WB, IMF: Only Hun Sen Can Bring About Early Passage of Anti-Corruption Law

17 Feb 07 - 18 Feb 07
By Den Surin
Moneakseka Khmer
Translated from Khmer and posted online

The international financial institutions came one after another to Cambodia to meet with Hun Sen, head of the "package" Government. World Bank (WB) Vice President Jim Adams came to Cambodia and met with Hun Sen on 14 February while Jeremy Carter, special envoy of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), came to Cambodia and met with Hun Sen on 15 February.

The representatives of these two world financial bodies who visited Cambodia brought with them good news to the Cambodian Government. For instance, WB Vice President Jim Adams told Hun Sen that his bank had decided to refinance the Government's three problematic projects worth $71 million. As for Jeremy Carter of the IMF, he came to Cambodia to inform Hun Sen that IMF had decided to cancel a debt of $82 million Cambodia owed it while the remaining debt would be diverted to Cambodia's construction efforts instead.

Therefore, the presence in Cambodia of the two top officials of the world's monetary institutions has brought nothing but good news for Hun Sen. At the same time, however, they have also expressed disappointment that the Government's reforms have not progressed at the promised speed.

A source close to the meetings said that the representatives of both the WB and the IMF expressed concern over the tardiness in the passage of the Land-Use Control and the Anti-Corruption Law. In land administration, although Cambodia already has its Land Law, the grabbing of the people's lands continues to take place, particularly the grabbing of the ancestral lands of the ethnic minority people. The Government has promised to the aid donors, as well as declared by itself that it would reduce or eliminate poverty. However, if land grabbing continues to take place while the Anti-Corruption Law does not make any progress or could not get out of the Council of Ministers, how can poverty be eliminated?

In Cambodia, nearly 85 percent of the population engages in agriculture. But, if the people have no lands to cultivate because the rich and the powerful have grabbed them, how can the Government reduce poverty? Developing a country is not different from that; if a country is plagued with pervasive corruption and does not have an Anti-corruption Law to punish the corrupt officials, how can it achieve development?
A source at Tuol Krasang [Hun Sen's residence] said that during the meeting between Hun Sen and Jeremy Carter on 15 February, the latter told Hun Sen that besides canceling the debts Cambodia owed IMF this world monetary organization would help Cambodia progress toward a sustainable development.

At the same time, however, Jeremy Carter also reminded Hun Sen to push for an early passage of the Anti-Corruption Law because in order to develop a country and make it advance quickly, one needs to eliminate corruption.

Jeremy Carter told Hun Sen that the international community strives to help Cambodia but it also needs cooperation from the Government of Cambodia. In this context, Jeremy Carter wanted to stress that if the Government of Cambodia wants to see its country develop into an advanced nation it must also make its own efforts, like in the proverb: Help thyself and God will help thee.

Likewise, Cambodia now is afflicted with widespread corruption. How can the international community help it achieve development if foreign aid is like steroid injections to the muscles of the corrupt officials? For this reason, Jeremy Carter asked Hun Sen to push for an early passage of the Anti-Corruption Law, because in Cambodia only Hun Sen can handle this matter.