Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Obama Should Stay Away From Cambodia

Riot police blocked the street outside Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Oct. 1, as protesters called for the release of jailed land-rights activist Mam Sonando. (Samrang Pring/Reuters)

October 30, 2012
By SAM RAINSY
Op-Ed Contributor
The New York Times

As the U.S. presidential election approaches, Barack Obama is in danger of allowing his good offices to be used as part of an attempt to deny Cambodians the opportunity for self-determination that Americans take for granted.

President Obama is due to visit Cambodia next month as the country holds the presidency of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2012. Ahead of Cambodian elections in July 2013, Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has been in power since 1985, has been engaging in a familiar pattern of cracking down on the voices of opposition. He knows that it’s an easier and safer way to win elections than allowing democratic debate.

The summit meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations that Mr. Obama plans to attend should be moved to another country in order to deny Hun Sen the legitimacy he is seeking to garner from the event.

Those with a record of opposition to Hun Sen are in dread of the period right after Mr. Obama’s scheduled visit.


The owner of the Cambodia’s Beehive radio station, Mam Sonando, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Oct. 1 on politically motivated charges that he had been part of a secessionist movement. The radio station had allowed airtime for such inconvenient issues as maternal mortality, human trafficking, labor rights, environmental protection and the need for an independent judiciary.

Hun Sen had publicly called for Mam Sonando’s arrest on June 26. He was held on July 15, two days after Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton left the country after attending an Asean regional forum.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Cambodia, Surya P. Subedi, in July recommended reform [pdf] of the country’s electoral system. Among his 18 recommendations was the key demand for the reform of the National Election Committee to make it a neutral body. This has been rejected by the Cambodian government.

Hun Sen is counting on donors continuing to turn a blind eye to the fact that the election committee is dominated by members of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party, and is even situated inside the Interior Ministry.

The minimum requirement for proper elections next year is that the National Election Committee be reformed. Letting it operate in its current form would allow voter-registration fraud on a massive scale. This means that election results are a foregone conclusion.

Meanwhile, as leader of the opposition, I remain abroad in forced exile to avoid a 12-year jail sentence on politically motivated charges. The Cambodian National Rescue Party — the united democratic opposition that I lead — won’t validate such a bogus exercise next year by taking part.

There must be meaningful reform in advance or Cambodia will go the way of Belarus, reduced to international isolation after an opposition boycott led to a one-horse race in which the dictator Alexander Lukashenko was the only candidate.

This year, the Cambodian political landscape saw what could prove to be its biggest change since the extinction of the Khmer Rouge in 1998. The Human Rights Party, led by Kem Sokha, agreed to merge with the Sam Rainsy Party to create a united democratic opposition. We believe that together we have enough support to win a free and fair election. We aim to carry out a New Deal for Cambodia. Prohibition of land theft will be at the core of our program. Our government will cancel all land, forest and mining concessions granted by Hun Sen that were associated with the eviction of legitimate landowners. Local communities will be given rights to decide how land, forest and fishing zones are managed.

We will seek to rid the civil service of the corruption that cripples it and turn it into a meritocracy associated with a sense of public service. We will introduce a health service that gives Cambodians access to basic care.

Our government will make it illegal for any organization, including political parties, to get new members through coercion. We will reform the National Election Committee to make it independent and introduce an age limit for prime ministers to avert the specter of Hun Sen, or anyone else, ruling the country for life.

Hun Sen has been power for even longer than Mr. Lukashenko. He is the only Cold War communist leader to survive in power today. During the Cold War, states in Eastern Europe and Asia fell to communism like dominoes. But a domino can fall in either direction. The free world must seize the opportunity presented by Cambodia’s elections. Forcing Hun Sen to play by democratic rules would not only empower the Cambodian people to determine their own future, it would also give an impetus to democracy and human rights in countries such as Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and North Korea.

Hun Sen responded to the recommendations from Mr. Subedi, a Nepalese professor of law, by telling him to go away and worry about his own country. He used similar language in 2006 and 2007 in response to criticism from the previous U.N. envoy to Cambodia, the Kenyan constitutional lawyer Yash Ghai. If everyone did that then the United Nations wouldn’t exist and neither would international law.

If Hun Sen won’t engage with the international community and the Asean summit isn’t moved, President Obama, the leader of the world’s standard-bearer of democracy, should take Hun Sen at his word and stay away.

Sam Rainsy is an exiled member of the Cambodian Parliament.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Here we go again :) After knowing that his letters to the top 3 leaders of the CPP and the current king Sihamoni couldn't help him to enter to Cambodia, a convicted criminal Sam Rainsy has no choice but to return back to square one is attacking the government as his usual business.

Sam Rainsy obviously always talks and rely on the USA but when President Obama will attend the summit in Cambodia in mid November 2012, why can't he comes with Mr. Obama or Mr. Obama can carry his hand return to Cambodia?

