A Change of Guard

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Thursday 22 November 2012

CCHR Press Release - Two Years On From The Koh Pich Tragedy, Victims Are Still Denied Answers

CCHR PRESS RELEASE – Phnom Penh, 22 November 2012

Two Years On From The Koh Pich Tragedy, CCHR Re-Releases Its November 2011 Report As Victims Are Still Denied Answers

On the second anniversary of the Koh Pich Tragedy, when over 350 people died in a deadly crush on the Koh Pich Bridge in Phnom Penh during the 2010 Water Festival, the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (“CCHR”) is re-releasing its November 2011 report (“The Koh Pich Tragedy: One Year On, Questions Remain”) (the “Report”), which explores the events of the night of 22 November 2010.

The Report sets out the conflicting accounts of the facts of that night, examines the response of the authorities to the incident, and identifies a number of unanswered questions.  The Report does not attempt to provide a definitive version of what happened; rather it raises a number of questions arising from the event, considers the conflicting accounts of that night, and attempts to make some tentative recommendations as to what safeguards could be put in place to ensure that there is no repeat of the events of 22 November 2010 in the future.

CCHR President Ou Virak comments:

On the second anniversary of this tragic incident, our thoughts are first and foremost with the victims and their families.  However, this date is also a sobering reminder that the victims have still not received any explanation from the authorities as to what actually happened.  Our report last year highlighted many of our concerns, and yet nothing further has been done.  The victims deserve better than this, and the scary thing is that, without a proper inquiry, there is no guarantee that a similar tragedy won’t happen again.  Are transparency and accountability too much to ask for?

For more information, please contact Ou Virak via telephone at +855 (0) 1240 4051 or e-mail at ouvirak@cchrcambodia.org or Senior Consultant Robert Finch via telephone at +855 (0) 7880 9960 or e-mail at robert.finch@cchrcambodia.org.

Please find this Press Release and the Report attached in PDF format in both Khmer and English.

Kind regards,
CCHR

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