The U.S. government has expressed «deep concern» over the recent arrest of Chhim Sithar, the union president of Cambodia’s NagaWorld Casino company, after she returned to Cambodia from attending a labor conference in Australia.
As reported by the U.S. State Department, Cambodian authorities have previously interfered with the exercise of workers’ rights by arresting union leaders and workers protesting the «wrongful dismissal» of NagaWorld employees.
«We urge Cambodian authorities to release Chhim Sithar and all detained trade unionists exercising their right to freedom of association and peaceful assembly, to drop the charges against them, and to work to constructively resolve their disputes,» the Biden Administration has asserted, reiterating its call on Cambodia to release U.S. citizen Theary Seng.
«We continue to call on the Cambodian Government to fulfill its labor rights obligations and commitments and to mediate a resolution to the dispute between NagaWorld and the union representing the dismissed employees,» it added in a missive.
Cambodia’s NagaWorld Casino laid off 1,329 workers in April 2021, at which point the former employees have been protesting in front of the casino in downtown Nom Pen.
The mass firing included Chhim Sithar and other union leaders and activists. The union has since demanded the reinstatement of the dismissed workers, particularly the union leaders.
