Opposition Lawmaker Arrested in Cambodia
A Cambodian court sentenced Um Sam An on October 10 to two and a half years in prison for his criticism of the Cambodian government in their handling of border demarcation. The opposition lawmaker was arrested on April 10 in the Cambodian city of Siem Reap for charges which were unknown at the time.
Um Sam An, a member of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, criticized the Cambodian People’s Party government for allowing Vietnamese encroachments into Cambodian territory. He accused the Cambodian government of using Vietnamese maps to mark their shared border, favoring Vietnam at the expense of Cambodia. Um Sam An also criticized the government for selling land to Vietnam.
The majority party of Cambodia, the Cambodian People’s Party, maintains positive relations with their Southeast Asian neighbor, Vietnam; however, the Cambodian National Rescue Party, the main opposition party in Cambodia, has been far more critical of this relationship. Despite current friendly relations between the two states, anti-Vietnamese sentiments remain strong in Cambodia. This bigotry reached its peak during the Khmer Rouge period and the subsequent Cambodian-Vietnamese War, when Vietnam was made a scapegoat and the target of Khmer Rouge propaganda.
Prime Minister Hun Sen and his Cambodian People’s Party have been accused of taking steps to weaken their opponents’ political power and ensure the continued domination of the Cambodian People’s Party in the Cambodian government. The government has been using charges such as these against Um Sam An, or threats of them, against their critics in order to consolidate power.
The pattern of the Cambodian government in taking steps to silence their opponents marks a concerning shift away from the trend towards growing democracy in Cambodia. The Kingdom of Cambodia is a constitutional monarchy with a unitary parliament. Although it is not a republic, Cambodia does indeed have democratic institutions which now appear to be increasingly weakened by Hun Sen’s government.