Transcript of SRP Mu Sochua's testimony at the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission Hearing

TOM LANTOS HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION HEARING TESTIMONY

“CAMBODIAN DEMOCRACY IN FREE FALL”

BY
Mu Sochua, Member of Parliament, Cambodia
10 September, 2009
(Full version)

DISTINGUISHED MEMBERS OF THE U.S. CONGRESS,

I wish to express my most sincere gratitude to Congressman James Moran for calling on the attention of the U.S. Congress on the deteriorating situation on human rights in Cambodia in the past year. I wish to extend my most sincere appreciation to Congressman John McGovern and Congressman John Wolf, Co-Chairs of the eminent Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, a well respected institution of the House of Representatives.


DISTINGUISHED MEMBERS OF THE U.S. CONGRESS,

Here in this room, I am testifying as a woman exercising her full right of speech and expression, but in Cambodia this is not possible. In fact, as a Member of Parliament from the Sam Rainsy Party, the lead opposition party - I have been stripped of my parliamentary immunity and been given a criminal conviction for openly criticizing Prime Minister Hun Sen. Furthermore, I was denied any legal representation because my lawyer was intimidated, threatened with disbarment, and pressured into withdrawing from my case. My situation is not unique.

I am one of the thousands of innocent journalists, trade union leaders, teachers and villagers who are tried by a judicial system that is well known for corruption, for incompetence and for acting under the control of the government and those who have political influence and money. Even Kampuchea Krom monks who have voiced their critics against the mistreatment of Khmer monks in Kampuchea Krom have been disrobed and mysteriously been killed or wrongly accused. As the direct result of widespread corruption in the Courts, Cambodian families find themselves in debt as bribes must be paid to court officials and to judges just to have access to justice or to be free from legal persecution.

The Cambodian Constitution, the Law on the Status of Parliamentarians and the Internal Rules of the Parliament clearly stipulate the special roles and functions to be performed by Members of Parliament in a democratic process. The specific definition of parliamentary immunity in the laws provide each and every MP a special status, protection and safety in order to provide us, representatives of the people and law-makers the ability to serve the people and the nation without fear of retribution. These laws and rules enable us to debate openly and freely in dialogues that enhance transparency, rule of law and protection of the rights of our citizens. However, the unconstitutional lifting of my immunity and the immunity of my colleagues Mr. Ho Van on 22 July, 2009 and the lifting of two other MPs including the leader of opposition in 2004, totally violate any rules and any laws. Members of Parliament from the opposition are threatened, verbally abused and intimidated by the Prime Minister, by MPs from the ruling party and by the Speaker of the House. Our movements and activities with our constituents are closely monitored by the local authorities who report directly to their superiors and to the ruling party. Citizens who are victims of land grabbing, corruption and abuse by local authorities and seeking assistance from opposition MPs are directly threatened and labelled as opposition activists and are closely monitored or accused as inciters and arrested without arrest warrants. The lack of transparency in the allocations of economic concessions, of mineral and petroleum and the prevention of the people to defend the country’s natural resources are not good sign for sustainable development. All these facts and the Cambodian Government’s current use of the justice system to silence its critics, is a clear sign that democracy is in free fall. The Cambodian Government pays little or no attention to the opinion of the world community and the Prime Minister warns donors from interfering into the internal affairs of Cambodia.

By winning 90 out of the 123 seats in the National Assembly at the July 2008 election that was denounced by local and international observers as flawed and falling short of international standards, the ruling party not only won the required majority to form a new government but also gained the full 2/3 of the seats required to amend the Constitution. Flawed elections, the misinterpretation of the Constitution to further accommodate the party in power and the practice of winner-takes-all have turned the legislature into a mere rubber stamp and the opposition as a force to be crushed. Currently the 9 Parliamentary Commissions are entirely chaired by MPs from the ruling party, even taking over positions as vice-chairs and members. All attempts from The Minority to have a fairer share of power in Parliament have failed.

The Sam Rainsy Party and the Human Rights Party won 26 seats and 3 seats respectively in the 2008 election, totaling 1,700.000 voters or close to 21% of the electorate. We see an immediate necessity for reforms of the Parliament in order to put into practice democratic principles. We are committed to making the Legislative Branch in Cambodia, a state institution that tolerates diversity in views and opinions and a state institution that can serve as checks and balances to protect the rights of the people and the interests of the nation.

We are committed to the principles of the 1991 Paris Peace Accords that promises the people of Cambodia liberal democracy, protection of human rights and a government that comes as a result of free and fair elections. We see ourselves as key players in the realization of democracy, rule of law and respect for human rights.

