The oppositions have fallen into Hun Sen’s trap

Op-Ed by Khmerization
4th June, 2011

Waiting to capitalize on each other’s downfall has shown and reinforced the belief that fighting and divisions, not unity, is what the Cambodian oppositions know and can do best.

I am not here to lecture Mr. Sam Rainsy and Mr. Kem Sokha on how to run their parties or on how to conduct their political life, but just to offer my sincere opinions regarding their political fallout and personal animosity.

I have previously warned that the oppositions would kill each other off before they do it to their nemesis, the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP). I have also warned the Human Rights Party (HRP) that the Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) would retaliate against its orchestration of defections from the SRP previously. Now, after the leaking of the so-called ‘secret’ telephone conversation between HRP president Mr. Kem Sokha and Prime Minister Hun Sen, my warnings have proven correct and it has come to realization that the two parties have now come to a head on collision course and beginning to kill each other on a grand scale.

The reaction and over-reaction to the so-called ‘secret’ telephone conversation between Mr. Kem Sokha and Prime Minister Hun Sen, with widespread condemnation by internet bloggers, should serve as a warning lesson to all democrats that when it comes to the enemy’s baits they cannot readily jump into the bandwagon and starting to attack each other and capitalizing on each other’s downfall, without looking around. In fact, the SRP and the HRP have shown to the Cambodian voters that fighting each other, and not unity, is what they can do best.

It took them years to form a fragile alliance and yet it only took them just a few minutes of Mr. Hun Sen-incited phone call for them to tear each other apart, ignominiously.

Knowingly or unknowingly, the SRP and the HRP have fallen into Mr. Hun Sen’s trap. Mr. Hun Sen, by ordering the leak of the so-called ’secret’ phone conversation, has deliberately set out to trap the democratic camps and incite them to fight among themselves, which the SRP and the HRP so far did very well and Mr. Hun Sen’s strategy of ‘a divide and conquer rule’ had worked so effectively.

On this turf, the SRP has waited no time to capitalize on this issue by presenting itself as the only hope, cutting and severing ties and alliance with the HRP in phenomenal speed. The SRP’s severance of ties and alliances with the HRP is too premature and was done out of a thirst for revenge. This kind of premature actions will do nothing to benefit the democratic camps, but caused further divisions. This is what the democratic camps can do without in time of mounting pressures from the ruling CPP as they both need to present themselves as the alternatives to the CPP by reinforcing the voters’ confidence in their ability to govern, instead of their ability to divide.

Mr. Kem Sokha’s telephone conversation with Mr. Hun Sen was a normal conversation that should not warrant and attract so much attacks that have been seen so far. There was nothing sinister and no evidence that Sokha had made any promises in exchange for anything from Mr. Hun Sen, however, both had attacked the SRP and Mr. Sam Rainsy’s leadership style. This should be the only factor that should cause the SRP to sever ties and alliances with the HRP.

After the leaking of the recorded conversation, many netizens, internet citizens, had jumped into conclusion that Mr. Kem Sokha and his HRP have long been a puppet of Mr. Hun Sen and the CPP. However, since the 2008 election there is no evidence of the HRP or Kem Sokha being the puppet of Mr. Hun Sen or the ruling CPP, as compared to the Funcinpec and Norodom Ranariddh Party. From the beginning, the HRP had shown its strong stance against Mr. Hun Sen by not attending the National Assembly’s swearing in ceremony. It has consistently attacked the ruling CPP’s immigration policies, boycotted the parliamentary session to debate about the Cambodia-Lao-Vietnam border Convention and criticized CPP’s border policies, especially with Vietnam.

The Cambodian oppositions have a habit and good reputation of capitalizing on each other’s downfall, right from the downfall of Mr. Son Sann’s Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party in the mid 1990s and then the downfall of the Funcinpec Party in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Waiting to capitalize on each other’s downfall has shown and reinforced the belief that fighting and divisions, not unity, is what the Cambodian oppositions know and can do best. The oppositions, the SRP and the HRP or other parties for that matter, should come out and defend each other in time of crisis, instead of trampling on each other’s head.

So far, neither the SRP nor the HRP has shown any political maturity when it comes to dealing with one another’s downfall. They have always tried to take advantage of one another when one had fallen. The HRP has done it to the SRP and now it is time for the SRP to pay back. This sort of infighting and squabbling can only benefit Mr. Hun Sen and his CPP and Mr. Hun Sen is laughing happily now to see the HRP and SRP killing each other on his behalf.

One should not blame one single party for this political mess and disunity. One must blame both of them. First, the HRP had cunningly made a dishonest move in capitalizing on the resignation and expulsion of Mao Monivan from the SRP by orchestrating many defections of SRP’s officials to its side. It has also publicly blamed and attacked the SRP for the failures of the merger talks. It is anticipated and expected that a tit-for-tat will happen some times in the future. Now, the SRP has proven that it has not forgotten about that incident and is now capitalizing on the HRP’s crisis and downfall by severing all ties and alliances and, to a certain degree, publicly berating and chastising Mr. Kem Sokh’s ‘betrayal’.

It would be of tremendous political benefits to both parties, and to a large degree to Cambodia’s democracy in general, for the leaders of both parties, Mr. Sam Rainsy and Mr. Kem Sokha, to come to the roundtable and talk discreetly and nicely to one another, instead of negotiating through the media and press conferences like what they have done in the past that have caused so much misunderstandings among themselves. By sitting down face to face, it conjures up an image and a sense of closeness and the spirit of brotherly engagement. This is the only way they can move forward and to avoid any misunderstandings.