An award-winning journalist in Cambodia has been arrested for his investigative work on human trafficking issues, according to the independent Cambodian Journalists Alliance Association (CamboJA). Mech Dara was detained while traveling with his family from Sihanoukville to Phnom Penh when authorities intercepted their car.
Dara, who received the Hero Award in 2023 from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken for his exposés on scam compounds with trafficked workers in Cambodia, faced arrest after sharing social media posts about a rock quarry. Local officials labelled his posts as an attempt to incite dissent in the country.
The military police detained Dara after he managed to send an SMS to the rights group Licadho before his phone was confiscated. CamboJA reported that Dara’s car was stopped at a toll booth by police in military vehicles and other cars. The authorities cited an arrest warrant without showing the document and seized Dara’s phone, instructing his family members to remain inside the vehicle.
The journalist had posted images of an alleged quarry operation at a mountain in Prey Veng province a day before his arrest. Prey Veng authorities dismissed the images as “fake news” and accused Dara of attempting to cause social disorder, calling for punitive action against him. Dara previously worked for Cambodia Daily and Phnom Penh Post, English-language newspapers forced to close under government pressure, and Voice of Democracy radio and website, shuttered last year.
Known for his reports on human trafficking linked to online scams in Cambodia, Dara’s work involves exposing schemes that trap individuals into forced labour within compounds often hosting casinos. The US State Department expressed concern over Dara’s arrest and stated they are closely monitoring the situation.
Cambodia has been a hotspot for cyberscams, including tactics like “pig butchering”, where scammers exploit victims through dating apps or websites for fraudulent activities. Reporters Without Borders ranked Cambodia 151st out of 180 countries in its press freedom index, highlighting ongoing challenges faced by journalists in the country.
In a separate incident, ten activists with the environmental group Mother Nature were sentenced to jail terms between six to eight years on charges of conspiring against the government. The crackdown on press freedom and civil activism in Cambodia continues to draw international attention and condemnation.