Japan sends study team for assisting election reform in Cambodia

Following a request from Cambodian government, Japan has dispatched a study team to Cambodia for assisting election reforms in this country.

In a statement released Monday by Japanese Embassy in Phnom Penh, it said during the mission in Cambodia, the team will conduct intensive consultations with the members of the ruling Cambodian People's Party of Prime Minister Hun Sen and the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party, as well as other stakeholders including election-related authorities, international organizations and civil society in order to study the current situation and to identify the needs for reforms.

The team, consisted of 10 members including government officials and academics, is headed by Senya Mori, deputy director general of the Industrial Development and Public Policy Department of Japan International Cooperation Agency.

The team is set to work in Cambodia from Monday through Friday.

Following the general election in July last year, the opposition CNRP has cried foul over the alleged election irregularities and has boycotted all parliamentary sessions since the first meeting in September, and has repeatedly called for serious reforms before its 55 elected lawmakers sit in the parliament.

The CPP got 68 seats out of the 123-seat National Assembly.

With the aim to help meet the CNRP's demand, Hun Sen made a request to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during his visit to Cambodia last November, asking for assistance in this election reform.

==Kyodo