Donald Trump’s media ban inspires Cambodian attack on press freedom – The Guardian

Cambodias prime minister, Hun Sen, whose government is clamping down on critical media, citing Donald Trumps behaviour. Photograph: Samrang Pring/Reuters

And so it has happened. Less than 100 days into his presidency, Donald Trump is being cited by a corrupt and despotic regime to justify new restrictions on rights and freedoms. On Saturday, Cambodias council of ministers spokesman Phay Siphan vowed to crush media entities that endanger the peace and security of the kingdom, calling on all foreign agents to self-censor or be shut down. He justified this threat by citing Trumps recent expulsion of critical media outlets from a White House briefing (Report, 25 January).

Donald Trumps ban of international media giants sends a clear message that President Trump sees that news published by those media institutions does not reflect the real situation, the Phnom Penh Post quoted the spokesman as saying. Freedom of expression must be located within the domain of the law and take into consideration national interests and peace. The presidents decision has nothing to do with democracy or freedom of expression.

This comes in the wake of a new wave of human rights violations by Cambodia (including the murder of a prominent government critic, Kem Ley, and a new law designed to dismantle opposition parties) in the run-up to local and national elections.

Such comments demonstrate how President Trumps careless rhetoric and narcissistic acts can be used by despotic regimes across the globe to justify human rights violations. Alexandre Prezanti Global Diligence LLP

I read Carl Cederstrms piece (Its not just lies: Trump wills his truth into our reality, 27 February) with particular interest. I had only just watched David Hare and Mick Jacksons Denial, following Peter Bradshaws reputational rescue of the film in his review (G2, 27 January), as having overwhelming relevance. It seems particularly apt to Cederstrms point.

In the film, at the end of the long trial, the judge pulls out the question and I paraphrase What if David Irving believed all these egregious untruths would he still be a mendacious liar? The precise reason why he was able to dismiss his own question was not quoted. But it is a matter of historical record that the judge found for the defendants and stated that for his own ideological reasons [the holocaust denier] persistently and deliberately misrepresented and manipulated historical evidence. Roger Macy London

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Donald Trump's media ban inspires Cambodian attack on press freedom - The Guardian