CAMBODIA: Information Minister welcomes new political party
Radio Australia
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
In Cambodia, another political party has been launched to contest next year's much anticipated national polls. Social activist Kem Sokha has announced the formation of the Human Rights Party. But it's still the ruling Cambodian People's Party which is set to further consolidate its power in the 2008 vote.
Presenter/Interviewer: Linda LoPresti
Speakers: Khieu Kanharith, Cambodia's Information Minister
KANHARITH: In Cambodia, anybody can form a political party and that's why I think this new political party would add more diversity to the democratic horizon in Cambodia.
LOPRESTI: So it's a good thing.
KANHARITH: The more the better.
LOPRESTI: Ken Sokha is highly regarded, both within Cambodia and internationally. He is the head of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights. He says he's going to step down to form this party and he's also a dissident who has gained some international recognition. He says he hopes to win about 30 seats in the 123-seat parliament in the national elections next year. What do you think?
KANHARITH: When you form a political party, you expect to win some seats but it depends on your ability to conduct your campaign, your ability to gather support from the masses.
LOPRESTI: A lot of Cambodia's opposition parties, like the Sam Rainsy Party, like the Human Rights Party, many of them have one thing in common which is that they seem to be united in their calls for a greater crackdown on corruption. Even the US ambassador to Cambodia, Joseph Mussomeli has been quoted as saying that corruption is a major problem in Cambodian politics. What does the ruling party intend to do about this.
KANHARITH: You know before everyone talked about democracy, now they're talking about corruption. But the problem is not so simple. In Cambodia, the ruling party has taken a lot of measures to fight corruption that's why you have some high officials who have been demoted because you can't find any argument to win the hearts and mind of the people, it's the current catch phrase of the day.
LOPRESTI: But I would think that given you have national elections coming up next year, the ruling party would want to make it a focus of its election campaign.
KANHARITH: For the ruling party it's not just corruption. First of all what the people want is to impove their living conditions. Two, for the young people they want that the corrupt people be removed or some legal action be taken. Up to now more than 60 judges and attorneys were disciplined, so they can see that alot of steps have been taken. Sure we don't have a law against corruption. But that doesn't mean that the government stays idle. Alot of concrete measures have been taken.
LOPRESTI: But even so isn't it concerning that the US ambassador to Cambodia is publicly putting himself out there as saying that corruption is a problem. I mean I can understand that you have opposition parties which have a vested political interest but in saying so, but when you've got high international officials.
KANHARITH: It's not so simple. If you want to fight corruption you must have some law. We have already finished the draft on corruption but we must pass first the penal code. Right now the national assembly is examining the civil code already.
LOPRESTI: Just on another matter, the Khmer Rouge trials. There appear to be constant delays in getting these trials up and running. There now appears to be a conflict of interest between the international judges and the Cambodian Bar Association over money, over lawyers' fees. Government opponents have accused your party of fanning the flames of delay because of the damaging political fallout from testimonies of the Khmer Rouge leaders.
KANHARITH: First of all I can say that the Khmer Rouge trials was the Khmer's idea, Cambodian idea, this idea was proposed first in 1992.
LOPRESTI: It's now 2007.
KANHARITH: In fact in 1996 second time, and only after that, after the Khmer Rouge was dismantled in 1998 and after 2000 only then everybody tried to push ahead on this. Now you have one or two months delay and everybody blames Cambodian government. It's unfair, it's involved in that because you have this conflicting offer about the freeze between the lawyers it's already had that. For us the sooner the better.
LOPRESTI: Now during that time, during the Khmer Rouge time you were editor of the Kampuchea newspaper, and a decade later you lost that position and you were actually detained yourself in 1990. Can you tell us about that?
KANHARITH: In Cambodia, you must form a political party to run the elections, that's why some of my friends decided to set up a political party, and because some of my friends they had been arrested and because I knew them that's why.
LOPRESTI: So by association, you were arrested by association?
KANHARITH: Some conservative groups, that's why they tried to demote me and cast me aside.
LOPRESTI: And during that time that you were detained I understand you carried a copy of the book "Shogun" with you?
KANHARITH: Yes, I spent five years to translate this book.
LOPRESTI: And what is it about that book that touched you obviously, that had an impact on you?
KANHARITH: After my friend was arrested I thought that maybe it was my turn and I think that maybe I would be arrested.
LOPRESTI: So you thought you were going to be arrested as well?
