A Cambodian court sentences a union leader to 18 months in prison for comments on Facebook

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — A Cambodian labor union leader has been sentenced to 18 months in prison in connection with comments he made in a live broadcast on Facebook two years ago that criticized the arrest of a casino worker. The Cambodian Labor Confederation said the case was aimed at intimidating labor unions. The local rights group Licadho said Wednesday that Morm Rithy, a vice president of the confederation, was convicted by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Tuesday on charges of incitement to commit a felony and discrediting a judicial decision. The case came less than a week after Cambodia’s top court upheld the two-year prison sentence of a prominent female labor union leader.