Law enforcement in Cambodia
Encyclopedia
Law enforcement in Cambodia is handled by the Cambodia
n police force, which numbers 64,000. The force is organized into six departments.
s lack control over the judicial police department.
The former National police chief General
Hok Lundy
was a political appointee known for his loyalty to Prime Minister
Hun Sen
. The international community had quietly pressed the prime minister to remove his police chief for several years, but he was too central to Hun Sen's power structure and he showed no sign of changing his position. Hok Lundy died in a helicopter accident on Nov. 8, 2008.
. At the level of ordinary police, this phenomenon should be contextualized by noting the average salary of many police officers barely exceeds USD20 per month. There are several documented incidents of open fighting between drug investigation units and other police involved in trafficking.
The police have little regard for procedure, either in terms of gathering evidence or in handling suspects. The police have also gained a reputation for brutality, venality, and corruption. Amnesty International
reported in June 2005 that torture of prisoners in police custody was widespread. According to the United States Department of State
, local police rarely investigate reports of crime against foreign tourists.
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
n police force, which numbers 64,000. The force is organized into six departments.
Organization
The police are organized into six departments: security, transport, public order, border, administrative, and judicial. While the judicial police are meant to function under the prosecutor-general's office, in fact they receive orders from the national police commander, meaning prosecutorProsecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
s lack control over the judicial police department.
The former National police chief General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Hok Lundy
Hok Lundy
General Hok Lundy , also transliterated as Hok Lundi and Hoc Lundy, was the National Police Commissioner of Cambodia from 1994 to 2008; he had previously been the governor of Svay Rieng Province...
was a political appointee known for his loyalty to Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Cambodia
The Prime Minister of Cambodia , is the head of government of the Kingdom of Cambodia. Prime Minister is appointed by the King under Article 119 of the Constitution and is responsible for leading the government of the Kingdom.-Constitutional powers:The powers of the Prime Minister are established...
Hun Sen
Hun Sen
Hun Sen is the current Prime Minister of Cambodia.He has been the sole leader of the Cambodian People's Party , which has governed Cambodia since the Vietnamese-backed overthrow of the Khmer Rouge in 1979...
. The international community had quietly pressed the prime minister to remove his police chief for several years, but he was too central to Hun Sen's power structure and he showed no sign of changing his position. Hok Lundy died in a helicopter accident on Nov. 8, 2008.
Drug trafficking
In addition to the political role of the police, there is widespread evidence of involvement in drug and people trafficking and corruptionPolitical corruption
Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...
. At the level of ordinary police, this phenomenon should be contextualized by noting the average salary of many police officers barely exceeds USD20 per month. There are several documented incidents of open fighting between drug investigation units and other police involved in trafficking.
November 22, 2010
Cambodian police used water cannons to control a massive crowd during the annual festival in Phnom Penh. On a bridge, with a spectacle of lights running chronically along the sides, Cambodian police officers sprayed the helpless estimated 10,000 festival advocates(this is a Cambodian reported estimate, probably a lot more). No one at the other end of the bridge had any idea of what was going on but they did hear loud screams. Those who were sprayed and were near the sides of the bridge were electrocuted. The shear brutality and stupidity of this procedure panicked the masses and many were trampled, electrocuted, or simply were forced off the sides of the bridge. Cambodian police officials reported 378 deaths.The police have little regard for procedure, either in terms of gathering evidence or in handling suspects. The police have also gained a reputation for brutality, venality, and corruption. Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
reported in June 2005 that torture of prisoners in police custody was widespread. According to the United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
, local police rarely investigate reports of crime against foreign tourists.