Australian filmmaker Ricketson arrested, accused of spying in Cambodia
Sydney Morning Herald | 4 June 2017
Bangkok: An Australian filmmaker has been arrested in Phnom Penh and accused of spying, according to Fresh News, an online site close to Cambodia's ruling party.
Photographs show James Ricketson, 68, handcuffed and being questioned by police after being detained on the eve of local elections across the country on Sunday.
Fresh News published photographs showing Mr Ricketson using a drone in Phnom Penh in daylight on Saturday as people stood by and watched.
The site said Mr Ricketson, from Sydney, was gathering information without permission and police and local authorities wanted to take legal action against him.
He has campaigned in Cambodia for the release of children from orphanages and for the release of a British man convicted and jailed over child sex who he says is innocent.
In 2014, a Phnom Penh court gave Mr Ricketson a two-year suspended sentence for allegedly threatening to defame a refuge for girls run by an Australian charity.
He had been campaigning for the release of two girls from the centre whose mother wanted them to come home.
Cambodia's government warned ahead of the elections that it was closely watching non-government organisations for any "bias" towards opposition parties.
This follows a crackdown on dissent and opposition figures.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has threatened war should the opposition win the elections, which are seen as a precursor to national elections next year.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Affairs said it is aware of reports of an Australian man arrested in Cambodia, and has sought to make contact with him to offer consular assistance.
Mr Ricketson could not be reached for comment.
This is ridiculous for those dumb and lazy CPP polices in such uniforms (who are uneducated, but who were brainwashed by the corrupted and lazy CPP officials) to arrest Mr. James Ricketson who did nothing wrong. This is so stupid for those of a Vietnamese puppet Hun Sen who have no shame on the International stage.
ReplyDeleteClearly, he was spying for CNRP! Don't you see, he was standing with a bunch of CNRP and his drones?
ReplyDeleteAnonymous6:15 AM is a Vietnamese dog eater named Drgunzet. This poster is dreaming of a failure of Cambodia and Cambodian people and waiting for the opportunity to steal the land and property of Cambodia when his friend Hun Sen (a Vietnamese puppet) declares war against and tries to kill the unarmed Cambodian people and Opposition CNRP supporters when he (Hun Sen) and his CPP lose the election.
ReplyDeleteThe Vietnamese dog eater (Drgunzet) and his illegal Vietnamese folks (illegal immigrants floating on Cambodian water and soil) are very bad human beings.
1:52 PM
DeleteTotally concurred !!!