[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 18]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 24266]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       THE SITUATION IN CAMBODIA

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JAMES A. LEACH

                                of iowa

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 28, 2005

  Mr. LEACH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express concern about 
heightened threats to fundamental freedoms in Cambodia.
  As my colleagues know, since the 2004 formation of a new coalition 
government, Prime Minister Hun Sen of the dominant Cambodia People's 
Party (CPP) has steadily consolidated his authority. According to 
credible nongovernmental organizations like Human Rights Watch, threats 
to opposition figures, trade unionists, journalists, human rights 
defenders and civil society leaders have intensified. Freedom of 
assembly has become increasingly restricted, while freedoms of speech 
and association have likewise been significantly curtailed. Meanwhile, 
the government's long-standing influence over the judiciary has been 
extended through a so-called ``Iron Fist'' policy which has included 
the dismissal or suspension of judges and prosecutors. The courts are 
increasingly being used to harass and silence government critics.
  The coalition between the CPP and the former Royalist opposition 
party FUNCIPEC has also resulted in ominous new pressures on Cambodia's 
political opposition, the Sam Rainsy Party, SRP. The immunity of three 
SRP parliamentarians, including its leader Sam Rainsy, was lifted in 
February. One of them, Mr. Cheam Channy, was convicted and sentenced to 
seven years imprisonment in August for the alleged creation of an 
illegal army. Party leader Sam Rainsy fled Cambodia when his immunity 
was lifted in February and, fearing arrest because of criminal 
defamation lawsuits against him, has not since returned.
  Here it should be noted that the United States condemned the August 9 
conviction by a military court of Cheam Channy and conviction in 
absentia of Kong Piseth on charges of fraud and establishment of an 
illegal armed group. According to a State Department spokesperson, the 
conduct of the trial appeared to violate international standards, again 
raised questions about the competence and independence of Cambodia's 
judiciary and constituted further intimidation of opposition voices. 
The U.S. urged appropriate review of this case. In addition, the U.S. 
also called on the Cambodian National Assembly to immediately restore 
the immunity of the Sam Rainsy Party, SRP, parliamentarians that was 
stripped by the National Assembly on February 3, an action which 
Washington strongly condemned.
  In the view of many observers, the current deteriorating environment 
in Cambodia is not an isolated event but part of an ongoing trend 
toward silencing dissident voices and cementing the power the incumbent 
Prime Minister.
  According to reports from the field, attacks on freedom of speech 
have escalated significantly since the signing of a border treaty 
between Cambodia and Vietnam on October 10. Relations with their larger 
neighbor Vietnam has traditionally been a neuralgic issue for many 
Cambodians, and as a consequence the treaty (the terms of which have 
not been revealed to the Cambodian public) has been highly 
controversial. In response, the government of Hun Sen has filed 
criminal defamation complaints against persons who have criticized the 
treaty. The Prime Minister appears to be particularly sensitive to 
accusations of having surrendered Cambodian territory to Vietnam.
  Two arrests have been made in connection with criticism of the 
treaty. Mam Sonando, director of the independent Beehive Radio station 
in Phnom Penh, was arrested earlier this month on charges of criminal 
defamation for broadcasting an interview with a Cambodian activist in 
France who criticized the border treaty. Rong Chhun, president of 
Cambodia's Independent Teacher's Association, was also arrested this 
month in connection with a press statement issued by a coalition of 
groups that was critical of the treaty. He has been charged with 
criminal defamation and incitement to commit a crime.
  According to Peter Leuprecht, Special Representative of the UN 
Secretary General for Human Rights in Cambodia, these arrests appear to 
be procedurally unlawful. Both men are now detained in Phnom Penh's 
Prey Sar prison.
  It is my understanding that other Cambodian figures also fear 
imprisonment because of widespread rumors about further imminent 
arrests. At least four persons are believed to have entered Thailand 
for safe haven, and a number of others have apparently gone to other 
countries. According to credible sources, among those who may be 
subject to possible arrest are at least two human rights NGOs, several 
opposition parliamentarians, and a number of political party and trade 
union activists. Indeed, it would appear that the current climate of 
fear in Cambodia among civil society leaders and the political 
opposition is worse than it has been since the violence of 1997, when 
the current Prime Minister first sought to consolidate his power, and 
the subsequent 1998 elections.
  Mr. Speaker, while Cambodian-Vietnamese relations are of an 
historically sensitive nature, that issue should not be used by the 
government in Phnom Penh as a pretext to imprison critics of the Prime 
Minister or to further manipulate the Cambodian judiciary. More 
broadly, concern is widespread that the current attacks on free speech 
are not an isolated event related solely to the border issue, but part 
of an ongoing campaign to silence political opponents and stifle other 
critical voices.
  In this context, it is incumbent on the United States and other 
interested countries to urge in the strongest possible terms that the 
Prime Minister take immediate, credible steps to strengthen Cambodia's 
democratic institutions, fight corruption, and respect basic human 
rights. Absent such steps, Cambodia's backsliding on human rights can 
only have negative implications for Phnom Penh's relations with the 
United States and other members of the international donor community.

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