Tim Sakhorn escaped to Thailand

Tim Sakhorn when he was interviewed by RFA a few days ago.

By Khmerization

Tim Sakhorn, ex-abbot of Phnom Den pagoda who was jailed by Vietnam for more than a year, has escaped to Thailand while on permission to visit relatives in Cambodia, reports Radio Free Asia.

According to the RFA report, Tim Sakhorn, with the help of local NGOs, had escaped to Thailand on Friday 10th April, 2009 and had immediately been re-ordained as a Buddhist monk in Thailand.
Venerable Tim Sakhorn before he was defrocked by the Cambodian authority and handed to the Vietnamese authority.

Tim Sakhorn was arrested more than a year ago and secretly handed to Vietnamese authority on charges of involving in subversive activities against Vietnam who then convicted and sentenced him to long jail term. He was released recently after international outcry, but was prevented from returning to Cambodia. But as a goodwill gesture, the Vietnamese authority gave him permission to visit relatives for 14 days during the Khmer New Year, says RFA.

Tim Sakhorn told RFA that he wishes to reside in Cambodia permanently, but since Cambodian authority denied him a residency status, he decided to escape to Thailand. He said: "I have just arrived at a third country (Thailand). I wish to appeal to local as well as international organisations around the world to help me escape from threats, from mental tortures and from imprisonments."