In the days following a Jan. 9 speech by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen broadcast live on Facebook, in which he threatened opposition members with violence if they criticized the ruling party ahead of elections, physical attacks against them increased.
There were at least seven reported violent acts against opposition party members in the capital Phnom Penh, with dozens more arrested, convicted and jailed on "politically motivated charges," Human Rights Watch said in a report in April.
But the video of Hun Sen's speech — in which he said opponents who questioned the ruling party would face either legal action or "the stick" — stayed up on Facebook until June 29 when Meta's oversight board overturned Facebook's decision.
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