Cambodian Thak Lany, a former Senator from the former Sam Rainsy Party has recently been pardoned by acting head of state Say Chhum, following a request from Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen, Phnom Penh Post reports.
In a royal decree, Say Chhum said, “Thak Lany, who was convicted and sentenced to 18 months imprisonment and ordered to pay a fine of eight million riel [$2,000] after the Supreme Court upheld her guilty verdict on February 26, 2018, is hereby pardoned.”
Thak Lany fled Cambodia four years ago to avoid serving her sentence for defamation and incitement to cause social chaos which stemmed from comments made in a public forum in Ratanakkiri province’s Lumphat district, where Thak Lany accused Prime Minister Hun Sen of orchestrating the murder of political analyst Kem Ley who was shot dead on 10 July 2016. Thak Lany was convicted by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court in November 2016 and in both 2017 and 2018, the Appeal Court and Supreme Court upheld the sentence.
Phnom Penh Post has unsuccessfully tried to reach Thak Lany for comments but according to Ou Chanrath, former opposition lawmaker, Thak Lany who is currently living in self-exile in Sweden expressed a few months ago a wish of wanting to return to Cambodia after being away from her family for so long.
Ou Chanrath added that he is not aware whether Lany will seek to re-enter politics again.
