Voice of Democracy (; abbreviated VOD) was an independent

news agency A news agency is an organization that gathers news reports and sells them to subscribing news organizations, such as newspapers, magazines and radio and television broadcasters. A news agency may also be referred to as a wire service, newswir ...

based in

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand ...

. VOD has provided significant

investigative journalism Investigative journalism is a form of journalism in which reporters deeply investigate a single topic of interest, such as serious crimes, political corruption, or corporate wrongdoing. An investigative journalist may spend months or years res ...

within Cambodia, providing coverage on domestic issues including corruption, government wrongdoing, human rights violations, and environmental destruction, which have drawn the ire of Cambodian officials. Following the Cambodian government's media crackdown in 2017, VOD, alongside

Radio Free Asia Radio Free Asia (RFA) is a United States government-funded private non-profit news service that broadcasts radio programs and publishes online news, information, and commentary for its audiences in Asia. The service, which provides editoria ...

and

Voice of America Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is the State media, state-owned news network and International broadcasting, international radio broadcaster of the United States, United States of America. It is the largest and oldest U.S.-funded international br ...

, became an increasingly important news source for Cambodians. It was shuttered by the Cambodian government on 13 February 2023.

History

VOD began as a non-profit

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

which first aired in January 2003 under the supervision of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights. In 2007, it was moved under the Cambodian Center for Independent Media (CCIM). VOD launched online news portals in 2013. VOD became an increasingly important media outlet after the Cambodian government shuttered the independent ''

The Cambodia Daily ''The Cambodia Daily'' is an English and Khmer language news site that writes and aggregates news about Cambodia. It was originally an English-language daily newspaper based in Cambodia from 1993 to 2017, and was considered a newspaper of record ...

'' and forced the sale of ''

The Phnom Penh Post ''The Phnom Penh Post'' ( km, ភ្នំពេញប៉ុស្តិ៍, ) is a daily English-language newspaper published in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Founded in 1992 by publisher Michael Hayes and Kathleen O'Keefe, it is Cambodia's oldest Eng ...

'' to a pro-government owner in 2017. VOD launched its English language version in 2019 to fill a void in independent English language media. In February 2023, Cambodia's prime minister

Hun Sen Hun Sen (; km, ហ៊ុន សែន, ; born 5 August 1952) is a Cambodian politician and former military commander who has served as the prime minister of Cambodia since 1985. He is the longest-serving head of government of Cambodia, and ...

revoked VOD's operating license, in retaliation for a VOD news article that alleged Sen's son,

Hun Manet Hun Manet ( km, ហ៊ុន ម៉ាណែត, ; born 20 October 1977) is a Cambodian lieutenant general who currently serves in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) as the commander of Royal Cambodian Army since 2018. He is the eldest so ...

, had violated existing policy by approving a foreign aid package for the

2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake On 6 February 2023, at 04:17 Time in Turkey, TRT (01:17 Coordinated Universal Time, UTC), a 7.8 earthquake struck southern and central Turkey and northern and western Syria. The epicenter was west–northwest of Gaziantep. The ear ...

. VOD's closure was condemned by organisations including

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and s ...

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human ...

, the United Nations, and the American and German governments. HRW described the shutdown as a "devastating blow to media freedom in ambodia" The

US Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other nat ...

called the Cambodian government's response "particularly troubling" on its detrimental impact to

freedom of speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recogni ...

and access to

2023 Cambodian general election General elections will be held in Cambodia in July 2023 to elect members of the seventh National Assembly. The Cambodian People's Party (CPP) currently holds all seats in parliament. Prime minister Hun Sen will seek another term in office, with h ...

coverage.

Awards

In 2004, Oudam Tat, a VOD radio reporter, was awarded

Reporters Without Borders Reporters Without Borders (RWB; french: Reporters sans frontières; RSF) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organization with the stated aim of safeguarding the right to freedom of information. It describes its advocacy as found ...

' Information Hero award.

References

External links

* (in English) * (in Khmer) * {{authority control Cambodian news websites News agencies based in Cambodia 2003 establishments in Cambodia Mass media in Phnom Penh Radio in Cambodia

History

Awards

See also

References

External links