Cambodia Vote Is Seen as More Peaceful, but Critics Say Unfair

July 24, 2013, 
The Wall Street Journal
By Chun Han Wong 

As dozens of flag-waving youths raced on motorcycles through Cambodia’s capital this week, their rallying cries turned heads of curious onlookers.

“Change or no change? Change!” they shouted, sporting banners of the main opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party. “Victory or no victory? Victory!”

Reuters

Supporters rally for opposition leader Sam Rainsy, president of the National Rescue Party, in Phnom Penh on July 19.

Such scenes, a nightly occurrence along Phnom Penh’s busy thoroughfares, underscore the growing political vibrancy in this impoverished Southeast Asian nation, which heads to the polls Sunday for the fifth time since a United Nations-brokered ceasefire in 1991 ended decades of civil war and genocide.

Electioneering has reached a fever pitch in the month-long campaign, highlighted by enthusiastic youth-led rallies and spared the assassinations and violent clashes that marred previous votes.

But analysts expect Prime Minister Hun Sen and his Cambodian People’s Party to win a fresh five-year term by extending what critics call unfair tactics—allegations that government officials have repeatedly denied.

“The violence has decreased,” said Koul Panha, executive director of the Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia, an election watchdog. But “there are still threats, intimidation, and interference from the authorities.”

Last Saturday, an unidentified gunman shot at an opposition party office in Phnom Penh, breaking a window but causing no injuries. Opposition groups also reported in recent days minor skirmishes between their supporters and ruling party activists.

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy condemned Saturday’s shooting, which took place less than a day after he ended four years of self-imposed exile in Paris. Nonetheless, the 64-year-old former finance minister, who this month received a royal pardon for what he calls politically motivated charges, acknowledged that the current campaign is less bloody than past editions.

“The ruling party resorts less to political violence because they are using more sophisticated means related to election manipulation to cling onto power,” said Mr. Rainsy, who was welcomed by more than 100,000 supporters when he arrived last Friday.

Rights activists allege that 60-year-old Mr. Hun Sen—who has said he would remain as prime minister till his mid-70s—of trying to curb criticism of his government with restrictions on independent media and Internet access and misusing state forces and public funds to bolster his campaign.

“The fact that the Cambodian security forces act as a de facto wing of the CPP has disastrous effects on human rights and democratic processes,” Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. “When security forces take sides in elections, voters feel intimidated.”

The ruling party, which won 90 of 123 legislative seats in 2008, denied accusations of unscrupulous electioneering.

“We respect the rules set by the National Election Committee,” said ruling party lawmaker Cheam Yeap, who chairs the parliamentary commission on finance, economy, banking and auditing. “We want to win with prestige, freely and fairly.”

The government, conscious of Cambodia’s steady but fragile economic growth, is keen to avoid a “chaotic and violent electoral campaign,” political analyst Chea Vannath said. “The CPP is getting politically more mature in its efforts to retain confidence from foreign donors and investors.”

Cambodia ranks among the world’s least-developed countries. Despite economic growth in recent years, about 30% of its 14.5 million people live below the poverty line. International aid provides roughly half of the annual budget.

Another factor behind the ruling party’s subtler approach is Cambodia’s young demographics, analysts say, as an increasingly urban and better-educated electorate demands greater accountability and transparency.

More than 70% of the population is below 35 years old, meaning youths make up the bulk of the 9.6 million eligible voters.

In its rural strongholds, the ruling party has been able to mobilize truckloads of student activists to canvass votes. But urban youth, particularly in Phnom Penh, are turning out heavily in rallies for the Cambodia National Rescue Party, and the opposition shows greater popularity in social media.

“Change from number four to what number?” the young opposition supporters shouted on their nightly rides, referring to the ruling CPP by its number on the ballot. “Change to number seven!”

–Sun Narin contributed to this post.