.

But Hun Sen and his cabinet reject the calls to free Kem Sokha. A cabinet spokesman told VOA the opposition leader’s case must work its way through the courts, without government influence.

The National Rescue Party also called on the international community to take measures against Hun Sen’s government to press for full democracy and human rights.

Last week, United States lawmakers proposed a bill that would require the U.S. government to examine Cambodia’s preferential trade standing¹³. The bill calls for the government to decide whether the trade treatment should be “withdrawn, suspended, or limited.”

The move came a few weeks after the European Union launched efforts to consider changes to Cambodia’s preferential trade treatment with its members.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

bail – n. an amount of money given to a court to let a prisoner to leave jail and return later for a trial

conspicuous – adj. very easy to notice

preferential – adj. given favorable treatment