TAKHMAO: Prime Minister Hun Sen and Mr. Dy Vichea will be represented by four French lawyers in a court in France, regarding a lawsuit the Prime Minister filed against opposition leader, Sam Rainsy. The four lawyers met with the Prime Minister at his residence in Takhmao City to examine and gather important evidence to prove a solid basis for the charge placed against Sam Rainsy in the trial scheduled for 1 September, 2022.

Four French lawyers are set to represent Prime Minister Hun Sen and Mr. Dy Vichea as the plaintiff in a defamation suit against Sam Rainsy in Paris.

During the special meeting between the Prime Minister and his lawyers, Prime Minister Hun Sen highlighted the main facts, points and wrongdoings of Sam Rainsy, outlining the primary reasons for why he filed the lawsuit against him.

Prime Minister Hun Sen and Mr. Dy Vichea filed a lawsuit against Sam Rainsy in Paris, France on 20 August 2019. A French investigating judge then charged the former opposition leader with defamation on 8 June 2020.

The lawsuit against Sam Rainsy was filed by Prime Minister Hun Sen following a message Rainsy posted on his Facebook page, and accusations made by Rainsy during an interview with VOA Khmer. Sam Rainsy made two false claims: that Prime Minister Hun Sen had killed or was the mastermind behind the killing of Hok Lundy, and that the Prime Minister had also ordered the killing of Chea Vichea.

These severe allegations made by Sam Rainsy were the reason why Prime Minister Hun Sen decided to file a lawsuit in a French court, which went on to rule this case as "a violation of the domain of freedom of expression." 

The case is scheduled to go to trial later this year on 1 September, 2022.