KANHARITH: That's right, I think that after there might be some interrogation, long interrogation, I might be detained I don't know how many months or years, that's why I bring this book "Shogun", and after that I feel that for maybe Cambodians, they had Vietnamese, they had the Thai, because they always think that the Thai or the Vietnamese destroy the Khmer party, but they never asked the question why, that's why when I read "Shogun" I want to show that you that there might be also the other civilisations, other people who have a strong point. That's why I translate this book just to make my companions understand that when we talk about Cambodia be proud, but sometimes we only look at the past, we never look at the future. This book it's just to say that you have to try to combine the best of your side with the best of the other side.
Presenter/Interviewer: Linda LoPresti
Speakers: Khieu Kanharith, Cambodia's Information Minister
KANHARITH: In Cambodia, anybody can form a political party and that's why I think this new political party would add more diversity to the democratic horizon in Cambodia.
LOPRESTI: So it's a good thing.
KANHARITH: The more the better.
LOPRESTI: Ken Sokha is highly regarded, both within Cambodia and internationally. He is the head of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights. He says he's going to step down to form this party and he's also a dissident who has gained some international recognition. He says he hopes to win about 30 seats in the 123-seat parliament in the national elections next year. What do you think?
KANHARITH: When you form a political party, you expect to win some seats but it depends on your ability to conduct your campaign, your ability to gather support from the masses.
LOPRESTI: A lot of Cambodia's opposition parties, like the Sam Rainsy Party, like the Human Rights Party, many of them have one thing in common which is that they seem to be united in their calls for a greater crackdown on corruption. Even the US ambassador to Cambodia, Joseph Mussomeli has been quoted as saying that corruption is a major problem in Cambodian politics. What does the ruling party intend to do about this.
KANHARITH: You know before everyone talked about democracy, now they're talking about corruption. But the problem is not so simple. In Cambodia, the ruling party has taken a lot of measures to fight corruption that's why you have some high officials who have been demoted because you can't find any argument to win the hearts and mind of the people, it's the current catch phrase of the day.
LOPRESTI: But I would think that given you have national elections coming up next year, the ruling party would want to make it a focus of its election campaign.
KANHARITH: For the ruling party it's not just corruption. First of all what the people want is to impove their living conditions. Two, for the young people they want that the corrupt people be removed or some legal action be taken. Up to now more than 60 judges and attorneys were disciplined, so they can see that alot of steps have been taken. Sure we don't have a law against corruption. But that doesn't mean that the government stays idle. Alot of concrete measures have been taken.
LOPRESTI: But even so isn't it concerning that the US ambassador to Cambodia is publicly putting himself out there as saying that corruption is a problem. I mean I can understand that you have opposition parties which have a vested political interest but in saying so, but when you've got high international officials.
KANHARITH: It's not so simple. If you want to fight corruption you must have some law. We have already finished the draft on corruption but we must pass first the penal code. Right now the national assembly is examining the civil code already.
LOPRESTI: Just on another matter, the Khmer Rouge trials. There appear to be constant delays in getting these trials up and running. There now appears to be a conflict of interest between the international judges and the Cambodian Bar Association over money, over lawyers' fees. Government opponents have accused your party of fanning the flames of delay because of the damaging political fallout from testimonies of the Khmer Rouge leaders.
KANHARITH: First of all I can say that the Khmer Rouge trials was the Khmer's idea, Cambodian idea, this idea was proposed first in 1992.
LOPRESTI: It's now 2007.
KANHARITH: In fact in 1996 second time, and only after that, after the Khmer Rouge was dismantled in 1998 and after 2000 only then everybody tried to push ahead on this. Now you have one or two months delay and everybody blames Cambodian government. It's unfair, it's involved in that because you have this conflicting offer about the freeze between the lawyers it's already had that. For us the sooner the better.
LOPRESTI: Now during that time, during the Khmer Rouge time you were editor of the Kampuchea newspaper, and a decade later you lost that position and you were actually detained yourself in 1990. Can you tell us about that?
KANHARITH: In Cambodia, you must form a political party to run the elections, that's why some of my friends decided to set up a political party, and because some of my friends they had been arrested and because I knew them that's why.
LOPRESTI: So by association, you were arrested by association?
KANHARITH: Some conservative groups, that's why they tried to demote me and cast me aside.
LOPRESTI: And during that time that you were detained I understand you carried a copy of the book "Shogun" with you?
KANHARITH: Yes, I spent five years to translate this book.
LOPRESTI: And what is it about that book that touched you obviously, that had an impact on you?
KANHARITH: After my friend was arrested I thought that maybe it was my turn and I think that maybe I would be arrested.
LOPRESTI: So you thought you were going to be arrested as well?
