Cambodian king grants pardon to self-exiled dissident Sourn Serey Ratha

Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni on Friday signed a royal decree to deliver a pardon to self-exiled dissident Sourn Serey Ratha, whose Khmer People Power Movement has been labeled as a terrorist group by the government.

In the royal decree, the King granted amnesty to convict Sourn Serey Ratha, 43, who was convicted by the Appeal Court on May 28, 2015.

"Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia must take responsibility to implement this royal decree from the day of signature," the King said in the decree.

In January, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced Sourn Serey Ratha, who lives mostly in the United States, in absentia to seven years in prison for incitement, plotting an attack and obstructing elections in 2013, and on May 28, the Appeal Court upheld the verdict of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court against him.

The pardon came after the Ministry of Interior, in March, gave green light to Sourn Serey Ratha to form a political party to contest in upcoming elections.