People’s Opinions Regarding Corruption in the Judicial System

3rd April 2008
By Ouk Savbury
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Khmerization

Ordinary citizens and public servants from cities and provinces around the country hope that the new government will eliminate corruption in the judicial system and punish those who have committed corruption.
A culture of impunity for those who committed corruption in within the judicial system have been criticized by Mrs. Snguon Nhoeun from Lor Peang village of Kampong Chhnang province, who lodged a complaint to the court regarding a land dispute. Mrs Snguon said that the court’s judge asked for a bribery but because she did not have the money her complaint has been forgotten. She hope the new leader elected after the 27th July will help to eliminate corruption in the judicial system.
Mrs Snguon said: “I go to vote this time because I want to change the judicial system, not to be so corrupt like at this present time, because now the courts are so corrupt, threatened and maltreated the people everyday. And now they have chased two more people out of Lor Peang village.”
A woman named Nak Ken of the same Lor Peang village said that her family was a victim of the law enforcement people who have arrested and jailed her mother, Mrs. Un Tum, because she refused to sell her lands to a company which forced her to sell many hectares of her lands. Her mother refused to sell the lands and the court issued a warrant for her arrest accusing her of occupying the lands belonging to that company. Her mother was arrested and jailed for the past 4 months. After the election she hopes the new government will help change the injustices, such as the ones faced by her family.
Mrs Nak Ken said: “I go to vote because I want the country to have peace. I don’t want any oppression like what we are seeing today. We are living in fears like thieves. I am very worried.”
Mrs Keo Sokha of the same Lor Peang village also said: “I want my mother to be released from jail. With my one vote I would like the court to find justice for the people, because my mother was jailed. The courts have always threatened the poor people. My mother was arrested and jailed because she did not have the money to bribe the court. So they twisted the truth by accusing my mother of occupying lands belonging to a company.”
A chief of O’Roung village in Kampong Chhnang province, Mr. Lee Loss, hopes the new government will make an effort to issue land titles to the people. He also hopes that the court officials will stop committing corruption. Mr. Lee said: “I appeal to the court to examine the cases very carefully as to who is right, who is wrong and impose punishment based on concrete evidence. What I have observed is that, currently, whoever has the money to bribe will win and it is the poor people who will die. The people depends on the law to protect them but when the law enforcers are sitting on the laws and accept bribery it means that they are doing something illegal. What I have observed at the present time is that the people are very law-abiding because they are uneducated, but it is the officials who don’t apply and respect the laws.”
A Muslim woman from the same village of O’Roung named Matt Faizas said: “I would like to see the judicial system reformed so that everyone is entitled to be treated equally without any bribery and corruption.”
Another Khmer Muslim, Mr. Kuom Min, from the same O’Roung village said that the judicial system is very corrupt. He hopes the new government will change all these sorts of issues. He said: “I would like the court to be fair, not to accept bribery and not to be corrupt because the present courts are very corrupt and most of the times they turn white into black (right into wrong).”
Mr Theany, a government public servant living in Kampong Trolach district, hopes to elect a leader who is committed to developing the nation without prejudicing other political persuasions, without violating people’s lands, create jobs for youth, reduce corruption, reduce the costs of medical treatments and can lower the price of goods.
Mr Theany said: “Regarding land issues we’ve seen that the people are crying nearly everywhere. If the leader sees that what those people are doing are corruption, he has to eliminate corruption. I hope the new government will eliminate corruption. It is corruption that makes the people become poorer and poorer.”
A woman named Seng Hong of Kampong Luong commune in Pursat province, said that she always voted in every election because she wanted the new government to eliminate corruption committed by law enforcers. She said: “When I lodged my complaint the judge told me that he cannot guarantee my win. He said he cannot set amount in monetary term, depends on how much I want to pay to him. I gave him $1,000 US dollars but at the end of the court case, I lost.”
A man named Kheng Ross from Kandal village in Pursat province said that the law enforcers get used to the bribery or sometimes coerced people to pay bribery which usually led to the victimisation of so many people. He hopes that his vote on the 27th July election will enable the new government to change the bad practices of all law enforcers at every level. He said: “I go to vote because I want the new government to set up a new judicial system in a way which is not as corrupt as in the present system.”
A Khmer Muslim women from Russey Keo commune in Phnom Penh, Mrs. El Izzaz, hopes her vote will help to reduce corruption in the legal system. She said: “My aim in voting is because I want to elect a leader who will help the people to have freedom and to eliminate corruption. They must resolve all the legal cases lodged by the people without requesting for any bribery. I wish them to reform the legal system and have a respect for the rule of law.”
In relations to the allegations of corruption in the legal and judicial systems, parliamentarians as well as government officials stressed that the government had created a corruption watchdog. This watchdog is examining for ways at increasing the salary of the judicial officers to far above the salary of other public servants. Also, political parties have all promised to reform the judicial system in their election campaigns. But during the 3 terms of the current government, the corruption in the judicial system still continues which have caused the voters to lose confidence in them. //