Election fraud in Cambodia recognized by observers from the European Union

November 1, 2011

The Editor
The Phnom Penh Post
Phnom Penh

Sir,

In your November 1 article “Rainsy asylum claim” the secretary general of the National Election Committee (NEC) said he was “unaware” of a lawsuit the SRP filed against the CPP immediately after the July 27, 2008 national election. The SRP accused the CPP of forgery in relation to a fake ID document called Form 1018 delivered by the CPP-affiliated chief of Boeung Tumpun commune in the capital city’s Meanchey district, Mr. Suos Sarin, to an illegitimate voter named Kong Kiet. Under pressure from the CPP, Mr. Kong Kiet did fraudulently cast a ballot for the ruling party but he shortly after came to see me to expose the truth and to denounce the CPP-organized election fraud. Just after his courageous decision to stand as a witness against the CPP, Mr. Kong Kiet escaped arrest by the police and was forced to go into hiding for more than three years. He was given political asylum in U.S.A. only last week and now lives in North Carolina with his wife and their three children.

I would like to specify that the SRP filed the criminal lawsuit against the CPP not at the NEC but at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court (attached herewith is the SRP legal complaint dated August 25, 2008).

Mr. Kong Kiet’s case is not an isolated one but reflects the pattern of a massive election fraud that contributed nationwide to the CPP “landslide victory” in 2008. This “astonishing success” was largely obtained through, on the one hand, countless ghost names on CPP-controlled voter lists, and on the other hand, fake ID documents called Forms 1018 using the above ghost names delivered by the CPP to countless illegitimate voters but real human beings. To illustrate the fraud pattern I have documented countless cases similar to Mr. Kong Kiet’s throughout the country and have exposed them at http://tinyurl.com/4272v3e

During and after the 2008 election campaign I met with many independent observers, especially those from the European Union (EU), and drew their attention to this form of election fraud using the Form 1018. I am grateful to eventually read in the final report of the EU Election Observation Mission to Cambodia published on October 13, 2008 this “Essential Recommendation” from the EU observer team: ”The use of the Form 1018 should be abolished prior to any future election.” Read the full EU Report at http://tinyurl.com/3fgsnxa

Final remark: The Phnom Penh Municipal Court, under the orders of the CPP, did nothing with the above-mentioned complaint for forgery that the SRP lodged against the CPP in 2008. They just buried it and forgot about it! But when it comes to any complaint lodged by the CPP against me, such as the one – also for forgery – the Hun Sen Government lodged against me in 2009 for posting on the Internet a map produced by the U.S. Army and published on the Web a long time ago, the same Phnom Penh Municipal Court was very quick to prosecute me and to hand down on me a 10-year jail sentence!

Sincerely,

Sam Rainsy

Elected Member of Parliament