KANHARITH: That's right, I think that after there might be some interrogation, long interrogation, I might be detained I don't know how many months or years, that's why I bring this book "Shogun", and after that I feel that for maybe Cambodians, they had Vietnamese, they had the Thai, because they always think that the Thai or the Vietnamese destroy the Khmer party, but they never asked the question why, that's why when I read "Shogun" I want to show that you that there might be also the other civilisations, other people who have a strong point. That's why I translate this book just to make my companions understand that when we talk about Cambodia be proud, but sometimes we only look at the past, we never look at the future. This book it's just to say that you have to try to combine the best of your side with the best of the other side.
15 comments:
KN: corruption in Cambodia is not actually dealt without law...don't be fool man.
Also when corruption law is adopted, Hun Sen and your corrupted activities will never respect the law.
As present Cambodian law is not really respected by CPP's officials.
CPP is very smart party, they buy everything, they win everything, they exploit everything. Now after they win over Kem Sokha then they will use Kem Sokha as pupet party.
No doubt that Kem Sokha was bought by CPP. Let's see, Am I speak right or wrong?
Kem Sokha is not bought by CPP. Hun Sen put Kem Sokha to spy on Son San party since before 1993 in Phnom Penh because Son San was a second strongest opposition in the border after Khmer Rouge. Kem Sokha became secrerary general for this party after 1993, then he and CPP destroyed this party and killed most of the senior party general army secretly in Pailin's battle field.
Now that Sam Rainsy become too strong and Hun Sen could not send his spy Heng Pov to join Sam Rainsy to spy on, then he use his big canon who is Kem Sokha that he prepare a long time ago with IRI. And I bet IRI didn't know a bit about this.
Leo
AND YOU KNOW EVERY THING!
KANHARITH: The more the WORRIER for CPP(Communist Pro youn Party).
CPP Party think that the more Party is the more beter for CPP party to win, they know there are only 49% who support them. I think if the Opposition Party did not reunited Party I think they are Crazy...Come on "It's Time To Change The New Leader." Prohok Khmer From Mass USA.
If we move the same way as 1993, Cambodia will get deeper in Vietnamese shit!
Stay with Democracy, do not " Roum Chea Tlong Mouy Chis kor Reas"
Pluralistic opposition parties are
what the EU wanted in Cambodia, and
we must give it to them if we want
their (EU) support.
Leo is right. Son, Sam and Kem walked into a bar that Hun own. They all ordered drinks, but Son and Kem didn't to pay for the drinks so Hun kicked them out. Sam on the other hand tried to reason with Hun. Sam didn't drink so he shouldn't have to pay for anything. You finsih the story,
.....
One can not help but note Mr. Kanarith's referal to to the term "simplicity" and his association of this term to other political parties. Here, he seems to imply that the opposition parties are issue oriented, while disregarding the more complex issues of national developments.
Admirable... implication, yet one must applaude those opposition parties for recognizing the essence of moving Cambodia forward. These opposition parties seem to recognized one aspect about a society well beings. They recognized that a long lasting peace cannot be achieved when there is no justice...
Equally, these smaller parties seem to understand that justice may not come to Cambodia as long as there is corruption and the continue lack of transparency within our government and among our officials.
As Mr. Kanaharith has indicated dealing with the issue of corruption is not that simple, yet it should also be obvious to our government that a large number of our people in the provinces, especially those who lost their land, are finding life in Cambodia very hard and border on unbearable.
How can a man face his wife and children and still call himself a man, when he can't even make 5000 Riel in a day work...?
How can an honest man call himself a man, when he can't even buy a sarong for his teenage daughter.. ?
How about a currency reform in Cambodia?
The majority of our people in the provinces carry Riels and these riels are exchange for basic food stuff....
Yet prices of this food stuff are set using the dollar or bath as standard.
There is no justice in Cambodia?
Why don't you come over and test
it out yourself?
I believe in action speak louder than word!!!!
I want to see Kem Sokha in action!!
If AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave want to use Kem Sokha then Kem sokha can use AH HUN SEN too!!!!But at what cost??? If it cost Cambodian people too much, then Kem Sokha better think twice because politic is very unforgivable and you can do politic only one time and that is it!!!!
I really don't understand why does Kem Sokha love the Human Right Party name so much?
Because he use this name to persuade the people who used to listen to his human right public forum or he use this name to destroy some other Human Rights NGO in Cambodia?
Why? Who else can clear this?
From AMATAK
Well, my guess is the US will be
funding Sokha's party secretly.
I certainly got connection from the
former job. I don't think he have
the background needed to steal
supporters from the SRP nor NRP.
correction:
Well, my guess is the US will be
funding Sokha's party secretly.
HE certainly got connection from
the former job. I don't think he
have the background needed to
steal supporters from the SRP nor
NRP.
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