PHNOM PENH – Calls grew yesterday for a thorough and transparent investigation into the murder of former opposition party member Lim Kimya who was shot dead in Thailand.

The 74-year-old former member of the now-disbanded Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) was gunned down on January 7 near Wat Bowonniwet Vihara in Phra Nakhon district of Bangkok.

He reportedly traveled from Siem Reap via bus with his French wife and uncle.  

The motive is unknown, but Thai authorities have issued an arrest warrant for the suspect's arrest, according to the Nation.

Kimya was a CNRP member of parliament from 2013 to 2018. He was among many opposition politicians and members of parliament who were banned from political activities after his party was dissolved in 2017.
Before joining the CNRP, Lim Kimya was a civil servant from 1982 to 2014 at French Ministry of Economics and Finance.

Cambodianess sought comment from Chum Sunry, a spokesperson for the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but has yet to receive a response.

The shooting took place after Senate President Hun Sen called for legislation defining any attempt to establish an anti-government movement as terrorism.

Kimya did not involve himself in politics but posted on social issues as a normal citizen.

Demand for a transparent investigation

The Nation reported that Thai police are actively pursuing the suspect, a man riding a red Honda Wave 100 motorcycle with license plate 845. He was identified as a former marine with the Royal Thai Navy.

Sam Rainsy, a former opposition leader in exile in France, extended CNRP’s sorrow and condolences to the family of Kimya.

“We condemn this brutal attack on political freedom and call for a full Thai investigation,” Rainsy wrote on his X account.

Monovithya Kem, daughter of former opposition leader Kem Sokha, said, "It is imperative the French government closely monitors this process to ensure transparency and real justice is served."

Charles Santiago, a former Malaysian member of parliament and co-chairperson of ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights, expressed condolences to Kimya’s family, urging the French government to take action to ensure justice for the victim.

“My heart goes out to Lim Kimya's wife and family,” Santiago posted on X.

“Transborder repression seems to be gaining traction in the region with impunity. Cambodian politicians and activists appear to be the target,” he said, adding that the French government should insist on an open and transparent inquiry into the killing.

Phil Robertson, director of Asia Human Rights and Labour Advocates, condemned the assassination and said it appeared to have been politically driven. 

The direct impact would be to severely intimidate hundreds of Cambodian political opposition figures, NGO activists and human rights defenders who had fled to Thailand to escape the Cambodian government’s campaign of political repression.

"This brazen shooting of a former CNRP MP on the streets of Bangkok has all the hallmarks of a political assassination and looks to be a significant escalation in the use of transnational repression in Bangkok,” Robertson said.

He demanded the French government take action to pursue justice for the victim aggressively while pressuring the Thai government to “effectively and thoroughly investigate this assassination, no matter where the path leads."

Thailand: once a safe political refuge

The killing of the Cambodian politician has been seen as a change in Thailand’s space, once known as a safe haven for political dissidents and human rights activists fleeing repression in the region.

Robertson said the killing put Thailand's international reputation at risk. Thai police and politicians should understand they cannot simply sweep this brutal act under the rug.

The Washington Post recently published an analysis of cross-border repression as Southeast Asian governments collaborate to suppress dissent, often supporting each other in intimidating and extraditing exiled critics of their regimes.

The latest example was the arrest and deportation of Cambodian opposition leaders and activists by Thai authorities.

“In Thailand, once a safe haven for asylum seekers, Cambodian opposition leaders are routinely surveilled, jailed, and deported home, where they face detention,” the Post said.