The functioning of the judiciary has been among the major human rights concerns in Cambodia for some time, central as it is to the protection and enforcement of other rights and the establishment of the rule of law. Although there have been steady improvements in the adherence to some of the procedures that underpin fair trial rights within the Cambodian judiciary, many areas of concern remain. One of the major issues that impacts upon fair trial rights in Cambodia is the lack of separation of powers and the continued influence that the executive exert on the judiciary.
CCHR’s Trial Monitoring Project (the “Project”) has collected data from the monitoring of 204 criminal trials at the Court of Appeal between 1 March 2013 and 31 January 2014 (the “Reporting Period”) in order to assess its adherence to fair trial rights as set out in international and Cambodian law. The Report presents and analyzes the data collected during the Reporting Period.