American NGO to Train Cambodian Women to Participate in the Election

PHNOM PENH, Nov 28 (Bernama) -- The U.S.-based National Democratic Institute (NDI) here on Wednesday started to train 30 women from Cambodia's main political parties to help them participate in the July 2008 national election, China's Xinhua news agency reported.Stephanie Lynn, NDI's resident programme director for Indonesia, oversees the training of 10 female members each from the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP), the co-ruling Funcinpec Party and the opposition Sam Rainsy Party (SRP), said a press release from the non-governmental organisation.The three-day training course aims to help the female candidates of the contending political parties improve their candidacy and campaigning skills, it said.After receiving the training course, the trainees will then train their own party's female members.In the 2007 commune council election, 21 percent of all candidates and nearly 15 percent of the elected councilors were women, an increase of 9 percent from the 2003 national election.Funcinpec has recently appointed Princess Norodom Arunrasmy as its premiership candidate for the upcoming election, unprecedented in Cambodia's political history.-- BERNAMA