CPP Candidates Legally Registered: Committee [- Mu Sochua: the committee's decision was politically biased]

Tuesday, January 9, 2007

By Pin Sisovann and John Maloy
The Cambodia Daily

The Ratanakkiri Provincial Election Committee ruled Monday that commune election officials had not illegally registered CPP commune council candidates after the Jan 3 deadline, contrary to claims by the SRP, officials said. Hok Sophal, an SRP activist in Veun Sai district's Phnom Kuk commune, said that on Jan 4 the commune's election committee announced that only the SRP and Funcinpec had submitted candidates for April's commune elections. But one day later, the CPP was added to the candidate list at the request of a CPP commune clerk, he said. Hok Sophal added that four SRP activists witnessed the CPP’s tardiness and that the SRP filed a complaint about the case. The provincial election committee would only allow two witnesses to testify in its subsequent hearing, he added. Pen Chhundy, director of the provincial election committee, said the SRP’s allegations were groundless. "I ruled based on the documents," he said, adding that the CPP had a receipt for their list showing that it registered Jan 3. "Testimony from [SRP] witnesses was unreliable and they had no documentation," Pen Chhundy said. SRP Secretary-General Mu Sochua said that the committee's decision was politically biased. "We totally reject the decision," she said. Mu Sochua said that the SRP has already filed an appeal with the National Election Committee and would be bringing its witnesses to Phnom Penh today.