The Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) has put a temporary hold on
all major campaigning across Phnom Penh as it prepares for a mass rally
to greet party president Sam Rainsy on Friday when he returns to the
country after spending almost four years abroad in self-imposed exile.
With less than two weeks to go until the July 28 national election,
the opposition party is hoping to flood the city with at least 40,000
supporters when Mr. Rainsy arrives at Phnom Penh International Airport
and then moves on to Freedom Park where he will greet party supporters.
CNRP spokesman Yim Sovann said the party stopped its rallies and
motorcades around the city Monday and would start them up again only on
Thursday in order to conserve its resources and make preparations.
“We have to save our energy and our resources to spend for the
preparation to welcome Mr. Sam Rainsy on the 19th,” he said. “That’s
why we suspend only the big parades, but we still campaign [at the]
commune and district level.”
He said the party was also spending the time to prepare for Mr.
Rainsy’s tour of the provinces, where he plans to spend all but one of
the days between his comeback and election day.
He said Mr. Rainsy would visit 15 provinces in that time, focusing on
those surrounding Phnom Penh and others in the west and center of the
country, including Battambang, Banteay Meanchey, Kompong Thom and Siem
Reap.
“There are 15 provinces…so each day he has to visit two provinces,” Mr. Sovann said.
Dates and Mr. Rainsy’s exact route have yet to be worked out.
CNRP candidate Mu Sochua, who is running for re-election in
Battambang, said she was heading to Phnom Penh for a party meeting on
Wednesday to start finalizing their campaign plans for Mr. Rainsy.
With Mr. Rainsy most popular in urban centers, she said a focus on
the provinces was deliberate, both to challenge the ruling CPP among its
base of rural voters and increase Mr. Rainsy’s exposure in areas where
the opposition has the least amount of media access.
“People in the countryside want to see him most because they have less access to the media,” she said.
Mr. Rainsy has been living in France for nearly four years avoiding
an 11-year prison sentence for convictions widely considered to be
politically motivated. At the behest of Prime Minister Hun Sen, King
Norodom Sihamoni granted him a pardon on Friday, paving the way for his
return.
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