By Sam Rainsy
Liberation (France)
Unofficial translation by Tola Ek
The French Prime Minister was on official visit to Cambodia last weekend. He first talked about economy and globalization with Hun Sen, his Cambodian counterpart who is in power for the past quarter of a century. Next, along with King Norodom Sihamoni, he attended the reopening ceremony of Baphuon, a majestic Angkor temple rebuilt under the direction of the French School of Far East.
But NO, Mr. Prime Minister, the future of Cambodia is not just about restoring the Angkor site and the management of the frustrations of western entrepreneurs. The speech given by France is not up to par with the serious shortcomings of democracy in Cambodia, in particular, the continuing violation of civil freedoms. Yet it was that violation that initiated the 1991 Paris Agreements which allowed the return of peace and the beginning of reconstruction [in Cambodia]. But since then, the Phnom Penh regime has continued to drift away from the "liberal and plural democracy" which is guaranteed by the above national reconciliation agreements. I still remember the premonitions by our former king: One day in 1994, while I was the Finance minister, I was meeting face to face with Norodom Sihanouk then-king of Cambodia, at the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, who confided to me: "I'm afraid to see that, one day, I will face the same fate as the last king of Italy." Then he went on to remind me that, following World War II, the Italians rejected the monarchy because they blamed Victor Emmanuel III of being too weak toward Mussolini. Beyond his concern for the future of the monarchy, Norodom Sihanouk implicitly compared Hun Sen, the strongman of Cambodia, to Mussolini and he already foresaw the danger of the shift of the [Phnom Penh] regime towards fascism.
It was indeed a Cambodia plunged into totalitarian drift that the French prime minister had to discover during his trip. Of course, they certainly repeated to him that the Khmer Rouge communism is a thing of the past. With the restoration of the monarchy, the restoration of religion and the triumphant return of capitalism, the country had a nice transition. But at what cost? Behind a fake façade of democracy, the French Prime Minister could take a peek into a dummy National Assembly where protesting MPs are sentenced to jail or exile through of a make believe justice ordered by the ruling executive, or he could take a peek at the tampered elections which allowed Hun Sen to remain in power for as long as Gaddafi in Libya, Ali Abdullah Saleh in Yemen or Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe.
However, the [Phnom Penh] regime also displays many other traits common to fascism just as Sihanouk feared. A cult of personality is devoted to Hun Sen, a former Khmer Rouge who grasps all the powers in his hands. The police state which dated from the communist era remains the regime’s pillar with its share of murders, jailing and other human rights violations. The weak king kept his silence in front of increasing power abuses. The pervasive religion serves as a drug for the people while the high-ranking clergy is invariably supported by the state in order to justify an infinitely unjust order. The economic system is based on wild capitalism where wealth is linked to political power whereas labor unions are severely repressed and their leaders persecuted and murdered, such were the cases of Chea Vichea, Ros Sovannareth and Hy Vuthy. It is this fascism under a tropical hue that keeps the country in deep poverty and risks leading it to chaos as a farmer revolution rumbles due to unrelenting land confiscations. Cambodia should learn the lessons from the recent events in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. The government has a duty to seek to understand the suffering and the anger of the people in order to avoid a violent revolution. It is up to France and friends of Cambodia to convince Hun Sen to prepare himself for an alternative. They must also constantly remind [Cambodia] about the Paris agreements that serve to support the reconstruction effort in my country.
Hopefully, on October 23, the day of the twentieth anniversary of the signing of these priceless agreements in 1991, all Cambodians will joyfully attend to the restoration of the democratic process, a sine qua non condition to any progress.
15 comments:
Absolutely right ON! It will take a real revolution to turn over HUNSEN people and his gangsters to dusk.
we will win our country back despite HS the idiotic man in power. We must look beyond out of the box. We use our brain to win this man (devil).
Do not give up........! Anytime we still breath we still can think we still can do we still can fight on.
Cambodia is different from Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.
The latter countries are free from their neighbor political interference.
If there is a political uprising in Cambodia, the numerous Vietnamese agents will sabotage and turn it into a bloodbath.
