Cambodia's PM says lessons on fiscal matters unnecessary

Cambodia Prime Minister Hun Sen liken lessons on managing unearned revenues to lessons on cooking a fish that was still in the water.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Robert Carmichael, Phnom Penh
ABC Radio Australia

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has told a conference on good mining practices the country does not need any more lessons on how to manage expected revenues from mining industries.

That comes ahead of a donor meeting next week where foreign nations will gather to decide how much to give the country for its budget.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen was in combative form when he said foreign organisations must stop giving lessons on fiscal transparency in the extractive industries sector.

That comes after criticisms that millions of dollars paid in signing fees by French oil major Total and Australian mining house BHP Billiton failed to appear in the budget.

Hun Sen told the two-day mining conference that advising Cambodia how to manage unearned revenues was like telling someone how to cook a fish that was still in the water.

The prime minister also rounded on Global Witness, a long-time critic of the government's track record on management of state assets.

He described the British-based NGO as a group of thieves that was in league with foreign organisations, and was trying to bring hard times to the Cambodian people.

In recent years foreign firms have signed dozens of exploration deals covering oil, gas, gold and bauxite.

Critics say revenues fail to reach the budget.

The government says the signing fees went to a social fund. It is that budget which donors will talk about next week, when they gather for the annual donor conference.

Last year donor nations provided almost half of Cambodia's two billion dollar budget.

Global Witness said last month that ordinary Cambodians and donor nation taxpayers have the right to know what happens to revenues paid to Phnom Penh.