Koh Kong Provincial Court will announce the verdict on the case of two Mother Nature activists this afternoon after conducting a hearing yesterday on charges of incitement to commit a felony and violation of privacy.
The activists, Hun Vannak and Doem Kundy, are being detained in Prek Svay prison in the province.
They were arrested in September after they photographed alleged sand dredging at a beach in the province’s Prek Khsach district. A complaint was later filed by the company of tycoon Ly Yong Phat.
After questioning the two all morning yesterday, presiding judge Keo Sokha said the verdict would be announced at 2.30pm today.
Sam Chamroeun, defence lawyer for the two environmental activists, said at the hearing that he had raised some facts to confirm his clients had not committed the accusations, and asked the court to drop the charges.
“They accuse my clients of violation of privacy by taking photographs. But they didn’t take pictures of anyone. They just took photos of the ship so I asked the court to drop the charges because they didn’t have any intention to do as accused,” he said.
Last week, the activists’ families submitted a petition to various ministries and state institutions asking for the release of their children, arguing they had not committed any crime.
