The U.S. wants to do "what we can to encourage political diversity in Cambodia": Jim Webb

Webb Assures Cambodia Of "very Close Look" At The Trade Act

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

(RTTNews) - U.S. Senator Jim Webb, who is on a two-week tour of five South-East Asian nations, made a lightning visit to Cambodia Tuesday to 'invigorate' the United States' relationship with that country.

Talking to reporters at the capital, Phnom Penh, Webb said he assured during talks with the minister of commerce that Washington will take a "very close look" at the Trade Act of 2009, a measure introduced to provide duty-free access to the U.S. market for garments made in 14 least-developed countries.

He stressed the need for labor standards in beneficiary countries meeting international standards.

He said he discussed with the leaders of two of the opposition groups about the ongoing crackdown by the Cambodian government against its opponents. The U.S. wants to do "what we can to encourage political diversity in Cambodia," he added.

He is to meet with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen later in the day.

Chairman of the U.S. Senate's Sub-Committee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Webb visited Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand with the mission of the U.S. government's re-engagement with Southeast Asia at all levels.

He will wind up the tour with a visit to Vietnam later Tuesday.

"Hun Sen's speeches will not be able to persuade me to believe in him"

Ruling party ignoring the more pressing issues

Tuesday, 18 August 2009
Seng Ratha
Letter to The Phnom Penh Post

Dear Editor,

In recent months the Cambodian People's Party has unfairly cracked down on human rights groups, opposition parties and Khmer newspaper editors.

For example, Mu Sochua, a member of the National Assembly, was openly trapped by the CPP. Between the Cambodian Constitution and Hun Sen's orders, which has proved more powerful?

To crack down on elected parliamentarians is to threaten and intimidate thousands of people in Cambodia.

When the EU, the US, the UN, donor countries and independent critics criticise the government, Hun Sen and his group always say that their critics do not understand the law.

Hun Sen has said he could completely destroy the opposition party in two hours.
But has his government arrested and imprisoned any of the criminals who killed and shot the journalists, opposition activists, singers and actresses up until now? He needs only two hours to destroy the opposition party. How long will he need to reduce corruption?

Hun Sen's speeches will not be able to persuade me to believe in him.

Seng Ratha
Phnom Penh

US Senator Jim Webb makes quick stop in Cambodia on Asian tour [... met with two opposition leaders]

Aug 18, 2009
DPA

Phnom Penh - US Senator Jim Webb made a lightning visit to Cambodia on Tuesday as part of a regional trip designed to 'invigorate the relationship' between the United States and South-East Asian nations.

Webb is in the region in his capacity as chairman of the Sub-Committee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs for the US Senate's Foreign Relations Committee. His trip takes in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

At a press conference in Phnom Penh on Tuesday ahead of a scheduled meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, Webb was asked about the ongoing crackdown by the Cambodian government against its opponents.

The question followed a strong European Union statement issued earlier in August in which the EU warned that the government's actions could narrow Cambodia's democratic space.

Webb would not be drawn on whether or how the US would exert pressure on Phnom Penh to respect democratic rights, saying only that the US wants to do 'what we can to encourage political diversity in Cambodia.'

'As a part of my visit here I met with the leaders of two of the opposition groups to hear their views, and we had [a] discussion with respect to the issues that you mentioned, and we will continue to listen to people from all sides,' Webb said. 'I listened in great detail to the concerns of the two opposition leaders on that topic.'

He was more forthcoming on the Trade Act of 2009, a measure introduced by Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein to provide duty-free access to the US market for garments made in 14 least-developed countries.

Cambodia, whose economically vital garment industry has been battered over the past year, would benefit from the passage of the bill. However the legislation is currently languishing in the US Senate.

'That issue was the subject of a pretty lengthy discussion with the minister of commerce, and I committed to him that we'll take a very close look at the legislation,' Webb said.

Webb said one key concern is that labour standards in beneficiary countries should meet international standards.

'It's very important to the Democratic Party in the United States to make sure we have a fair playing field among our workers and workers overseas,' he explained. 'That being said, the minister made a very compelling case for us to look at that legislation and we will do that when we get back.'

Webb leaves Cambodia later on Tuesday headed to Vietnam.

EU condemns govt crackdown

Photo by: Sovan Philong

Monday, 10 August 2009
Sebastian Strangio
The Phnom Penh Post

POLICE ACTION IN THE SPOTLIGHT

THE violent scenes that followed the verdict in Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Mu Sochua’s defamation on Tuesday are a testament to the government’s hostility to democracy and freedom of expression, the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights (CCHR) said, describing the day of the conviction as “another dark day for justice and democracy in Cambodia”. “The CCHR regrets the verdict and condemns the manner in which the police handled a peaceful procession,” the group said in a statement Friday, noting several instances of violence against civil society members, opposition politicians and bystanders. Protestor Seng Hok Chher said that he was kicked by police before being detained and held by authorities for around an hour. “They kicked me when I ran to break up the clashes. They saw me as Sam Rainsy’s bodyguard, [and] I was arrested,” he said.

MEAS SOKCHEA

THE European Commission has strongly condemned the government's recent legal offensive against outspoken critics, warning it could lead to a severe narrowing of the democratic space in Cambodia.

During a meeting with foreign ministry officials, three EU representatives said a recent string of defamation and disinformation cases against opposition figures and journalists could have "serious consequences for civil society's willingness to engage in democratic debate".

According to a classified terms of reference approved by the EU's 27 member states prior to the Friday meeting, EU representatives tabled concerns about "the use of criminal defamation and disinformation charges, including severe penalties imposed by the courts, to target those in civil society who raise minor criticisms of government policy".

