PUBLISHED: 7 February 2024 at 12:26
Hun Manet, the prime minister of Cambodia, thanked his Thai equivalent Srettha Thavisin on Wednesday for forbidding Thailand from being used as a base for people to “interfere” in his nation’s affairs.
The comments came weeks after Thai authorities detained two human rights activists from Cambodia and a former political prisoner. These actions have been denounced by protesters who have consistently charged Cambodia with persecuting political opponents.
The three, who are connected to the Cambodia Youth Network, had lately fled to Thailand in search of prison and had been given refugee status.
On Wednesday, when Prime Minister Hun Manet is expected to arrive for an established browse in Bangkok, they had planned to hold a protest rally.
As the ruling Cambodian People’s Party ( CPP ) has used intimidation and the legal system to neutralize the political opposition, dozens of pro-democracy activists have fled to Thailand in recent years to seek asylum.
Thai authorities detained 10 Vietnamese migrants on December 29 while they were in Bangkok for a Paris Peace Agreement training. According to CamboJA News, a company run by the Thai Journalists Federation, three were eventually released but seven people were still being held in immigration confinement two weeks later. Their present situation is unknown.
The course had 40 participants in total, including Khmer Krom immigrants, Candlelight Party adherents, and protesters of the now-defunct Cambodian National Rescue Party.
Ten people who had identification cards issued by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees ( UNHCR ) were detained by police when they showed up at the meeting and requested a document check, according to CamboJa News.
Thai authorities have charged them with entering the country illegally, while the Thai government has accused them of trying to topple the state.