Cambodia Delays ‘Repressive’ Internet Gateway Amid Criticism From Rights Groups

A file image of the Cambodian national flag. Vanna Phon/Unsplash

The Cambodian government on Tuesday delayed plans to introduce its national internet gateway, which UN experts have branded as “repressive” and could cause “a serious negative impact” on the country’s internet freedom, citing potential disruptions to online traffic.

Telecommunications Ministry’s spokesperson told local media VOD that the internet gateway, which was scheduled to be unveiled on Wednesday, was put on hold due to the potential disruptions to online traffic caused by the global pandemic.

Prior to the delay, the Cambodian Foreign Affairs Department issued a statement allaying concerns about the internet gateway, saying that it had been misinterpreted by some foreign media despite the government’s “repeated explanation.”

The allegations against the implementation of the national internet gateway were “unfounded,” the department said, adding that it has “no provisions allegedly authorizing the collection of consumers’ data and restricting freedom of expression.”

“The government respects the individuals’ right to privacy and freedom of expression and protects personal data, all of which enshrined in law,” it stated.

The department claimed that the gateway aims to facilitate and manage internet connections, strengthen national security and tax collection, maintain social order, and protect national culture.

The national internet gateway serves as “an effective tool to enhance national revenue collection” and helps to “thwart cybercrimes,” such as illegal use of a cross-border network, illicit online gambling, and internet scams, it said.

“The government will prepare a separate bill on personal data protection as soon as the draft law on cybersecurity is concluded,” it added.

Earlier this month, UN human rights experts expressed concerns that the gateway could pose a serious negative impact on internet freedom and would “further shrink the already-restrictive civic pace in Cambodia.”

“To legally justify such a sweeping infringement on personal freedoms requires compliance with strict tests of legality, necessity, and proportionality, including for matters of national security or public morality,” the experts said.

“It is exceedingly hard to imagine how any such legal justification may apply in this case,” they said, while urging the government to halt implementation of the data surveillance legislation.

According to civil society groups, harassment of dissidents, censorship, and media blackouts have become “customary” in Cambodia, which prompted people to use online platforms to voice political dissent.

“The government’s response has been to enact a slew of vaguely-worded laws and propose draft legislation to silence these online users and curb the advent of cyberspace as an important site to mobilize and launch political opposition to its continued rule,” it said in a report (pdf).

Last year, a 16-year-old autistic Cambodian teenager was arrested for a message he wrote on the Telegram messaging app defending his imprisoned father, a senior member of the now-outlawed Cambodia National Rescue Party.