Phnom Penh
12 February 2008
Recent defections from the Sam Rainsy Party and others to the ruling party could hurt the opposition in upcoming elections, observers say, and that could hurt Cambodia’s democratic checks and balances.
The Sam Rainsy Party has said that several defections in recent weeks cleared the way for younger activists, but the switches have also strengthened the ruling party’s chances in July’s elections, several analysts said in recent interviews.
At least four opposition parliamentarians have left the Sam Rainsy Party after nearly a decade of party loyalty. Meanwhile at least 10 Funcinpec lawmakers have changed their party stripes, including two secretaries of state and an undersecretary.
The movement of lawmakers into one powerful party is a concern for the balance of Cambodia’s democratic system, said Koul Panha, executive director of the Committee for Free and Fair Elections.
“We are very worried that one powerful political party has so much power, and can control the parliament, government, authorities and all state management,” Koul Panha said. “If the opposition party is getting weaker, it could make democracy in Cambodia weaker.”
But both the SRP and Funcinpec have seen internal struggles in recent months, with some party members disillusioned with leadership.
Sok Pheng, a former opposition lawmaker from Kampong Thom who moved to the CPP on Saturday, said he now admired the ruling party.
“I had been a steering committee member [for the SRP] since 1995, but now I cannot find any leader to lead the party forward,” he said. “The Sam Rainsy Party now doesn’t have a good leader to lead the country, and the internal process is not good.”
The CPP, meanwhile, was developing the country, he said.
Other lawmakers who have changed to the ruling party include Ahmad Yahya, a Muslim leader from Kampong Cham, and Ngor Sovann, from Kandal.
Some lawmakers have sought to move out of their parliamentary seats and into administrative provincial positions.
Others, like Chit Sarith, a former head of the land dispute authority for the SRP, have simply resigned.
Eng Chai Eang, SRP secretary-general, who has faced criticism from some defectors, told VOA Khmer the party is not facing an internal crisis.
“This is not related to the Sam Rainsy leadership,” he said. “However, a couple opposition party members who are looking for good positions or benefits in the government and defected to the CPP won’t make the Sam Rainsy Party have a crisis.”
Funcipec leaders declined to comment on the shifting allegiances, saying only that Cambodia’s political landscape is rapidly changing.
The CPP is demonstrating increased power to pull members into its fold, said Thun Saray, director of the rights group Adhoc and a longtime Cambodia political observer.
“Some opposition parties thought that it wouldn’t affect their parties so much,” he said. “But the defections of some Funcinpec members into the CPP could.”
People who once supported Funcinpec could worry over the future of the party, he said.
The Sam Rainsy Party increased from 15 parliamentary seats in 1998 to 24 seats in 2003, while Funcinpec fell from 43 seats to 26 in the same period. The CPP has 73 of the National Assembly’s 123 seats.
Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said party affiliation was a personal choice.
“When we have more defectors to our party, then we have less people who always curse us,” he added. “We welcome anyone who participates with us.”
Observers say the CPP has enjoyed popularity of about 60 percent of the population, while Funcinpec’s popularity in the commune elections halved, thanks to a fracturing of members over the sacking of the party’s former president, Prince Norodom Ranariddh.
Recent defections and the perception of internal conflict could especially hurt the non-ruling parties, observers say, especially if the smaller parties do not align with each other as the election approaches.
The Sam Rainsy Party has said that several defections in recent weeks cleared the way for younger activists, but the switches have also strengthened the ruling party’s chances in July’s elections, several analysts said in recent interviews.
At least four opposition parliamentarians have left the Sam Rainsy Party after nearly a decade of party loyalty. Meanwhile at least 10 Funcinpec lawmakers have changed their party stripes, including two secretaries of state and an undersecretary.
The movement of lawmakers into one powerful party is a concern for the balance of Cambodia’s democratic system, said Koul Panha, executive director of the Committee for Free and Fair Elections.
