Kampong Speu Deputy Governor Touch Poliva instructed provincial prison leaders and staff not to become involved in or commit offences in exchange for benefits, particularly by providing phones to detainees. He said the law would allow no exemption if such involvement was found.
He made the remarks while leading a provincial administration team, relevant departments and specialist provincial police and gendarmerie personnel to inspect detainees’ living conditions at Kampong Speu prison on March 12, 2026.
During visits to detention rooms, the deputy governor and his team searched detainees’ clothing baskets for prohibited items that might have been concealed for use.
He said the inspection followed reports that detainees in some provincial prisons were using phones and social media such as Facebook, taking drugs, and drinking and socialising.
To improve management and prevent problems, he instructed prison leaders and their subordinates to continue monitoring prison administration and detainees’ living conditions, maintain order and prevent irregularities.
He also called for tighter checks on visitors and searches of every delivery brought in by families, to prevent prohibited items from being taken into the prison or handed to detainees. Staff should continue improving order, sanitation and the environment for detainees’ comfort.
Prison director Tin Sovanny, a second-grade senior prison officer, said detainee numbers were continuing to rise. As of March 11, 2026, the report listed 3,100 detainees, including 194 women, and seven children accompanying their mothers, four of them girls.
He said the increase mainly involved drug offences and gang-related cases, with more than 2,000 people linked to these categories among the total detainee population. Written by Pai Sokhim
