AKP Phnom Penh, May 03, 2025 — Cambodian Information Minister H.E. Neth Pheaktra joined foreign ambassadors and UNESCO representatives this morning in a memorial ceremony honoring journalists who died or disappeared during the Cambodian civil war (1970–1975). 

The event, held in a garden near the French Embassy in Phnom Penh, coincided with the 32nd World Press Freedom Day.

French Ambassador to Cambodia, H.E. Jacques Pellet, alongside representatives from the embassies of the United States, Japan, India, Australia, and Laos, as well as UNESCO Representative in Cambodia, Mr. Sardar Umar Alam, attended the morning ceremony. High-ranking officials from the Ministry of Information, the Club of Cambodian Journalists, media associations, and numerous national and international journalists were also present.

This year’s World Press Freedom Day theme, “Reporting in the Brave New World – The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Press Freedom,” provided a backdrop for the solemn occasion.

H.E. Minister Neth Pheaktra emphasised the significance of the gathering. “Today, on the 32nd World Press Freedom Day, we gather to honor the memory of our colleagues—Cambodian and foreign journalists—who lost their lives while reporting during the devastating war in Cambodia in the 1970s,” he stated.

He further paid tribute to their courage, saying, “These journalists—both Cambodian and foreign—sacrificed everything, including their lives, to report and broadcast the realities and tragedies of war in Cambodia during that decade.”

Minister Neth Pheaktra also announced the release of the Ministry of Information’s 2025 report on the state of press freedom in Cambodia. He asserted that the report, compiled solely by ministry officials, reflects the accurate situation in the country, indicating a significant improvement in press freedom based on a survey of 467 journalists. The report stated that 81.4 percent of respondents rated the state of press freedom as “very good” with 72.2 percent describing the situation as “good” and 9.2 percent as “excellent.”

He cautioned against external assessments driven by political motives, suggesting they aim to damage Cambodia’s reputation. “Some countries that claim to champion freedom of expression are not necessarily better than Cambodia,” he added.

Ambassador Pellet expressed his gratitude to the Cambodian Information Minister for initiating the memorial on this important international day. “Our duty to remember requires us to honor those journalists—many of them very young—who sacrificed their lives in pursuit of a higher cause: reporting on the horrors of war with honesty, often from the frontlines. Among them were many of my fellow countrymen,” he said.

He underscored the vital role of journalists in society, particularly during conflict, highlighting their courage in investigating and reporting freely and independently.

“Recent reports show that over 200 journalists were killed globally last year,” Ambassador Pellet noted, emphasising the urgent need for collective action to prevent such tragedies.

By K. Rithy Reak