“We are very worried that one powerful political party has so much power, and can control the parliament, government, authorities and all state management,” Koul Panha said. “If the opposition party is getting weaker, it could make democracy in Cambodia weaker.”
But both the SRP and Funcinpec have seen internal struggles in recent months, with some party members disillusioned with leadership.
Sok Pheng, a former opposition lawmaker from Kampong Thom who moved to the CPP on Saturday, said he now admired the ruling party.
“I had been a steering committee member [for the SRP] since 1995, but now I cannot find any leader to lead the party forward,” he said. “The Sam Rainsy Party now doesn’t have a good leader to lead the country, and the internal process is not good.”
The CPP, meanwhile, was developing the country, he said.
Other lawmakers who have changed to the ruling party include Ahmad Yahya, a Muslim leader from Kampong Cham, and Ngor Sovann, from Kandal.
Some lawmakers have sought to move out of their parliamentary seats and into administrative provincial positions.
Others, like Chit Sarith, a former head of the land dispute authority for the SRP, have simply resigned.
Eng Chai Eang, SRP secretary-general, who has faced criticism from some defectors, told VOA Khmer the party is not facing an internal crisis.
“This is not related to the Sam Rainsy leadership,” he said. “However, a couple opposition party members who are looking for good positions or benefits in the government and defected to the CPP won’t make the Sam Rainsy Party have a crisis.”
Funcipec leaders declined to comment on the shifting allegiances, saying only that Cambodia’s political landscape is rapidly changing.
The CPP is demonstrating increased power to pull members into its fold, said Thun Saray, director of the rights group Adhoc and a longtime Cambodia political observer.
“Some opposition parties thought that it wouldn’t affect their parties so much,” he said. “But the defections of some Funcinpec members into the CPP could.”
People who once supported Funcinpec could worry over the future of the party, he said.
The Sam Rainsy Party increased from 15 parliamentary seats in 1998 to 24 seats in 2003, while Funcinpec fell from 43 seats to 26 in the same period. The CPP has 73 of the National Assembly’s 123 seats.
Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said party affiliation was a personal choice.
“When we have more defectors to our party, then we have less people who always curse us,” he added. “We welcome anyone who participates with us.”
Observers say the CPP has enjoyed popularity of about 60 percent of the population, while Funcinpec’s popularity in the commune elections halved, thanks to a fracturing of members over the sacking of the party’s former president, Prince Norodom Ranariddh.
Recent defections and the perception of internal conflict could especially hurt the non-ruling parties, observers say, especially if the smaller parties do not align with each other as the election approaches.
13 comments:
I blame all the Sam Rainsy defectors! Why do they choose to defect only when election is near? I can't believe that some of these defectors claimed that CPP has good leadership and bring economic development to Cambodia!
I like to see the families of the Sam Rainsy defectors get evicted from their land and their fucken houses get burn down too and how would these defectors feel if AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave committed such crime on their dirt poor friends, neighbors, and relatives in the name of economic development?
Let these Sam Rainsy defectors go check out the over the hill to see the green grass for themselves and what they see and hope for doesn't have much to offer anyway because the whole Cambodia is like a giant prison controlled by the CPP and the only way out is to break the CPP political machinery! Once you in the CPP and you will be on AH HUN SEN payroll and you will work for the benefit for the AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave puppet government and you can’t quit if you want to and your name will be used to cover up all the crimes and the scapegoats for the powerful CPP officials! The only way out is to commit suicide!
SRP can go alone and continue to do good a job to win the CPP population over and the SRP doesn't need to do anything to please the CPP top leadership!
So the CPP leaders want to be the opposition and let them and this time they won't have the police and the military to back them up!
Jayo!Jayo!Jayo! Srp
This is all about One-eye Viper formely known as Hun Sen.
