“Cambodia has no political prisoners but politicians with criminal
acts”. That is what the Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen stated publicly on
November 23 during a public speech. Rupert Abbott is the Amnesty international
researcher for Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.
On November 18, he published a
commentary in the Global Post in which – referring to 71-year-old journalist
Mam Sonando – he states “Amnesty International considers him to be a prisoner
of conscience, jailed solely for the peaceful exercise of his right to freedom
of expression”. Asian Correspondent met him to discuss the state of human
rights in Cambodia after the historical visit of US President Obama and the
expectations that the ASEAN drew in the country.
What do you think of Prime Minister’s Hun Sen statement on human rights
according to which ‘Cambodia is not that bad compared to neighbouring countries‘?
There are certainly other
countries with serious human rights problems, including Vietnam for example.
But Cambodia’s donors might say that Cambodia has received billions of dollars
in assistance from foreign taxpayers. And after 20 years of promised reforms,
the justice system looks a bit better, but in substance there has been little
change.
For example, the control of the
courts by political and business elites continues. And we can see these courts
persecuting human rights defenders and grassroots groups that have been
emerging in the context of land and natural resource conflict and operating
outside the usual power structures. This seems to be concerning the Cambodian
authorities.
But Cambodia should be proud of
its civil society, which is changing, and I think that this is not going
unnoticed by the government. Look at what happened at Boeung Kak Lake for
example, where we saw a community stand up for itself against a forced eviction
and actually achieve concessions from the authorities. These communities are
learning from each other; the Boeung Kak community is inspiring others, such as
Phnom Penh’s Borei Keila’s community. This is different to an NGO going to
community and telling them how to organize. NGOs represent human rights – and
therefore principles, while these grassroots groups and community groups
represent people.
Do you think Obama’s visit met the expectation of Cambodians?
I am not sure what Cambodians
generally expected. Amnesty International – along with most Cambodian human
rights groups – was generally pleased since everything that the U.S President
said was made public and he was strong on human rights. In hindsight, perhaps it was a shame that
more conditions weren’t put on his visit, particularly the immediate release of
prisoner of conscience Mam Sonando. Realistically, I think President Obama’s
stance was as strong as one could have expected. There is another point to be
made. Other leaders in Cambodia for the ASEAN and East Asia Summits – from
Japan, Australia and India, which is the biggest democracy in the world –
didn’t say much at all about the human rights situation. So Obama’s strong
words should be considered in this context also.
Do you think a crackdown on human rights defenders can happen now that
the ASEAN and East Asia Summits are over?
2012 has been a really bad year
for human rights in Cambodia, especially with regard to land conflict and
freedom of expression in that context. There is no doubt the government knows
the land problem is serious: there have been public policy shifts to address
the problem. The hope is that the government reflects a bit, after the summits,
and understands that its reputation is at stake. The human rights situation
needs to be improved, with the justice system strengthened, and civil society
allowed to contribute to the more equal development of the country.
Of course, the government will
not be happy about the negative attention it got around the human rights
situation during the first ever visit of a United States president. We hope that
the international community won’t start to look away. Elections are coming in
nine months, which historically means further restrictions on freedom of
expression.
What is your opinion on the culture of the impunity still going on in
the country?
Fighting impunity requires reform
to the justice system and strengthening the rule of law, so that the courts protect ordinary Cambodians.
This year, we have seen impunity
in a number of high profile cases. For example, there was no investigation in
to the May killing of a 14-year-old girl during the forced eviction of a
community in Kratie province’s Pro Ma village. And the investigation and
judicial proceedings around the April killing of environment activist Chut
Wutty have been unsatisfactory.
What are your expectations for Cambodia in the future?
We have to hope that those in
power institute reforms – including around the land problem and the justice
system – that are in the interests of the population, while embracing civil
society as a dynamic force to contribute to the fairer development of the
country.
If restrictions on freedom of
expression persist and the land crisis continues, it is hard to predict exactly
what will happen. But we are concerned that we may see some of the government’s
gains made over the past 20 years, in terms of economic development and poverty
reduction, being undone.
Business & Investment Opportunities
Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd (SBC) is incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Strategy, Investment and Management, focusing Health care and Life Science with expertise in ASEAN 's area. We are currently changing the platform of www.yourvietnamexpert.com, if any request, please, contact directly Dr Christian SIODMAK, business strategist, owner and CEO of SBC at christian.siodmak@gmail.com. Many thanks.
No comments:
Post a Comment