Friday, January 01, 2010 Cambodian court orders arrest of opposition leader Cambodiaopposition party leader Sam Rainsy is greeted by his supporters on thestreet during the Labor day march in the capital Phnom Penh May 1,2006. A court in Cambodia has ordered the arrest of Sam Rainsy.[Reuters] Friday, January 01, 2010 Robert Carmichael Radio Australia News Acourt in Cambodia has ordered the arrest of an opposition leader afterhe failed to appear in court on charges relating to the contestedeastern border with Vietnam. The arrest warrant for Sam Rainsy,the leader of the country's main opposition party was issued after hemissed his court hearing earlier this week. Sam Rainsy, who is currently in France, had been charged with racial incitement and destruction of property. Thosecharges followed an incident in October when the veteran politicianremoved several wooden border posts marking the boundary betweenCambodia and Vietnam. The two countries are halfway through a six-year process to demarcate their 1,300-kilometre long common border. A spokesman for the opposition said Sam Rainsy had done nothing wrong by removing the posts. He blamed the authorities for marking the border without consulting local farmers who as a result had lost their land. The spokesman said Sam Rainsy would return to Cambodia once a political solution to the court case was in place. Rejectingthe court as a political tool of the ruling party, the spokesman saidthe opposition would instead petition Cambodia's king to resolve theissue. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Cambodia Discussion (CAMDISC) - www.cambodia.org" group. This is an unmoderated forum. Please refrain from using foul language. Thank you for your understanding. Peace among us and in Cambodia. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/camdisc Learn more - http://www.cambodia.org
