Phnom Penh: On the eve of World Press Freedom Day 2025, H.E. Tep Asnarith, Undersecretary of State and Spokesperson for the Ministry of Information, announced that media freedom and journalist safety in Cambodia have improved by 6.2 percent compared to the ministry's 2024 findings, which reported a score of 79.8 percent. 'This is not an unsubstantiated claim,' he stated. 'The figures are based on a scientific survey that reflects the real experiences of journalists and media operators working in the field.'
According to Agence Kampuchea Presse, the report is grounded in data collected through 500 questionnaires, with input from 467 journalists and media stakeholders across all 25 provinces and the capital. The study also found that more than 86 percent of respondents said they enjoyed full freedom and safety in carrying out their journalistic duties, including ease of access to information sources for reporting.
Among the respondents, 81.4 percent rated the state of press freedom in Cambodia as 'very good': 72.2 percent described it as 'good,' and 9.2 percent as 'excellent.' In response to external reports that portray a different picture, H.E. Tep Asnarith criticised the methodology of those assessments, stating that they often rely on limited input from small groups and may be influenced by political agendas or civil society organisations. 'Such reports do not reflect the real situation and cannot represent the voices of those working in Cambodia's information and audiovisual sectors,' he said.
This marks the second such report issued by the Ministry of Information's working group. It has been released in advance of World Press Freedom Day celebrations in Cambodia, which will be held under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet on May 3.