Although the Parliament had deleted his name as MP but this convicted criminal is still put himself as Cambodian MP. Sam Rainsy shall announce to the public that he has no chance to take part in next year election and his political career is done and dushed. Please enjoy life after politics.

Pi Anh.

Anonymous said...

Uncle Ho Chi Minh said " President Obama will visting Cambodia as his schedule"

Will you out there bet with Uncle Ho Chi Minh? because Uncle Ho Chi Minh knows America policies very well.

Stop dreamming about Arab Spring will occur in Cambodia because Khmer people have learn enough bullshit lessons through many generation.

Come and drink cold beers and sing karaoke long song dedicated with uncle Ho.

Anonymous said...

Pi Anh @1:55 PM and 2:09 PM need to married to each other. Then you both should enjoy the cold beers with your evil warmonger Ho in the grave.

You both will have a monster baby Ho!!!

Happy Halloween!!!

Anonymous said...

vietnam is a barbaric country.

This is how it treats it neighbor.

Anonymous said...

Khmer Youth = Secret illegal Yuon/Vietnamese Residents hiding in Communist CPP regime = Cold beers + Karaoke
Khmer Kids = Secret illegal Yuon/Vietnamese Residents hiding in Communist CPP regime = Cold beers + Karaoke
Khmer policemen = Secret illegal Yuon/Vietnamese Residents hiding in Communist CPP regime = Cold beers + Karaoke
Khmer soldeirs = Secret illegal Yuon/Vietnamese Residents hiding in Communist CPP regime = Cold beers + Karaoke
Khmer teachers = Secret illegal Yuon/Vietnamese Residents hiding in Communist CPP regime = Cold beers + Karaoke
Khmer doctors = Secret illegal Yuon/Vietnamese Residents hiding in Communist CPP regime = Cold beers + Karaoke

Cold beers + Karaoke = Dirty and Secret Party plans and tricks of Secret illegal Yuon/Vietnamese Residents hiding in Communist CPP regime, not allowing to have No Arab Spring, Lotus revolution!because the khmers (Secret illegal Yuon/Vietnamese Residents hiding in Communist CPP regime) are happy with cold beers and karaoke already because they stole the land, property, natural resources from Cambodian.

Anonymous said...

this is a terribly written piece. I can't believe it. Come on... even I could argue and organize the ideas better this. this op-ed is rendered boring, all-over-the-place, ineffective piece.

Anonymous said...

"Spreading the wealth..." Obama said.
This guy is Communist and how is he going to do something to his comrade?
in the US, the law does not allow to have Communist Party, thats' why those Communist joined the Democrat.

Anonymous said...

I am so happy to see this piece of valuable article. At last we told the US to stop supporting the Tyrants to murder the people.

Thanks to the author of this article.

Anonymous said...

5:48 PM
Don't blame the land, blame the people who caused the troubles.

The Vietnamese are mostly barbarous people and yes they are.

Anonymous said...

Ki-Media,

Would you please delete the nonsense comments coming from Yuon/Vietnamese blogger. Why should readers and internet bloggers read fake stories from hypocrite Vietnamese bloggers.

Again and again, we need to focus on the interests of Khmer people and nation.

We need Khmer readers and bloggers including the bloggers around the world to understand the read situation about Cambodia caused by illegal Yuon residents in Cambodia and need to know the real problems caused by Vietnamese folks in Cambodia.

Should Khmer bloggers and foreign bloggers read and believe the hypocrite Vietnamese bloggers who posted the comments on Ki-Media.

Vietnamese bloggers invade Ki-Media here by posting the nonsense comments. That does not make sense to educate Khmer bloggers to learn and be aware when the bad Vietnamese bloggers interfere with.

Ki-Media should understand that there are the discussion, debate and argument to help Khmer and foreign bloggers to learn about Cambodia situation happening everyday. We want Khmer bloggers and foreign bloggers to understand what have been going on in Cambodia and to Khmer people.

Why are the Vietnamese bloggers here on Ki-Media to confuse the readers and bloggers? They tried to mislead or misinform the readers and bloggers about Cambodia. How stupid is that?

Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Pi Anh @ 1:55PM,

1. Sam Rainsy was never convicted of a crime. He is however, was convicted of absentia. Which mean he is not a convict. Unless, you apply him to your Cambodian law which is guilty until proven, then you are absolutely correct.
You wrote:
"Sam Rainsy obviously always talks and rely on the USA but when President Obama will attend the summit in Cambodia in mid November 2012, why can't he comes with Mr. Obama or Mr. Obama can carry his hand return to Cambodia?"

Again, your above question is too ignorant for me to even comprehend.
1. The Pres of the US does not hold hands.
2. SR can not board Air Force 1 with Pres Obama. <---Not possible.

Get your shit together, you embarrassing me!