In order for the revolution in Cambodia to succeed, the freedom loving Vietnamese people have to start the political uprising in Vietnam first.
you are wright , we have to show this idiot that he is going to the wronght way .youn are not cambodia friend .
not once did we heard these opposition people mention the terms limit, instead, they kept on conducting their jealousy at the gov't, etc... without the mentioning of the terms limits, they are all the same, just different political groups! terms limits for prime ministership cannot be continued to ignore, if so, then don't expect people to step down as whether they have been serving the nation 20 or more years. terms limitation is actually the rule of law, believe it or not! if people like the opposition continue to ignore the terms limit, then they are no different than the very people they criticized, really! terms limits is the rule of law and must be brought up all the time in any national debate, etc... hey, this is not the dark ages era, ok! stop being so stupid forever, ok!
Make Cambodia a United Nations Protectorate Indefitely with United Nations Government, United Nations both houses of Paliaments. United Nations Judiciary systems etc..., all the above funded by the Donors countries and the joint-ventures of Cambodian natural resources explorations proceeds.
It's all right to have an up rising the sooner the better to liberate Cambodia and its peoples. If it comes to a bloodbath, let the United Nations intervenes. If is after all the United Nations unfinished business of UNTAC operations.
Buddha blesses Cambodia and its Peoples.
Thanks to KI team has translated this document. That is the true event in Cambodian policy at the present. But France must first to know where Hun Sen get the full power? This power come from Viet agents, without this Hun Sen has no change with Khmer people. The Buddihsm in Cambodia today is also fake, Hun Sen go and obay the buddihsm but his head think a bout power and kill Khmer people like Mafia they go to chirsh 3 time per day but outside they kill people, Hun Sen is the same.
My idea is similar to 8:41 a.m. post: We need to fix the problem in the source/root. The international community needs to discuss this issue with Vietnam as Vietnam hold all the cards but the International Community is a chicken shit as they have a bigger interest with Vietnam and Hun Sen as well rather than worrying about the common peasants unless we the people start the revolution first, then the International Community will support just like in Libya. Oh by the way, regarding terms limit? it won't work as the power will be transferred from Ayang Yuon or 1 CPP leader to another....
Whereas, the Vietnamese community in Cambodia is very complex i.e. it's beyond my pay grade.
If you want to effectively kill a snake you have to cut its head off first.
Vietnam is the snake’s head in the former French Indochina.
Koh Tral Island must not be forgotten
By Ms. Rattana Keo
Why do Koh Tral Island, known in Vietnam as Phu Quoc, a sea and land area covering proximately over 30,000 km2 [Note: the actual land size of Koh Tral itself is 574 square kilometres (222 sq miles)] have been lost to Vietnam by whose treaty? Why don’t Cambodia government be transparent and explain to Cambodia army at front line and the whole nation about this? Why don't they include this into education system? Why?
Cambodian armies are fighting at front line for 4.6 km2 on the Thai border and what's about over 30,000km2 of Cambodia to Vietnam. Nobody dare to talk about it! Why? Cambodian armies you are decide the fate of your nation, Cambodian army as well as Cambodian people must rethink about this again and again. Is it fair?
Koh Tral Island, the sea and land area of over 30,000 square kilometres have been lost to Vietnam by the 1979 to 1985 treaties. The Cambodian army at front line as well as all Cambodian people must rethink again about these issues. Are Cambodian army fighting to protect the Cambodia Nation or protecting a very small group that own big lands, big properties or only protecting a small group but disguising as protecting the Khmer nation?
The Cambodian army at front lines suffer under rain, wind, bullets, bombs, lack of foods, lack of nutrition and their families have no health care assistance, no securities after they died but a very small group eat well, sleep well, sleep in first class hotel with air conditioning system with message from young girls, have first class medical care from oversea medical treatments, they are billionaires, millionaires who sell out the country to be rich and make the Cambodian people suffer everyday.
