By Rich Garella

Wow, that was fast.
We’ve only just completed the public TV version of our film Who Killed Chea
Vichea?, and already a group of Cambodian unions plans to show it. In
Cambodia, where it counts most. Their aim is to highlight the government’s
failure to conduct a real investigation of the 1999 murder of the Cambodian labor
leader.

What’s really impressive is that
they plan to screen it in public, this Saturday after their traditional Labor
Day march, in the park near the spot where Vichea was killed. Given the
Cambodian government’s track record, they’re taking a big risk.

See the Phnom Penh Post: Group to Screen Vichea Film

Is the Cambodian government
committed to respecting human rights? This screening will put the government to
the test. We’re told the authorities initially said that the Ministry of
Interior would have to see the film first to clear it. We at Loud Mouth Films
don’t approve of prior censorship, so we wouldn’t have agreed to that. But Phnom Penh Governor Kep Chuktema now says the city will not approve the screening because the film “has no license from
related ministries.”

See Voice of America: Authorities Ban Screening of Chea
Vichea Film

If the union organizing committee decides to go ahead with a public screening,
without permission, we don’t know what what will happen.
As filmmakers we believe that all people who want to see a film should be able to
see it, with no prior censorship and without consideration of its political
content. Especially when it comes to
Cambodians being able to see this film. That doesn’t necessarily mean the city
government is obliged to agree that any film can be screened on any public
property at any time — just that they have to treat all films equally without
regard to politics. Any government that denies its own citizens freedom of
information cannot be called a democracy.

The screening is planned for
tomorrow, May 1. Check back on Loud Mouth Films’ blog for updates.
We’ll let you know if there’s anything you can do to help. (And if you have a
comment on this news, please post it on the Loud Mouth Films blog.)

We take great pride in the fact that
union organizers in Cambodia think this film is so important. We hope that that Saturday proceeds peacefully, and
that the rights of the Cambodian people are respected.

Rich Garella is co-producer of “Who Killed Chea Vichea?” Asia Catalyst is a proud sponsor of the film.