The document, a copy of which has been obtained by the Post, also called attention to the government's "disregard" for protections of freedom of speech for elected representatives and the bringing of criminal charges against journalists "over articles critical of government policy".

Step by step

EU officials said they stopped short of threatening a withdrawal of financial support, saying that using development aid to punish or reward the government was "not a constructive way" to manage their relationship.

"It's not a matter of turning on and off taps in relation to good behaviour by the government," said British ambassador Andrew Mace, who represented the EU at the meeting.

But Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Centre of Human Rights, said that the threat of an aid withdrawal, whether or not it was made explicit, would be in the minds of government officials following the meeting.

He said that the government needed Western support for legitimacy, and that the EU's "unusually" strong position would keep officials guessing.

THE EU IS MAKING A VERY CLEAR STATEMENT TO THE CAMBODIAN GOVERNMENT.

"I think that the EU is making a very clear statement to the Cambodian government," he said. "If I were [Prime Minister] Hun Sen I would be very concerned."

Mace said the atmosphere at the meeting was "frank and constructive", part of an ongoing process of dialogue between the EU and the government.

"They listened to our concerns and told us their view very openly," he said.

"They certainly expressed their intention to ensure that they were meeting their international human rights obligations. Though we didn't agree on everything, I think it took place in a friendly, constructive spirit."

He added: "We'll continue to raise our concerns when we have them. We have discussed these issues over a long period of time with the government."

Ouch Borith, a secretary of state at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who represented the government at the meeting, could not be reached for comment Sunday.

When contacted Sunday, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Koy Kuong did not wish to comment but said the ministry would be releasing a statement "responding to the EU's concerns" today.

The meeting, which also involved German Ambassador Frank Marcus Mann and Rafael Dochao-Moreno, head of the delegation of the European Commission, came following the conviction of Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Mu Sochua on defamation charges Tuesday.

The aftermath of the hearing at Phnom Penh Municipal Court, which ordered Mu Sochua to pay 16.5 million riels (US$3,937) in fines and compensation for defaming Hun Sen, has also drawn fire from rights groups, who claim police used excessive force in their attempts to prevent SRP parliamentarians and supporters from marching through the city.

Cambodian conviction signals crackdown on dissent

Mu Sochua, a Cambodian opposition party lawmaker, gestures in front of the Phnom Penh Municipality Court in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on Tuesday. (Photo: Heng Sinith/AP)

A court found opposition member Mu Sochua guilty of defaming the prime minister. Observers say it fits a pattern of assault on political criticism and free speech in the young democracy.

August 6, 2009
By David Montero
Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor

Phnom Penh, Cambodia - A Cambodian court found a prominent politician guilty of defaming the country's prime minister Thursday in what analysts call a setback on Cambodia's shaky path to democracy. The conviction of Mu Sochua, an outspoken member of the opposition, amplifies a pattern of assault on political dissent and free speech, say the analysts.

"This is a reversal of hard-won freedoms, to have a member of Parliament threatened and sued," says Sara Colm, a researcher for Human Rights Watch based in Phnom Penh, the capital.

Ms. Sochua's ordeal, which has polarized Cambodia's political landscape for months, began with an act of defiance. In April, during a public address in Kampot Province, Prime Minister Hun Sen derided the province's parliamentarian by calling her a cheung klang – literally "a strong leg" in English, a term considered highly offensive to women.

Mr. Sen did not mention Sochua by name, but Kampot is her province, making the inference clear. Sochua says it was retaliation for her public criticism of Sen's policies.

Sochua did the unthinkable in a country where Sen rules virtually unchallenged: she sued him for defamation. But her case was thrown out by the courts, and Sen countersued her for defaming him. His case the court accepted.

It soon became a David-versus-Goliath showdown. At stake is the essence of Cambodia's experiment in democracy, particularly the rights of elected officials to confront the ruling party, Sochua says.

Many agree. At its height, the case brought the diplomats of the United States, Germany, France, and Britain out to show support for Sochua. Sen responded with a stiff message: Stay out of Cambodian politics.

Following decades of civil war, Cambodia turned to democracy under the administration of the United Nations in 1993. It has made steady progress toward liberal democracy, but always under the rule of Sen, whom critics accuse of stifling civil liberties in the name of political stability.

Sochua's case is not the only one of its kind. In recent weeks, Sen has launched eight defamation cases against opponents, effectively turning the courts into a political weapon to silence critics, observers say.

"I don't see the courts as neutral," says Meas Nee, an independent analyst based in Phnom Pehn. "The whole court system is being manipulated to be on the side of the ruling party."

Some of the criticism in question is surprisingly mundane: One critic questioned the wisdom of Sen's drive to boost tourism to Angkor Wat, the county's famed temples. The lights being affixed to the ancient stone – to lure visitors at night – were damaging the buildings, he said. Sen called the critique an attempt to incite an antigovernment campaign, and sued.

Given the trend, few were surprised when the court found Sochua guilty, least of all Sochua herself. "When I filed the lawsuit, I knew I would never win," she said in a recent interview. "I knew the option was jail."

Sochua has been fined $4,000. If she refuses to pay – and she insists she will refuse – she risks going to jail. She says it is not a prospect that daunts her.

"I am not preparing for my going to jail with my head down," she says. "I am preparing to walk to jail with my head up. You know, I tell my constituents: If you believe in ghosts, then ghosts will haunt you. And fear is the ghost. When you are so determined of what you want, then you do not fear. You are at peace."