Strengthen Democracy by strengthening Civil Society in Cambodia

“ A SINGLE STICK BREAKS EASILY, BUT A BUNDLE STANDS THE STRAIN” Nhek Sarin, Executive Director of STAR Kampuchea ASPBAE Basic Leadership Development Course March 29, 2008 Siem Reap, Cambodia 1

CONTENTS

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Cambodian Geography and Its current situation Cambodian History Cambodian Democracy Bad Governance Development of Cambodian NGOs Achievements of Cambodian NGOs Conclusion 2

1. Cambodian Geography and Its Current Situation       Total Land: 183 035 Km squares Population: around 13 millions 53% of total population are women, 65% of them working for agricultural and textile industry sectors 91% of the country’s poor living in rural areas Agriculture sector accounts for almost half of total economics Civil wars from the 1970 -93 diminished the country’s population and thus vital human resources “Cambodia Is A poor Country” 3

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2. Cambodian History

 Angkor: Glory Empire Century  1865 – 1953 between 12 French Colonial Era th – 16 th  1953 – 1970 Monarchy Regime  1970 – 1975 Republic Regime  1975 – 1979 Pol Pot and Khmer Rouge Terror 6

Brother number 1: Pol Pot (Saloth Sar), 1925-1998

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CPK Secretary General Prime Minister of DK, 1976-1979

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 Genocide against Buddhist monks, Khmer krom (Khmers with Vietnamese descent), the Vietnamese, the Chinese, the Muslim Cham minorities.

“the Year Zero”.

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Cambodia Killing Field sites, 1975-1979 11

…Cambodian History

 1979 – 1989 People’s Republic of Kampuchea  1991 Paris Peace Accord  1992 Start of the UNTAC Era 12

…Cambodian History

      1993 First National Election 1993 Passing of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia 1996 Violent conflicts 1998 2 nd National Election / stalemate of government formation 2003 3 rd 2008 4 th National Election National Election be in 27 July 13

3. Cambodian Democracy

   Elections - not satisfactory free and fair Executive, legislative and court – the power is not clearly separate Constitution, based on principles of liberal democracy and pluralism – but is not fully implemented 14

 Freedom of the press, of expression, to form political parties and associations – not always respected  Cambodia can hardly be seen as a full democracy in a broader sense.

 Hun Sen’s CPP has no real challenges to his power.

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4. Bad Governance…

 Shrinking democratic space and human rights violations  Bureaucracy; lack of transparency  Corruption within the government, administration and the court; impunity.

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…Bad Governance

Nepotism within the private and the public sector No protection of rights of Cambodia’s indigenous ethnic minorities Global Witness report “Cambodian Family Trees” June 2007: Cambodia is run by an elite that generate much of its wealth via the seizure of public assets, particularly natural resources”.

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5. Development of the Cambodian NGOs

   Establishment of CSOs/NGOs, most of them concentrating on human rights, democracy, fair election and relief work. CSOs have become a political actor in Cambodia Today there are approx. 2,000 registered NGOs in Cambodia 18

…. Development of the Cambodian NGOs

  At the beginning, the government did not recognize NGOs as legitimate political actors.

Until today NGOs are partly oppressed and threatened by the government. For example, some NGO and unions federation’s activists were jailed in December 2005. 19

6. Achievements of the Cambodian NGOs

NGOs address the political system to  express their opinions and  influence decision makers. They address the political system  formally and informally and  at high and low political levels.

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…Achievements of the Cambodian NGOs

 Public Forums That are meetings with authorities to create a basis for policy making and peaceful conflict solution at the local level.

 Cooperation to education authorities and the people Includes workshops, training courses, seminars. 21

…Achievements of the Cambodian NGOs

 Participation in the legislative process Includes lobbying, workshops and meetings to discuss draft laws with state representatives .  Other co-operations Include cooperation in working groups or joint organization of events.

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…Achievements of the Cambodian NGOs

 Nearly all NGOs stay in contact with the local authorities in the provinces  Many NGOs are able to address high governmental representatives and ministries 23

…Conclusion

   NGOs participates in several political processes; sometime their political participation of NGOs is restricted Represent, strengthen and channel the voice of the people; Act as the people’s advocates towards the government 24

…Conclusion

    Regular contact with state representatives Contributes ideas and recommendation into the legislative process Voices are heard by the government, but more often ignored Well recognized in the public, by international organizations and the media 25

…Conclusion

 The development of a strong NGOs movement and political participation are important steps on the way towards pluralist democracy  NGOs contribute to a continuing democratization in Cambodia 26

WANGO CIVIL SOCIETY DEVELOPMENT AWARD, HUNGARY 2004

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Plan for tomorrow, but LIVE for today

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR ATTENTION!!!!

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