Kandal province: Recently, a woman filed a complaint against a deponent of Kandal provincial court on a charge of consoling, cheating and raping her.

A victim asked not to be known, 25, in Svay Rolum commune, Saang district, Kandal province sued a deponent of Kandal provincial court Mr. Rath Sovanrith, 57.

A victim said on July 23, 2007, at 11AM, her aunt Mrs. Yen Sophal took her to meet Mr. Rath Sovanrith at Kbal Thnol roundabout and then Sovanrith took her in his car Metapheap restaurant at Prek Leab for lunch. When having lunch, a victim’s aunt Mrs. Yen Sophal told a victim to pay more attention to Mr. Sovanrith because he is high ranking government official and also has much money. After lunch, Mr. Rath Sovanrith took a victim to Prek Anhchanh commune and came back until 8:00PM. On August 12, 2007, Mr. Rath Sovanrith called a victim to meet him to solve her aunt’s case (Yen Sophal who has dispute with someone else and Mr. Sovanarith took responsibility for her aunt’s case). At that time, a victim came to meet him. When arriving at the court, Mr. Sovanarith took a victim to have lunch at Metapheap restaurant again. When arriving at the restaurant, a victim met other six people of Mr. Sovanarith. After lunch at about 11:30PM, Sovanarith drove a victim into a guest house at Prek Leab. Seeing that a victim denied entry into guest house, but she was consoled and promised by Mr. Sovanarith that he would take her as his wife and said he had no wife and even promised that he would help solve her aunt’s case and give her whatever she would need. Then he took her into guest house and raped her successfully.
According to the above legal proceeding, the victim appealed to the court to take legal action against Mr. Sovanarith and claim the damages of US$7,000.

A deponent Mr. Sovanarith said, he first knew the victim’s aunt whom he asked to help find a wife for him because he divorced his wife. And then, Yen Sophal took a victim to meet him. Because a deponent Mr. Sovanarith fell in love with her, he met with her parents and asked her as his wife. At that time, the victim’s parents asked a deponent to organize a wedding ceremony. But he denied a wedding ceremony by claiming that he was old and didn’t want to organize it and wedding would make him feel shy of other people. Due to his deny, the victim’s parents and relatives set the date to organize the spirit-offering ceremony which was known by people throughout the village. After spirits-offering ceremony, the couple went to live in Phnom Penh. When living in Phnom Penh, a victim asked money from him to pay her month’s debt, but he refused because he said to marry to live with each other, not marry to pay her mother’s debt. And then, the deponent Mr. Sovanarith gave her US$50 to help her mother in paying debt to the bank. Due to dissatisfaction, a victim asked Mr. Sovanarith’s permission to work for garment factory, saying that she wanted to make money to pay her mother’s debt. Mr. Sovanarith agreed for her to work for the factory and allowed her to live with her friends.

Latter on, seeing such situation, a victim’s mother asked her to work for a factory near her house. A deponent didn’t forbid her because he thought “mother and daughter, if they can live somewhere easily, let them do so”. A deponent emphasized that “when living with her mother at her home village, a victim organized a spirits offering ceremony with a new husband and I didn’t take legal action against her for this case, but she filed a complaint to claim money from me”. Mr. Sovanarith said if she filed such a defamatory complaint against him, he would sue her on charge of defamation. (By Chhunheat)