Daughter of the Killing Fields” is how Theary Seng described herself in her autobiography. Orphaned at age of 7, she had to leave Cambodia for safety, and eventually found her refuge in the United States, where she studied to become a lawyer.

In 2004, she decided to return to Cambodia and capitalize on the increasing democratic opening in her country by working on issues such as human rights, social justice and civic education. In the past years, that democratic space has shrunk significantly -- leading to the dissolution and/or persecution of civil society organizations, independent media and the political opposition.

In November 2020, Theary Seng found herself charged with “conspiracy to commit treason” and “incitement to create social disorder” together with 130 others government opponents and critics. Instead of fleeing to the Uni ...