Human Rights activists says arrest of land, political activists poses a risk for political agreement

PHNOM PENH (The Cambodia Herald) -- Human rights activists on Tuesday have expressed their concern over the arrest of political and land activists, saying that it can pose a risk for deadlock to the implementation of political agreement. 

17 Buddhist monks, and political and land activists have been arrested since November 10 and have been brought into custody . Civil society groups expressed concern and called for release of the detainees, noting that their arrest was politically motivated. 

Kol Panha, Executive Director of Comfrel, said the arrest can be a risk for the implementation of July 22 political agreement, but the issue hasn't yet caused stalemate to negotiation of the implementation of agreement between the two parties. 

"The arrest is a repeated strategy, and it is the risk for the agreement, but it is just still at low level," he said. 

Lath Ki, an official at right group Adhoc, said the arrest of activists provoked tension and worsening the human rights situation and democracy in Cambodia. 

But the Cambodian government argued that the arrests were nothing linked to political issue.