MPs pass draft law allowing stripping of citizenship

Cambodian parliamentarians passed yesterday legislation allowing people who collude with foreign countries to be stripped of citizenship, a law rights groups fear will be used to banish dissent.

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All 120 lawmakers in attendance at the National Assembly session, including Prime Minister Hun Manet, voted unanimously to approve the bill.

Rights monitors have long accused Cambodia's government of using draconian laws to stifle opposition and legitimate political debate.

A coalition of 50 rights groups issued a statement on Sunday warning the law "will have a disastrously chilling effect on the freedom of speech of all Cambodian citizens".

"The potential for abuse in the implementation of this vaguely worded law to target people on the basis of their ethnicity, political opinions, speech, and activism is simply too high to accept," it added.