US urges release of detained union leader in Cambodia

The United States on Tuesday said it was deeply concerned by Cambodia's arrest of union leader Chhim Sithar and called for her release and that of other detained trade unionists.

The State Department said Sithar, whose union has been involved in a year-long dispute with the NagaWorld casino, was arrested after returning to Cambodia from a labor conference in Australia.

It said that Cambodian authorities had previously interfered with workers rights by detaining union leaders and workers protesting the termination of NagaWorld employees.

We urge Cambodian authorities to release Chhim Sithar and all detained trade unionists exercising their right to freedom of association and peaceful assembly, drop charges against them and move to constructively resolve their disputes, the department said in a statement.

The State Department said the release of US citizen Theary Seng was a priority and the Cambodian government should uphold labor rights obligations and mediate a resolution between NagaWorld and the union.

A Cambodian-American lawyer and human rights activist, Theary Seng, was among 60 opposition figures arrested in June on charges of conspiring to commit treason after a mass trial condemned by the US and rights groups as politically motivated.

Chhim Sithar is the head of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld and was at the forefront of a strike at Cambodia's biggest casino, facing scores of riot police at protests in Phnom Penh.

According to a statement released by the Cambodian Center for Human Rights on Monday, Sithar was arrested on Saturday and accused of violating bail conditions that allegedly prevented her from leaving the country.

In March, Sithar was released on bail after a previous January arrest, and neither she nor her lawyers were informed of any bail conditions.

In December, employees of the NagaWorld casino, which is run by Hong Kong-listed Nagacorp, protested against the layoff of 365 workers because of the disruption caused by the coronaviruses.

The protests threatened public security, and police said the strike was illegal. NagaWorld described the layoffs as unavoidable.