[Prince Thomico] Ex-aide to Cambodia's late King Sihanouk joins opposition party ahead of July's polls

Prince Thomico (Photo: Vannara, RFI)

Xinhua | 2013-4-7

Prince Sisowath Thomico, former personal secretary and nephew of the late King Father Norodom Sihanouk, officially joined the newly-formed opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) on Sunday to contest in the general election set on July 28.

In the CNRP's first congress on Sunday, the prince was elected as a member of the party's board of directors, the party's leader- in-exile Sam Rainsy said via a video conference from Paris.

Speaking to reporters after the congress, the prince said his participation in the opposition party was his political rights, and he hoped that he could contribute to helping people and developing the nation in the future.

The CNRP is a merger between the main opposition Sam Rainsy Party and the Human Rights Party.

The 63-year-old Sam Rainsy, leader of the newly-formed CNRP, fled the country in late 2009 before Cambodian court sentenced him to 11 years in jail in absentia for two charges--removing border poles and publishing a false map of the border with Vietnam and accusing Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Hor Namhong of being a member of the Democratic Kampuchea, or known as Khmer Rouge.

In November, the National Election Committee removed his name from the voter list for the July's election on the grounds that he is a convicted criminal, meaning that he will be unable to participate in the upcoming election.

Some countries, particularly the United States, said the convictions of Sam Rainsy were politically motivated and urged the Cambodian government to allow him to return before the elections, but the request was rejected by the government, saying that Sam Rainsy is not a political prisoner, but he committed criminal infringements and deserved punishment by law.

In the last election in 2008, the Cambodian People's Party ( CPP) of Prime Minister Hun Sen won 90 seats out of the 123 parliamentary seats, while the opposition Sam Rainsy Party won 26 seats, the Human Rights Party three seats, the Funcinpec Party two seats and the Norodom Ranariddh Party two seats.

Prime Minister Hun Sen forecast late last month that his party would continue to win at least two-thirds majority in the upcoming polls.

"In the last election, we won more than two-thirds in the parliament. I do believe that the CPP will be able to maintain the parliamentary seats--not less than two-thirds in the forthcoming election," he said.

Hun Sen, 61, has been in power for 28 years and vowed to stay in the office until he is 90.