NGOs call for equal campaign spending

Tuesday, 14 August 2012
Bridget Di Certo and Chhay Channyda
The Phnom Penh Post

A consortium of election NGOs had banded together in a bid to push through a Campaign Finance Law that would put a ceiling on political party campaign spending ahead of next year’s national elections, representatives said yesterday.

The NGO Working Group on Political Finance has embarked on a campaign trail of its own, launching a Facebook group and a public forum program to try to raise awareness and demand for campaign finance governance.

“We are drafting proposals to have proper funding to support our work and will go out to all the provinces for public forums in October,” Pean Tonlork, director of Democratic and Human Rights Organisation in Action, said yesterday.

The working group wanted to educate Cambodians on the issue so that a call for the law came from the people it will protect, Comfrel executive director Koul Panha said.

Such a law was critical to ensure “fair” elections, he said.

NGOs push for campaign financing legislation

អង្គការ​ក្រៅ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ជំរុញ​ឲ្យ​មាន​ច្បាប់​ស្តី​ពី​ហិរញ្ញវត្ថុ​សម្រាប់​ការ​បោះឆ្នោត

Tuesday, 14 August 2012
Bridget Di Certo និង ​ឆាយ ច័ន្ទនីដា
​The Phnom Penh Post

ភ្នំពេញៈ ក្រុម​អង្គការ​ក្រៅ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ធ្វើ​សកម្មភាព​ពាក់ព័ន្ធ​នឹង​ការ​បោះឆ្នោត​បាន​រួបរួម​គ្នា ដើម្បី​តស៊ូ​មតិ​ជំរុញ​ឲ្យ​មាន​ច្បាប់​ស្តីពី​ហិរញ្ញវត្ថុ​សម្រាប់​ការ បោះឆ្នោត ក្នុង​គោល​បំណង​កំណត់​ពី​ចំនួន​ថវិកា​ដែល​ត្រូវ​ប្រើ​សម្រាប់​យុទ្ធនាការ​បោះឆ្នោត​របស់​គណបក្ស​នីមួយៗ ​នៅ​ក្នុង​ការ​បោះឆ្នោត​ជាតិ​ឆ្នាំ​ក្រោយ។ នេះ​បើ​យោង​តាម​តំណាង​ដែល​បាន​ថ្លែង​កាល​ពី​ម្សិលមិញ។

ក្រុម​ការងារ​ក្រៅ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ស្តី​ពី​ហិរញ្ញវត្ថុ​នយោបាយ​បាន​ចាប់ ផ្តើម​យុទ្ធនាការ​តាមការ​បង្កើត​ក្រុម​ Facebook ផ្ទាល់​ខ្លួន​ និង​កម្មវិធី​វេទិកា​សាធារណៈ ដើម្បី​ព្យាយាម​លើក​កម្ពស់​ការ​យល់​ដឹង និង​ទាមទារ​ឲ្យ​មាន​អភិបាល​កិច្ច​ លើ​ហិរញ្ញវត្ថុ​ដែល​ប្រើប្រាស់​សម្រាប់​យុទ្ធនាការ​បោះឆ្នោត។

លោក ពាន ទន្លក ប្រធាន​អង្គការ​ប្រជាធិបតេយ្យ​និង​សិទ្ធិ​មនុស្ស​ក្នុង​ប្រតិបត្តិការ បាន​ថ្លែង​កាល​ពី​ម្សិលមិញ​ថា៖ «យើង​កំពុង​ធ្វើ​សេចក្តី​ព្រាង​លើ​សំណើ​មួយ ដើម្បី​ឲ្យ​មាន​ថវិកា​សម​ស្រប​ដើម្បី​ការ​គាំទ្រ​ការងារ​របស់​យើង ហើយ​យើង​នឹង​ចុះ​ទៅ​តាម​ខេត្ត​នានា តាម​រយៈ​វេទិកា​សាធារណៈ​នៅ​ខែ​តុលា»។

Campaign finance law urged

Tuesday, 12 May 2009
Written by VONG SOKHENG AND KHOUTH SOPHAK CHAKRYA
The Phnom Penh Post

Election-monitoring NGOs propose legal caps to campaign contributions ahead of Sunday’s already contentious commune council elections

ELECTION monitoring groups have begun promoting a draft law which, if introduced, would restrict the amount of campaign financing permitted by each party.

Koul Panha, the executive director of election-monitoring NGO Comfrel, said the concept was discussed by civil society groups and individual politicians after last year's general election.

"For now, we are raising public awareness and then we will urge the government to introduce the law," Koul Panha said on Sunday. "[The proposed law would] control the amount of finances [donated to] political parties during campaign time. We are pushing for this law to be introduced before the national elections in 2013."

However Hang Puthea, the executive director of Nicfec, another election-monitoring NGO, warned that the draft would require the support of the main political parties before it could become law.

"Some are still hesitant and lack the political will to submit a financial report for the election period," he said.

Comfrel issued a report last week that detailed how large amounts of funds and materials had been donated by high-ranking government officials, investors and business people to powerful politicians and the ruling Cambodian People's Party.

"SOME ARE HESITANT AND LACK THE POLITICAL WILL TO SUBMIT A FINANCIAL REPORT."

"The influence of funds in politics and in elections is a major problem, which might relate specifically to illegal business, to contributions including the use of national funds to buy votes and politicians," the report said.

But government spokesman Khieu Kanharith rejected the need for a campaign finance law, saying it would "tie up" the parties.

"While we are not able to control all of our finances, it is not necessary to have this law as many countries don't have it," he said.

Yim Sovann, a spokesman for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said the opposition supported the proposed law "100 percent", provided it clarified the sources of financing. But he predicted the CPP would reject a law that required transparency of its financial resources.

Pre-poll controversy
The National Election Committee said Monday that the SRP had filed four complaints against the CPP protesting alleged violations of the electoral rules relating to the impending provincial, district and municipal council elections on Sunday.

"The complaints were received by our provincial election staff in Phnom Penh and Stung Treng," NEC member Som Chandyna said. "Three complaints involve allegations of vote-buying. One [in Stung Treng] refers to the use of a government building for promoting the party during the campaign."

The head of the NEC's provincial body in Phnom Penh, Lun Chheng Kay, told the Post he had investigated the vote-buying allegations and summoned both parties to a Thursday meeting to resolve the matter.

Meanwhile, the head of Stung Treng's provincial NEC body, Buoy Chan Thallas, said after his investigation both sides agreed the building was not in fact government property.

Indelibility issues
Always a contentious matter in previous elections has been the use of so-called indelible ink used to prevent voters from casting more than one ballot.

Heu Rong, head of the NEC's Operations Department, said ink for the vote had been purchased from India at a cost of US$5,000 for 550 bottles.

Lim Kim Ly, executive director of the Family Agriculture Development Community (FADC), demonstrated to journalists on Monday that nail polish remover could not be used to remove the ink and pronounced it of good quality.

FADC is one of eight NGOs asked by the NEC to observe the council elections following the refusal of election watchdog groups Comfrel and Nicfec to participate, citing the fact that councillors would be elected by party officials and not the general public.

A Comfrel report issued in February blasted the council elections for being relevant only to the political parties that won council seats in the 2007 commune council elections, adding that the cost per voter would likely exceed that of the 2008 general election.