The reforms we propose cover two main areas:

The Parliament:

1. The roles and functions of The Minority must be upheld with guaranty of legal and financial independence;
2. A system of checks and balances must be established with The Minority leader or an appointee holding one of the two vice-presidency positions in Parliament;
3. The sharing of power and the system of checks and balances can be further ensured with The Minority proportional share of the Chairmanship and vice-chairmanship of the 9 Commissions in Parliament, in particular the chairmanship of : (1)Finance Commission, (2) Foreign Affairs Commission, (3) Human Rights Commission;
4. The President of the Parliament must guarantee the full protection of the rights of all representatives, uphold the honor and efficiency of the Parliament, facilitate proposals for adoption of legislation and amendments to legislation with no political threats and intimidation and protect the full rights of The Minority.

Preparations for Free and Fair Elections

Unless immediate steps towards reforms in the electoral process are undertaken for the upcoming local and parliamentary elections to be held respectively in 2012 and 2013, millions Cambodians will be denied of their rights to vote and the playing field will remain in the hands of the ruling party that has total control of the National Electoral Committee(NEC), the state’s resources, the media and the judicial system.

Recommendations of the European Commission on the July 2008 Elections in Cambodia must be taken into consideration to restore minimum international standards for free and fair elections.

The key EU recommendations include:

1. The NEC must function as an independent and credible institution to restore confidence of voters;
2. Identification cards that can be used as voter’s ID must be issued to all eligible voters;
3. A special and impartial electoral dispute court must be established to resolve all election disputes;
4. Voter registration process should be simplified and the registration period should be on-going and not limited to six weeks per year;
5. Local authorities including village chiefs should not have any major part in the electoral process to avoid political intimidation and manipulation of the electoral process;
6. Prevent and end all political violence with police and security forces that are impartial and non-partisan in fulfilling their duties;
7. A free media accessible with balanced coverage to all political parties with strict rules against miss-use of state-owned media for the benefit of the party in power;
8. An increased budget for Voice of America and Radio Free Asia to expand to television programs to provide balanced information to voters.

DISTINGUISHED MEMBERS OF THE U.S. CONGRESS,

We as witnesses from Cambodia are here today because we see that democracy in Cambodia is experiencing an alarming freefall, and because we can no longer tolerate a life threatened by fear of being arrested and prosecuted because of our views and opinions. We bring you the high hope of our people who wish to be ruled by law and not by the power of corrupt officials.

For this reason we call on the U.S. Congress to send a high level delegation to Cambodia:

1. To help negotiate dialogues between the President of the National Assembly and the Minority Leader and their representatives in order to discuss rules that will bring democratic practices to the functioning of the Cambodian Parliament.
2. To stop the practice of lifting of parliamentary immunity as a form of political persecution.
3. We call on the U.S. Government to increase its funding for the National Democratic Institute and the International Republican Institute to immediately work with the UNDP in democratizing the electoral process for the upcoming local elections in 2012 and the parliamentary elections in 2013.
4. We specifically request an increase of budget for Voice of America and Radio Free Asia to expand its programming to include televised programs that will bring balanced information to the people of Cambodia.
5. We call on the U.S. government to impose visa sanctions on high-ranking officials in the Cambodian government and their immediate family members, suspected of corruption, of involvement in land grabbing and deforestation, and to investigate their investments and bank accounts in the U.S. These investigations should be made public.
6. Any aid to the Cambodian Ministry of Defense should be tied to the freeze on the granting of further mineral or petroleum concessions until the government has established a basic legal, environmental and social framework to adequately govern the oil, gas and mining sectors.

DISTINGUISHED MEMBERS OF THE U.S. CONGRESS,

As a representative of the people, I respectfully urge you to intervene in the following cases:

1. The release from prison and the dropping of charges against journalists, officials of the Sam Rainsy Party, villagers and trade union leaders; and
2. The restoration of parliamentary immunity of opposition MPs.

As for my own criminal case, I have filed an appeal against the decision of the Court as I continue to pursue justice. Without any doubt the guilty verdict will stand. I am not willing to accept guilt for a crime I have not committed. This will lead to a prison sentence and the automatic loss of my seat in parliament, without intervention from donors who are assisting Cambodia.

DISTINGUISHED MEMBERS OF THE U.S. CONGRESS,

People the world over have heard America’s message about the importance of democracy, the need for free and fair elections, and the respect for freedom of speech, freedom of expression and the rule of law. Like President Obama and the rest of the world and the rest of the American people, we in Cambodia share the same vision and recognize the need for responsible leadership and a true commitment to global protection of human rights.

We commend Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for her remarkable commitment to make governments and the UN responsible for and invest in the protection, promotion and respect for women’s rights as human rights. We support U.S. Foreign policy that puts human rights first.

I thank you for your attention.