Cambodian Police Crack Down On Rally For Independent TV Station

Cambodian military police used smoke grenades and batons, wounding at least eight people, to quell a protest by demonstrators demanding that a new television channel be allowed to broadcast.

The demonstration was in breach of a ban on public gatherings imposed by the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen, who is enduring one of the biggest challenges to his 28-year rule and mounting criticism of bloody crackdowns on dissent. Military police and guards working for Phnom Penh city authorities chased down opposition-aligned protesters near the Information Ministry, with police wielding batons and electric prods. Journalists were among the wounded. The protest was against the ministry's refusal to grant a broadcast license to a new television channel run by a staunch government critic in a country where the broadcast media is accused of lacking political independence.