By MICHAEL KELLY
Fujimi, Saitama
Reader Letter to The Japan Times
In his Dec. 4 article, "Rolling back a dictatorship," Kiroku Hanai is correct to call attention to increasing threats to democracy and human rights under the current Cambodian government. Of course, Japan should continue to give as much foreign aid as possible to assist the Cambodian people in their efforts to rise up from poverty. But this financial assistance should be given wisely, and Prime Minister Hun Sen should be taken to task when it comes to human rights and democracy issues. If appropriate measures are not taken now, it may soon be too late.
What Hanai fails to mention is the billons of dollars worth of oil reserves that Cambodia will likely benefit from over the next 20 years. As a cash-poor government dependent upon foreign aid, the leaders of Cambodia have already shown a disregard for the poverty just outside their own doorsteps. What happens when they are floating in a sea of oil money? Is it likely that a sudden influx of cash will make the government less corrupt and more compassionate? I think not.
With national elections due in 2008, now is the time to push hard for real reform in the Cambodian government. We have failed the Cambodian people in the past. Let's not fail them again.
What Hanai fails to mention is the billons of dollars worth of oil reserves that Cambodia will likely benefit from over the next 20 years. As a cash-poor government dependent upon foreign aid, the leaders of Cambodia have already shown a disregard for the poverty just outside their own doorsteps. What happens when they are floating in a sea of oil money? Is it likely that a sudden influx of cash will make the government less corrupt and more compassionate? I think not.
With national elections due in 2008, now is the time to push hard for real reform in the Cambodian government. We have failed the Cambodian people in the past. Let's not fail them again.
8 comments:
I used to be very mad and very angry with Japanese government! But not anymore and thank to japanese people like KiroKu Hanai!
Cambodian people need more Japanese people like Kiroku Hanai to speak on behalf of the Japanese government!
I say enough of AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave puppet government!
Donors will fail again, anyone want to bet. White guys love drinking beers, staying in good hotels, and demontrating statistical graphic illustration workshops and SEEYA NEXT YEAR then KABOOM!!! take first class back home or stay on nice vacation. And Cambodians will continue to be poor except 10% on the top. What I heard and saw that some wives of Western Ambassies officials, especially European are being offered and taken bride(it is said gifts/comlimentary from the Royal Cambodian Government for understanding Cambodia) from Cambodian gentle-ladies for their husbands roles in turning eyes to different ways.
Chicken can't protest the human eat them because TEVADA in heaven eat chicken, too. KAM-PU-CHEA has to be PUCH-NAK-KAM.
Great job Kiroku Hanai! The world has failed Cambodian many times. They are going to fail it again. Repeatedly, they don't seem to learn from their own mistakes. The Japanese government is supporting the government that are torturing the poor which is against the will of the Japanese people.
Simply put, Ah Hun Sen and his cronies just don't CARE about Khmer. They are not Khmer and they are there to carry out the Vietnamization of Cambodia! Thank you Kiroku Hanai for taking the time to voice out.
1Hanoi-Viet-Engineered Killing Fields SURVIVOR
All donors countries knew the Hun Sen government is corruted, yet, they still gave billions of dollars to this dictator to rule Cambodia. They have wasted so much money for Cambodia, however, majority of the people are still poor. Only those whose are close or well connected to the government are rich. Can Hun Sen be wiped out like Marcos of the Philipines? or Suharto of Indonesia? The answer is not there yet. Hun Sen is damn smart. He has at least a few thousands of his personal body guards to protect him day and night. Cambodian people are afraid to protest in a large scale against the regime because they were traumatized by Khmer Rouge regime in 1970s and the Vietnamese invasion in 1980s. Without the people's power, Hun Sen will stay in power until he died.
Hun Sen is smart in protecting his power and wealth. He places his own people in key positions, so all the public institutions are practically supporting and sustaining his rule. People's power is deliberately undermined so that he can rule and control Cambodia without fear.
Cambodian people need more voices of reason, such as Kiroku Hanai and Michael Kelly, in countries that support the Hun Sen regime without conditions, such as France and Japan. There are very few diplomats in Cambodia who can make noise about the serious issues perpetrated by the Hun Sen government. Most of them just toe the CPP line or their own governments' lines. Surely, they are also busy with their own affairs but they should make sure that their people's tax monies would actually benefit the Cambodian people.
According to some old belief, Kampuchea's fate would progress through three phases within the 5000-year lifetime of Buddhism: Kam (kamar, suffering phase), Pu (up-and-down phase) and Chea (healthy or prosperous phase). Hopefully, a castrophic event or an evil design would not result in the end of this ancient civilisation before the final phase is realised.
Cambodia deparately needs court reform. The body controlling the court, Supreme Council of Magistracy must be reformed. The judge cannot discipline the judges. Please review the composition of this body.
I am not surprised anymore of HUN SEN and his associates who would care about neither Cambodia nor this poor nation's people, but I still believe that millions of Khmer do! Including our beloved friend countries and nations, which is Kiroku Hanai is included; I express my appreciation and gratitude for their continued support!
As a Khmer, I thank to the donation and assistances to Cambodia for helping people and alleviating their poverty. This assistance is likely saving-life vitamins. But, imagine if these are wrongly used, the real benefit will go to the parasites in the body, HUN SEN and his clans. If the international community keeps failing Cambodian People with the same mistake like what is happening nowadays, for what, are we tying to do?
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