A Change of Guard

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Friday 26 April 2013

CCHR Press Release - A year on, CCHR mourns the murder of environmental activist Chut Wutty

CCHR PRESS RELEASE Phnom Penh, 26 April 2013
A year on, CCHR mourns the murder of environmental activist Chut Wutty and the twin scourges of violence and impunity that continue to stalk Cambodia
A year on, the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (“CCHR”) marks the first anniversary of the murder of Chut Wutty on 26 April 2012 in the remote Cardamom Mountains of Koh Kong province in the Kingdom of Cambodia (“Cambodia”), and mourns his loss.  Chut Wutty was the founder and director of the Natural Resource Protection Group, and was Cambodia’s foremost environmental and anti-logging activist.  While accompanying two journalists to investigate alleged illegal logging and land grabs in Koh Kong province, Chut Wutty was fatally shot in the leg and stomach as he tried to start his car, following a heated stand-off with military police and representatives of logging company Timber Green.  The alleged shooter, In Rattana, was also found shot dead at the scene.
To date, no credible, transparent or independent investigation has been launched, with the result that many questions remain unanswered.  Authorities provided various conflicting – and mostly ludicrous – accounts of the two deaths in the following days, and the Cambodian courts have not shed any further light on events in the months since.  Koh Kong Provincial Court infamously declared the case closed on 4 October 2012, thereby depriving Chut Wutty’s and In Rattana’s families of justice, while simultaneously revealing that the twin scourges of violence and impunity that stalk Cambodia have as strong a grip on the country and its people as ever.
In order to ensure that justice is served, that the judiciary can salvage some credibility, and, most importantly, that the Cambodian people are reassured that the rule of law prevails to some degree, CCHR urges the authorities to reopen the case and ensure that a full, transparent and independent investigation is allowed to proceed.  Even if the Cambodian government is not responsible for Chut Wutty’s murder, it has violated Chut Wutty’s right to life by failing to conduct an adequate investigation into his death, which it is legally obliged to do under domestic and international law.
On this sad day, CCHR President Ou Virak comments:

Today our thoughts are very much with Chut Wutty’s family.  Wutty was a brave man and a good man, and his mission was to do his best to help Cambodia.  I hope that other activists and potential activists have been inspired by Cambodia’s forest hero, that they will follow his lead and help to protect Cambodia’s rapidly dwindling forest reserves.  While the wider public is still none the wiser as to what really happened on that fateful day last April, those who felt threatened by Wutty’s activism no doubt hoped that his death would cow other activists into submission.  If anything, Wutty’s example is a reminder that fear itself should be our worst enemy.  The man himself never showed any fear, and Cambodia must be hugely grateful for his efforts.  Rest In Peace Chut Wutty.
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 note that this Press Release is also attached in PDF format.  A Khmer translation will follow shortly.
Kind regards,
CCHR

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