Monks, activists mark Human Rights Day

Groups of monks and rights activists held events in Cambodia and Vietnam Tuesday to mark International Human Rights Day.

• Published: 10/12/2013 at 03:10 PM | Bangkok Post

After 10 days of marching across Cambodia, hundreds of monks, along with thousands of supporters, descended on the capital Phnom Penh early Tuesday.

After threatening to block their passage, police allowed the monks to walk to parliament where they presented statements from Cambodians collected en route.

Land grabs, restrictions on freedom of expression, and abuse of power were chief among the human rights violations which local villagers shared with the monks.

Outspoken leader Venerable But Buntenh, whose Independent Monk Network has drawn the ire of authorities, said the march “showed clearly that Cambodians still don’t have peace and justice.”

The monks saw their march blocked on occasion by the authorities as they covered thousands of kilometres along five national highways.

In Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City, a group of bloggers accused the police of trying to stop a meeting held to mark Human Rights Day.

Fifteen people who planned to attend a meeting of the group Vietnamese Women For Human Rights were prevented from leaving their homes Tuesday morning, a blogger who writes under the name Me Nam told dpa.

“Thirty-five were able to attend,” she said. “There were many police outside the pagoda [meeting place], but they did not harass us inside.”

Activists said security police broke up two events on Sunday in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, each attended by around 100 people.

Several governments urged Vietnam to improve its human rights record, including in a joint statement from Britain and Germany.

The US ambassador to Vietnam, David Shear, called on Vietnam to use its new membership of the UN Human Rights Council to demonstrate its commitment to human rights.

“Achieving demonstrable progress on human rights is vital to our relationship, affecting every facet of foreign policy,” he said.