Cambodian court convicts 36 opposition figures of conspiracy

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — A court in Cambodia has convicted 36 activists and former opposition lawmakers of conspiracy to commit treason. The human rights group Licadho says the 36, including former opposition leader Sam Rainsy and several leaders of his disbanded Cambodia National Rescue Party, were accused of trying to help exiled former lawmakers return home in January 2021 in defiance of a government ban. It says the sentences handed down by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court ranged from five to seven years in prison, with three defendants receiving suspended sentences. It says the court ruling was the fourth verdict in five mass trials that have been initiated since November 2020 against a total of 158 leaders and supporters of the former opposition party.