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PHNOM PENH: Cambodia’s parliament passed a law on Monday that will allow people convicted of treason to be stripped of their citizenship, a new measure that comes amid a sustained crackdown on opponents of the long-ruling Cambodian People’s Party.
The law, approved by 120 of the 125 members of the CPP-dominated National Assembly, will allow the state to revoke the citizenship of anyone convicted of conspiring with foreign countries or plotting against Cambodian interests.
Many prominent political figures have fled Cambodia to avoid arrest amid intensified efforts to stifle the CPP’s opposition in the wake of the Supreme Court’s 2017 banning of the Cambodian National Rescue Party ahead of an election the following year.
Cambodia has since held mass trials involving more than 100 opposition figures, with many jailed in absentia on treason and incitement charges.
The CPP has been widely condemned by activists and Western countries, including the United States, for a crackdown on remnants of the opposition that has ensured the past two elections were virtually one-horse races.
The government denies targeting opponents and says those sentenced to prison were law-breakers. Notable dissidents in exile include the now defunct CNRP’s co-founders Sam Rainsy, who has lived in France since 2016, and Mu Sochua, now in the United States.
Cambodia’s influential longtime former prime minister and CPP President Hun Sen said in late June that Cambodia needed to take action against nationals who “side with foreign nations.” Rainsy, who has already been banned from entering Cambodia, has long been Hun Sen’s fiercest critic.
He has accused him of mishandling a border dispute with Thailand that spiralled into armed conflict last month, alleging corruption by the military and a government cover-up of civilian deaths, which both have denied.

WELLINGTON: New Zealand’s postal service said it had suspended most deliveries to the United States, citing uncertainty over the impact of President Donald Trump’s looming tariffs.
NZ Post said it had temporarily suspended services as of August 21 before the US 15 percent tariff takes effect on August 29.
Only limited letters and important documents — such as passports or legal letters — would be delivered to the United States, said a statement on the carrier’s website.
The move follows similar steps taken by postal services and mail carriers in India, Germany, France, Belgium, Austria and Denmark after the Trump administration said that as of August 29 it would abolish a tax exemption on small packages entering the United States.
The United States started imposing tariffs on foreign nations in April, but most are only coming into force this month after months of negotiations and delays.
NZ Post said it was “working quickly” to make changes to its service and that it hoped to resume deliveries as “soon as possible.”
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told Radio New Zealand on Monday there was confusion over the impact of the tariffs.
“As these postal organizations have worked out, they can’t guarantee what the tariff rate will be or cost, or how that will all work in practical terms,” Luxon said.
“I’m sure NZ Post, along with its counterparts in other countries, will work with the US to get clarity.”