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CAMBODIA-ELECTION-VOTE-POLITICS
Cambodians vote in ‘sham’ election without opposition
PHNOM PENH, July 29, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Cambodia voted Sunday in an election
set to extend strongman premier Hun Sen’s 33 years in power after the only
credible opposition was dissolved, effectively turning the country into a
one-party state.
Hun Sen, who came to power in 1985, has cracked down on dissent in the run-
up to the poll, squeezing out civil society, independent media and his
political opponents.
Western governments have pulled their assistance from the poll citing its
lack of credibility, with rights groups and the opposition describing it as
knockout blow to the democratic process.
Nineteen small — or hitherto unknown — parties are competing against Hun
Sen’s ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) in the absence of the main
opposition.
But with the result a foregone conclusion, the focus will be on turnout in
what has become a plebiscite on Prime Minister Hun Sen’s popularity.
The opposition, whose leaders are in jail, underground or in self-exile,
has urged a “clean-finger” boycott as the only safe form of protest.
But lines stretched out of many polling stations early Sunday, as voters
showed up at schools and pagodas to cast ballots.
“I came to vote because I want happiness, development and peace for the
country,” said Im Chanthan, 54, casting a ballot in the same station as Hun
Sen in Kandal province, just outside the capital.
The strongman leader smiled as he and his wife Bun Rany arrived to cast
ballots, holding up an ink-stained finger for the bank of photographers.
Hun Sen, 65, a one-time Khmer Rouge commander who defected as the hardline
regime began to crumble, says stability and economic growth are gifts of his
years in power — a message that resonates with his base.
The ruling CPP has won every election since 1998.
– ‘Fist of a dictator’ –
More than eight million voters are registered for the sixth general
election since the United Nations first sponsored polls in 1993.
At the time the country was edging out from decades of war, include the
evisceration of the Khmer Rouge years (1975-79) which killed a quarter of the
population.
Hun Sen broke from the ultra-Maoist regime and was installed aged just 32
as leader during the Vietnamese occupation of the 1980s.
But dissatisfaction with corruption among a growing youth population, with
little memory of the horrors of the Khmer Rouge era and modern aspirations,
put the ruling party’s longevity in doubt.
Their votes helped the rival Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) to rack
up more than 44 percent of the 2013 vote and carved out a similar share in
local elections last year.
“The CNRP offered a promise of responsive and non-corrupt governance, and
people wanted to give them a chance,” said Phil Robertson, deputy director of
the Asia division of Human Rights Watch.
But Hun Sen snuffed out the looming electoral threat, accusing the CNRP of
being involved in a treasonous plot to topple the government and arresting
leader Kem Sokha.
“This is a story of how democratic dreams die under the fist of a
dictator,” Robertson added.
The Supreme Court dissolved the party in November 2017, clearing the way
for a CPP whitewash on Sunday.
Some voters have expressed resignation over Hun Sen’s poll victory, but a
climate of fear driven through by local level ruling party members has led
few to speak out publically.
– Power and patronage –
Hun Sen has maintained a tight grip on the country through a mix of
political and family alliances in the police, military and media.
With control over vast parts of the state, he has also placed his sons in
key positions in what analysts see as an attempt to create a dynasty.
The strongman portrays himself as a saviour of the country but glosses over
his early membership in the Khmer Rouge.
The United States and the European Union declined to send monitors but
Cambodia’s ally China has provided support.
The CNRP appealed to Cambodians in a statement on Sunday to not vote in the
“sham election that has no support and is not recognised by the international
community.”
Authorities have vowed to take action against anyone who urges others to
steer clear of the ballot box, although they insist voting is not compulsory.
Cambodia’s leaders have faced international criticism but only limited
travel and financial sanctions have been imposed by western governments in
response to actions taken against the opposition.
The US House of Representatives passed the Cambodia Democracy Act last
week, proposing sanctions against members of Hun Sen’s inner circle.
BSS/AFP/MRI/1215 hrs