Facebook Insults Land Poster in Prey Sar

PHNOM PENH: A Cambodian court on Wednesday charged a man with inciting discrimination after he insulted the Khmer race via a Facebook post, a court spokesman said.

Yin Heng, believed to be in his 20s, was arrested on Tuesday in Phnom Penh, a day after he posted to his Facebook a video clip insulting the nation by saying the Khmer race was “beast and cheap”.

His insults triggered anger among Facebook users who then called for the authorities to take legal action against him.

“A prosecutor has charged Yin Heng, nicknamed Champey Black, with inciting discrimination under the Articles 494 and 496 of the Criminal Code,” Ly Sophana, a spokesman for the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, told reporters.

Under the charges, the man could face between one and three years in prison if convicted.

Yin Heng publicly apologized for his mistake after being arrested, saying he made the insults after a group of three men rode on a motorbike and knocked his head from the back when he was driving a motorbike on Monday night.

He was arrested by police in Daun Penh District in a coffee shop near the Royal Palace at 8.30 pm on February 5, and was sent to Phnom Penh Municipal Court at 2 pm on February 6, 2019.

According to Ly Sopana, deputy prosecutor and spokesman for the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, at 18:05, the police took the suspect to pre-trial detention in Prey Sar.