An opposition activist known as Ah Song Ha, who currently lives in South Korea, was arrested by Korean authorities recently. Meanwhile, a photo depicting a former leader of CNRP, Sam Rainsy, showing his thumb near Ah Song Ha was posted by a Facebook user recently. This photo was reacted to with mixed comments and shared by Facebook users who are speaking Khmer. However, after running a Google Reverse Image search, it proves that the photo posted above is digitally altered.
This is about our investigation of this photo.
Social Media Claim
On July 7, 2022, one of the Facebook users posted a photo showing Sam Rainsy wearing a blue jacket, a striped tie and a backpack. The same photo also shows Sam Rainsy showing his thumb and standing close to a pro-opposition activist in South Korea called Ah Song Ha. This photo was shared by many Facebook users, while many other Facebook users also expressed mixed opinions and reactions.
Below is a screenshot captured from the Facebook user’s channel above that read in Khmer and translates in English as “Finished! Sam Rainsy is busy hanging out while his son-in-law, Ah Song Ha, is in a Korean prison. Chun Chanboth is also looking for Rainsy to ask about this, but Rainsy knows in advanced and he escaped”.
Fact Check
Fact Crescendo Cambodia started checking the above photos and claims through Google Reverse Image Search, which led us to find the following facts.
An exact photo with the same shape and form was found on Ah Song Ha’s personal Facebook account, which was posted on August 24, 2019. The same user did not show the scene of Sam Rainsy standing with his thumb up, but instead the photo was factually of Ah Song Ha in a blue shirt standing with his thumb next to the former leader of the Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP), Sam Rainsy.
Below is a screenshot from Ah Song Ha’s Facebook account that reads “No need to panic, it’s time for him to go, even if millions of tons of Hun Sen’s atomic bomb must go. Parents, brothers and sisters from all over the country, please welcome the hero in our hearts to millions. On November 9, 2019, he would arrive in Cambodia”.
The following is the comparison image between the original photo and the altered photo used and published on Facebook recently.
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You may find the details of this fact-check in Khmer language here as well.
Conclusion
Fact Crescendo Cambodia found out that the photo attached to the claim as described above is actually altered. The original photo has been found in Ah Song Ha’s Facebook posted in August, 2019 which shows their faces were digitally swapped.
Title:Faces of Sam Rainsy and Ah Song Ha Digitally Swapped
Fact Check By: Kakada SimResult: Altered
