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Cambodian opposition parties struggle ahead of polls

On World Press Freedom Day, journalist charged with public defamation and doctor forced to apologize for pothole remarks
Supporters of the Candlelight Party shout slogans from a vehicle during a rally for the commune elections in Phnom Penh on June 3, 2022

Supporters of the Candlelight Party shout slogans from a vehicle during a rally for the commune elections in Phnom Penh on June 3, 2022. (Photo: AFP)

Published: May 08, 2023 04:11 AM GMT
Updated: May 08, 2023 04:17 AM GMT

Another political party has withdrawn from Cambodia’s upcoming national election while the main opposition is struggling to meet deadlines to register for the July 23 poll amid speculation its senior leaders could face further litigation.

Citing a lack of funds and “that the political situation is still not free, fair and transparent” the Cambodian Reform Party announced it will not run. The League for Democracy Party has also said it will not participate in the ballot.

Only the long-ruling Cambodia People’s Party (CPP), which currently holds all 125 seats in the National Assembly, is capable of winning the election prompting an outcry from pro-democracy activists and threats of sanctions among Western countries.

CPP insiders have said they expect to win 92 percent of the seats on offer while the main opposition Candlelight Party could pick up the balance after winning 22 percent of the popular vote at the local commune elections held in June last year.

However, senior Candlelight Party officials have said the paperwork required to register for the polls has been complicated by the National Election Commission which wants the opposition to submit original documents dating back to its formation.

The Candlelight Party was formed out of the remnants of the Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP), which was outlawed by the courts in late 2017. Party spokesman Kimsour Phirith said original documents had been lost during a police raid on CNRP headquarters six years ago.

“Hun Sen must be open to my candidacy"

It has asked the Ministry of Interior to authorize copies of the original documents amid speculation that Vice President Rong Chhun — who intends to contest the poll in Kandal province against Prime Minister Hun Sen — could face arrest for parole violations.

“Hun Sen must be open to my candidacy and to having a fair and just competition,” he told Radio Free Asia (RFA). “It is not worth it if you win without competition. If we are competing and you’ve done bad things against competitors, the world will think that it is worthless to win.”

Rong Chhun was among more than a hundred political activists to front the courts amid the crackdown on dissent and remains on a three-year probation for incitement. He said, in reference to the CPP, “If I am arrested and people think it is not correct, it will backfire on them.”

Arrests for offending authorities have continued.

Last Wednesday, on World Press Freedom Day, a doctor was forced to publicly apologize for derogatory remarks he made about potholes in road construction, and a journalist was detained for incitement to commit defamation.

Pro-government media reported remarks by Dr. Kea Sok Leng on social media “were quickly spotted by eagle-eyed official monitors” who summoned him to issue a letter and video apologizing for his remarks regarding road construction.

He also promised this would never happen again.

In Sihanoukville, on the south coast, a provincial court ordered the pre-trial detention of David Chanayva, alias Koun Veasna, in connection with cases of incitement to commit crimes, “especially public defamation,” an offense punishable under three articles of the penal code.

No mention was made in the report by the Khmer Times of who he intended to defame or how.

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