Cambodia Lesbian Wrongly Jailed
What a mess this is.
A great example of Guilty, until proven innocent...
“On August 10, 2011, [her girlfriend’s] brother filed a complaint that I was illegally detaining her. The police then arrested me and accused me of illegal detention and human trafficking,” Phlong Srey Rann explained.
In November, a judge convicted her of having sexual intercourse with a minor and sentenced her to five years in prison.
The “minor” involved was a co-worker she had met at a shoe factory in Kandal province. They had been together for more than a year.
“I told police that I was not [involved in] human trafficking and that we loved each other. I don’t understand why her brother filed a lawsuit against me,” Phlong Srey Rann said.
Letters between the two support these claims. One from her girlfriend identifies an older brother as the source of the problem. “My brother is forcing me to stop having a relationship with you, but I have to overcome it . . . you are the person whom I love so much,” the hand-written letter reads.
Phlong Srey Rann said it was news to her that her girlfriend was under age. Her girlfriend’s family had provided falsified documents to the court identifying their daughter as only 14 years old, she said.
“My girlfriend’s family lied to the court when they said she was only 14 years old,” Phlong Srey Rann said.
Cambodian labour law stipulates that factory workers must be 18 or older, which would mean that her girlfriend had been working in the factory since she was 13.
Phlong Srey Rann’s girlfriend had been taken back to her village in Kampot by her family, people familiar with the case said. She was confined to her parents’ home and her mobile phone has been taken from her, they said.
Still, a letter slipped through. “I love only you. I will never love other. If my family does not love you, I will still love you forever.”
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This is totally wrong. One cannot be convicted for being a lesbian!
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