Sam Rainsy Party members defect because of Lok Eng Chhai Eang. He is a CPP spy. He is succeeding in destroying the SRP.
a duck is still a duck, a dog is still a dog. Stop claiming that you are working for cambodia. The defectors can talk about all the bad things in the SRP, they are safe to do so, since SRP is democratic in principle and practice.
When and if they walk out from the CPP and do the same thing, they'll be sent to six feet under ground. I doubt they would do this since the reasons for the defection were power and money. They'll be just a yes yes people, no liberty to express ideas or afraid to. A zombie.
It is kind of strange don't you think when the Sam Rainsy defectors start to blame Eng Chay Eang for everything when they chose to join the CPP and why not join the Human Right Party or the FUNCINPEC? Ahahhahhaha
Hey! Money talk baby and the CPP have the fucken money and the positions! It seems that CPP have more money in moving their officials around without offending them than the Sam Rainsy Party!
I believe in any political positions and it must be moved around or rotated so that politicians don’t feel entrenched in their position for too long which can lead to corruption and ownership! Please remember that these politicians are there to serve Cambodian people and they are not there to make themselves rich!
It is kind of sad that AH HUN SEN created such political environment in such a way so that the only way to do serious businesses in Cambodia is to be top politician because it can protect one economic interest and that is why most Cambodian politicians are very wealthy!
SRP IS VERY WEAK AT TOP LEVEL. I THINK IT IS GOOD THAT THESE BETRAYED MEMBERS LEFT THE PARTY NOW RATHER THAN LATER.
WINING ELECTION IS NOT FROM THESE KIDS, IT IS FROM MILLION OF PEOPLE. SO, NOT TO WORRY.
Perhaps those defectors are more opportunists and seekers of public office than politicians (or for that matter, democrats). And Samdech Hun Sen is very generous to create more of such public offices for them at no cost to him or his party at all when all public offices paid for by the nation.
I'm not so sure whether many holders of public office can earn a decent living outside the public sector.
There is a danger for the nation when the state becomes the single employer which can give employment and a living. Such a state then becomes totalitarian similar to Democratic Kampcuhea or Nazi Germany.
We are not there yet thanks to the existence of the non-ruling parties, a thriving civil society and Cambodia's international human rights obligations under the Paris Peace Agreements.
LAO Mong Hay, Hong Kong
No public sector would hire these Sam Rainsy defectors because they don't have specialized technical skill.
It is called "blind democracy" as a leader is blind.
Why blind democracy, because:
1. National media is owned by one ruling party.
2. National budget can be used for ruling party's political activities
3. Government positions can be used to lure or destroy other parties' members.
4. Every national achievement is not owned by the peoples, but by Hun Sen and his clans.
5. National property, taxes and land are exploited by high rank officers.
When we are seeing this, how we can tolerate to call him "blind".
His political activities are for power, not for the peoples. But some peoples are blind like him too because they are praising him.
No kidding,
No lying yourself,
No pretending,
Khmer nation needs you.
You ask yourself "don't ask nation to do something for you, but ask yourself what can you do for your nation?".
KY
My words to those who left SRP to join CPP : You are not different from chke be teu si kom uot kluon eng - a dog turned to eat it's vomit.
You are lending your hands to yuon to destroy your people, your country and yourselves. You made our people disappointed. You have let me and my people down. I won't wish you good luck but curse you with great destruction fall upon you.
At the same time on behalf of Khmer people my people I would like to make my solemnly appeal to SRP, please fix your internal problem immediately.
For the sake of our Khmer country not for any individual.
Don't just judge people if you don't really know what is going on between them and SRP.
You are NOT in their shoes.
Those of you who bitch about this may be worst than them now if you're in their position!
Kom ban tah mourt!!! chke del ban ter brous!!! if you're so good, why don't you go and do it yourself in cambodia, if you really want to help khmer. i know some of you who bitch about this are living oversea, you don't even brave enough to be in cambodia and do like the former SRP people who just left SRP did before. So just shut the hell up, coward!!!
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