New York-based, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the Cambodian government’s “Stop Covid-19” digital contact tracing system “raises serious privacy and other human rights concerns,” and urged less invasive measures as Cambodia battles a new wave of Covid-19. Introduced in February, the system encourages customers, workers, and visitors to scan a QR Code when entering an…
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Cambodia to Create Internet Firewall with Potential to Block Traffic, Store Data
PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA — The Cambodian government issued a directive to establish a National Internet Gateway that would control online traffic, despite rights groups criticizing the move they say will give the government wide-ranging powers to control internet access. The sub-decree titled the “Establishment of the National Internet Gateway (NIG)” is drafted by the Ministry…
‘I used to talk about politics on Facebook, but now it’s scary’
Phnom Penh, Cambodia – Samoeurth Seavmeng sits at a conference table wearing black horn-rimmed glasses. Meng – as she’s known online and to friends – glances at her smartphone and begins to speak to 10 other young Cambodians gathered at Politikoffee, a weekly forum held in a leafy diplomatic enclave of the capital Phnom Penh. “It’s…
Cambodian Netizens Face New Risks as Government Tightens Online Controls
WASHINGTON — In Cambodia, one of Asia’s poorest countries, the rapid improvement in internet connectivity and availability of affordable smartphones has been a great leveler. Many of its roughly 15 million urban and rural inhabitants have gained, in a short time, access to mobile internet and social media, which provide relatively free communication and independent,…
Fine Line Separates Activists, Citizen Journalists
When Sok Sreyneang goes into the forest, she goes looking for loggers. Equipped with a smartphone, a knife, a notebook and pen, the 21-year-old is on a mission to put an end to the destruction of the woods that surround her hometown in Mondolkiri province. “They are destroying the community forests and I am part…
Expert Touts Rise of Citizen Journalists
PHNOM PENH — Citizens can be journalists, and they can help Cambodia face ongoing issues like illegal logging, rights abuses and corruption, a communications technology expert says. Ngeth Moses, ICT coordinator for the Community Legal Education Center, told “Hello VOA” Monday that new tools are making it easier for so-called citizen journalists to emerge. “They can…