Who signed the treaty 1979-1985 that resulted in the loss over 30,000 km2 of Cambodia??? Why they are not being transparent and brave enough to inform all Cambodians and Cambodian army at front line about these issues? Why don't they include Koh Tral (Koh Tral size is bigger than the whole Phom Phen and bigger than Singapore [Note: Singapore's present land size is 704 km2 (271.8 sq mi)]) with heap of great natural resources, in the Cambodian education system?
Look at Hun Sen's families, relatives and friends- they are billionaires, millionaires. Where did they get the money from when we all just got out of war with empty hands [in 1979]? Hun Sen always say in his speeches that Cambodia had just risen up from the ashes of war, just got up from Year Zero with empty hands and how come they are billionaires, millionaires but 90% of innocent Cambodian people are so poor and struggling with their livelihood every day?
Smart Khmer girl, President Ms. Rattana Keo,
can't ignore terms limit law because it will help to facilitate the rule of law in cambodia. ignoring it will prolong the injustice or unfairness in gov't practice. it's time for cambodia to wake and settle this power struggle once and for all. terms limit law, when cambodia is ready is very important in preventing power struggle in cambodia, you know! it works well in america and other democracy society all over the world, really! so, it is time for cambodia to look into this terms limit law if we were to prevent further power struggle among the ruling class, etc... otherwise, it's like back to dark age era when leadership power were determined by power struggle, not good idea because it creates so much destruction and chaos, not to mention lawlessness, etc, etc, ok! maybe when cambodia is ready for that because it is a foreign concept to cambodia on terms limitation law, etc. only the very well educated can see the importance of having such law in place in cambodia. others are just blinded by their own political ambition right now so they may not see it as important to have in cambodian system of gov't, etc, i think!
All of these politicians are dictators. You don't have to look any further, just look at their own party structure, the party president is the position for life. There is no term limit in that !!!!
They all voted for the constitution which allowed the individual to be the Prime Minister for as long as you wanted. They all hope to be in that position some day.
Talking about term limit, are you kidding me !!!
That's the reality folk !!!!
The democratic process in Cambodia
needs communicate with the West.
Without help from those countries,
the Cambodia democracy won't come
out easily of Hun Sen hands.
The 2,000,000 Khmer abroad should
have a huge protest to wake foreign
countries or Khmer people in and
abroad up also.
Khmer people need to help them-
selves first,before the others
help them.
Cambodia needs France as friend
in need.
“Sam Rainsy has the idea but are not in government and any proposed to change thing for the better are 100% rejected by CPP Hun Sen anyway”! If Sam Rainsy has some idea, it is time to present it now to the population. Politics are about giving hope to the population anyway. If CPP reject it, it could not be a problem. People always embrace good idea, something that make sense and give them hope. Once they can believe in it and they can see it, they certainly vote him in. Look at the success of Peur Thai with Thaksin as leader. The majority of the poor in the Eissan (East and North-East) voted for him for the last five general elections. Sam Rainsy should believe in his own idea first for him to be able to make people believe in him. Only the future can tell. Helping Hun Sen to change the constitutional majority from 2/3 to just 50% + 1 was his biggest mistake. His immunity could not be lifted if the 2/3 rule were there! He now called for the full application of the 1992 Paris agreement. Actually he was the one who helped Hun Sen to amend it to allow the dictator (or “Tropical Fascism” as he alleged now) to take place. He should blame him self for this big mistake. His made his leadership in doubt with this historical error. Cambodia needs a credible opposition, a real alternative to the same old friends of Vietnam in power for the last 30 years.
oiy, stop being stupid forever, ok! where is your political skill or strategy? get educated for a change, and no outdated thinking, ok, it's not working anymore, wake up already!
Khmer people should adapt to time
and the world change.The wake up,
the stand up,and rise up on time
are the main things.If they don't
protest on time,Cambodians will
trap themselves in Hun Sen and
Vietnam.
Cambodians knew what happened,
what happening,and what will
happen in Cambodia.
The words UNITY,RESPONSIBILITY,
COMMUNICATION,and DUTY put them
into ACTIONS.
Cambodians could think,talk,and
write or discuss clearly on KI
Media.
And how to get Khmer people out
to protest?
Hun Sen beats,put Khmer people
in jails,and sometimes take few
people out and kill them.
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