their organs or representatives. The criminal responsibility of the legal entity does not exclude the criminal responsibility of natural persons for the same acts. This provision is particularly relevant to advocacy NGOs, newspapers and political parties, as individuals accused of an offence can also be held liable, regardless of any charges brought against the legal entity itself.69 Incitement to commit felonies or discrimination Article 495 (Incitement to Commit a Crime) and Article 496 (Incitement to Commit Discrimination), which do not on their face require a crime to actually take place as a result of the incitement in question, constitute unjustified restrictions of freedom of expression. Courts in Cambodia have the tendency to misuse incitement provisions to restrict certain legitimate advocacy activities.70 Case study 1: Kong Raya On 15 March 2016, university student Kong Raya was charged with incitement based on a post on his personal Facebook account, which called for a “color revolution in order to change the cheap regime running Cambodian society.”71 He was released on 23 February 2017 after serving an 18-month sentence. Case study 3: Um Sam An In October 2016, CNRP Member of Parliament Um Sam An was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for critical comments he made on Facebook about the government’s demarcation of the Vietnam-Cambodia border. His comments were considered to constitute incitement.74 Case study 4: Sourn Serey Ratha On 13 August 2017, the president of the Khmer Power Party, Sourn Serey Ratha, was arrested after issuing a Facebook post criticising the deployment of Cambodian troops to the Laos border. Sourn Serey Ratha wrote in his post: “The Cambodian children in the army will die horribly on the battlefield, but their commanders will be promoted, collect money and have fun with girls.”75 On 15 August 2017, Sourn Serey Ratha was detained and charged with inciting soldiers to disobey orders. Case study 5: Kem Ley On 7 November 2016, after 450 days of pre-trial detention, Senator Hong Sok Hour was convicted of forgery and incitement and sentenced to seven years imprisonment for displaying an allegedly fake border treaty between Cambodia and Vietnam in a video clip posted on the Facebook page of CNRP president Sam Rainsy.72 Sam Rainsy, as well as two CNRP staffers who worked on his Facebook page, were convicted of being accomplices the following month.73 As stated before, since the murder of the political commentator and activist Kem Ley, several people were arrested and convicted of incitement for accusing the Cambodian government of being responsible for his death. For instance, in July 2017, the anti-terrorism police arrested a woman, Heng Leakhena, for linking Prime Minister Hun Sen and his family to the murder of Kem Ley during a Facebook Live broadcast. The video was made in Kem Ley’s childhood home in Takeo province, where a ceremony was held for the first anniversary of the death of Kem Ley.76 She was charged with incitement. 69 Ibid. 70 OHCHR. (2009, 6 October). Comments on certain provisions of the Penal Code in relation to international human rights standards. cambodia.ohchr.org/~cambodiaohchr/sites/default/files/ OHCHR%20Comments%20on%20provisions%20of%20the%20 Penal%20Code,%20En,%20Oct%202009.pdf 71 Sony, O., & O’Connel, T. (2016, 16 March). Student Gets 18 Months for Call for ‘Color Revolution’. The Cambodia Daily. www.cambodiadaily.com/news/ student-gets-18-months-for-call-for-color-revolution-109944 72 Chheng, N., & Turton, S. (2016, 8 November). Senator Sok Hour given seven years for forgery and incitement. The Phnom Pen Post. www.phnompenhpost.com/national/ senator-sok-hour-given-seven-years-forgery-and-incitement 73 Odom, S. (2017, 30 June). Court Upholds Sok Hour, Rainsy Border Treaty Convictions. The Cambodia Daily. www.cambodiadaily.com/ news/court-upholds-sok-hour-rainsy-border-treaty-convictions-131973 74 Sovuthy, K. (2016, 11 October). CNRP Lawmaker Guilty of Incitement for Facebook Posts. The Cambodia Daily. www.cambodiadaily.com/ news/opposition-lawmaker-sentenced-facebook-posts-119092 75 Sokchea, M. (2017, 14 August). KPP head arrested for Facebook post criticising deployment of troops to Laos border. The Phnom Penh Post. www.phnompenhpost.com/national/kpp-headarrested-facebook-post-criticising-deployment-troops-laos-border 76 Sokhean, B. (2017, 13 July). Woman Arrested for Linking Hun Sen to Kem Ley Murder. The Cambodia Daily. www.cambodiadaily.com/news/ woman-arrested-for-linking-hun-sen-to-kem-ley-murder-132449 Case study 2: Senator Hong Sok Hour CAMBODIA / 47