Cambodia: BHRRC & 13 other NGOs call for release of jailed indigenous environmental reporter as he faces numerous criminal complaints
"Immediately Release and Drop the Charges Against Environmental Reporter Uk Mao", 21 May 2025
We, the undersigned civil society organizations, media associations, and human rights defenders, are dismayed by the arbitrary arrest and indictment of environmental journalist Uk Mao, indisputably carried out in response to his reporting on deforestation…
Uk Mao was arrested at his home by two men on 16 May 2025, one of whom appeared to be a plainclothes officer. No arrest warrant was presented. According to Mao’s wife, the officers told her husband that “their boss wanted to speak to him about a piece of land.”
This arrest is the most recent incident in a disturbing trajectory of intimidation, violence and threats against Mao, beginning in June 2024. He was questioned by military police in response to his investigation of land-clearing in Phnom Chum Rok Sat community forest in Stung Treng…
The baseless and bizarre charges were brought despite Mao’s recognition as a long-standing defender of Cambodia’s forests.
…, he was physically assaulted by three individuals — reportedly former provincial officials — whilst returning from documenting alleged illegal deforestation in the Prey Lang community forest. The attackers demanded that Mao delete the footage he had captured in the forest. The attack caused minor injuries and resulted in the destruction of his smartphone.
Mao filed a complaint with the district police on 26 March, but was informed that a counter-complaint had been filed against him. Authorities refused to disclose the identity of the complainant and requested Mao to delete the video he had posted online of the attack…
Mao is currently facing as many as 15 legal complaints, a concerning misappropriation of the judicial system to attempt to silence his environmental reporting…
We call on the Cambodian authorities to:
- Immediately and unconditionally release Uk Mao, drop the charges against him and ensure an independent and impartial investigation into the assault he suffered on 24 March, to hold the perpetrators accountable;
- Cease all forms of judicial harassment and intimidation against Uk Mao and other journalists, especially those reporting on environmental and land issues;
- Guarantee the rights to freedom of expression, press freedom, and the protection of journalists, in line with Cambodia’s Constitution and its obligations under international human rights law…