Chhay Thy
Chhay Thy is the Provincial Coordinator of the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC). The organisation has reported on the situation of members of the Montagnard ethnic minority who fled from Vietnam following a police crackdown in response to demonstrations by Montagnards on 10 and 11 April 2014 demanding religious freedom, independence, and the return of ancestral lands. The Cambodian government has allowed a number of Montagnards in Cambodia to seek asylum in the country, but, reportedly, more remain in hiding as the Cambodian authorities have deported a number of Montagnards to Vietnam.
HRDs who work to promote and protect economic, social, and cultural rights are particularly at risk of persecution. Trade union leaders, especially those affiliated with the Free Trade Union of the Workers of Cambodia, have been subjected to extra-judicial executions. Community activists defending the right to housing and protesting against land grabs and forced evictions have faced fabricated charges and jail terms.
