Khmer Times/Pav Suy
Sunday, 02 August 2015
PHNOM PENH (Khmer Times) – Over the past few months, the ruling Cambodian People’s Party has been working overtime to change perceptions that it kowtows to Vietnam, but members of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party continue to describe it as a “puppet of Hanoi.”
The CPP has been talking tough on border disputes and deporting undocumented Vietnamese migrants in high-profile fashion, but its critics say it has not gone far enough.
“The government must crack down on these illegals, clearly and widely,” CNRP spokesman Yim Sovann told Khmer Times.
From April through June, 2,383 undocumented workers were deported from Cambodia, 75 percent of them were Vietnamese, according to data from the government.
CNRP Wants More Vietnamese Deported
The opposition says that Cambodia has millions of Chinese and Vietnamese immigrant workers. The government, however, puts the number at roughly 160,000.
“We demand that Cambodian authorities crack down on all undocumented migrant workers and illegal immigration in the Kingdom,” said Mr. Sovann. “Because the country has several million [illegal immigrants]. It’s not a few hundred people. There are especially a lot of Vietnamese and Chinese people who illegally live in the Kingdom.”
Chea Vannath, social and political analyst, said “the government is showing that it is not a puppet.”
Territorial Disputes
In another case, the Cambodian government has been accused by the opposition and civil society organizations of losing territory to Vietnam based on the current demarcation process. Following a heated June 28 confrontation, the Council of Ministers held a press conference about the process, claiming the government has completed 80 percent of demarcation. Meanwhile, the government also requested the involvement of major powers and the United Nations, convening a meeting on the border dispute with its Vietnamese counterparts.
During the July 14 meeting on the border demarcation, Interior Minister Sar Kheng blamed the opposition for using the border issue for political gain.
“Some people use the border dispute for their group’s political benefits,” he said, adding that, “It is not good to use politics to serve only a particular group.”
Political analyst Ros Ravuth said that, “The government has something to gain from its effort to deal with the border dispute and illegal immigrants. It both shows it is not under the influence of Vietnamese and wants to show the government is adhering to laws.”
Em Sovannara, political analyst, said: “Cambodia has its sovereignty and independence. And what they are doing is a result of 2013 in which the two issues related to Vietnam were the sensitive issues upon which the ruling Cambodian People’s Party lost its edge to the opposition.
“The ruling party learned from this,” he said.
Ms. Vannath said that, “The ruling party moved in the right direction to try to find a proper professional mechanism to solve the problem based on the rule of law, and also by getting other superpowers involved in the process.
“If we negotiate border disputes with another country, we have to show our strength and unity among parties, even with the opposition. In Cambodia we have a saying – ‘you can break one chopstick but not a bunch of them’.”
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