UN rights envoy defends role in Cambodia

 

Surya Subedi

ABC Radio Australia 27 May 2013

The United Nations special human rights envoy on Cambodia has rejected government criticism of him as biased, saying he's an objective, independent UN expert.

UN rights envoy defends role in Cambodia (Credit: ABC)

And he says while there has been progress towards democratisation in Cambodia, that progress has been, at times, frustratingly slow.

Surya Subedi completed his ninth mission to Cambodia on Saturday.

But he was unable to meet either the King, or Prime Minister Hun Sen during the trip.

Bo Hill spoke with Mr Subedi straight after his weekend media conference, and began by asking him about the aims of his latest trip.

Reporter: Bo HIll

Speaker: Surya Subedi, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights to Cambodia

SUBEDI: I thought the time had come for me to carry stocktaking of the recommendations of the overall situation of human rights and see what progress has been made to implement my recommendations and to engage in a dialogue with the government over access in the Cambodian society and then see what will be the way forward here.

HILL: And do you think there's been progress made?

SUBEDI: There has been progress made in a number of areas. This time the government, the various senior ministers I've met were forthcoming with information,  willing to admit deficiencies of what they exist, giving me assurance that some of the recommendations are being implemented, some of them will be implemented, even giving me some existing  timeframe to implement some of my recommendations.

All in all, I thought these meetings were constructive, cordial and candid.

HILL: Did you get to meet with those leaders that you'd hoped to, including the King and Prime Minister Hun Sen?

SUBEDI: I was not able to meet with the Prime Minister and His Majesty, the King, but the Prime Minister deputised a senior minister and President of the Cambodian Human Rights Committee, Mr Om Yentieng, to meet with me on his behalf, that was what I was able to have a meaningful dialogue with him.

HILL: And were you surprised that the Prime Minister was unable to meet you?

SUBEDI: Oh, not necessarily. I was told on Monday, that he'll be able to meet with me, but I was given to understand that he was abroad and that when he came back, he had to go to the provinces to act on some issues. So I can understand the situation.

HILL: The Opposition leader, Sam Rainsy, told Radio Australia last week, that he was confident he would be able to return to Cambodia for the July election and that the UN would help insist on that. What representations did you make about Sam Rainsy?

SUBEDI; Well, my approach here has been to assess the system, the electoral reform or the judicial reform, or electoral reform or parliamentary reform, putting the system right, making sure that all the district institutions would have a mandate to uphold people's rights are able to operate in an effective manner, that has been my focus, rather than individual cases.

HILL: You've described the July elections as a landmark in Cambodia's journey towards democratisation. But can the election be fair, if someone as prominent in the Opposition as Sam Rainsy is not allowed to compete?

SUBEDI: Well, that is a hypothetical question. A formal election campaign has not yet begun, and we are still two months away from the election. My job is to monitor the situation of human rights, more so in the run up to the elections, so that people can exercise their right to vote. Once the election comes, once the election is over, then I, along with many other national and international actors will assess the situation and will come to their own conclusion.

HILL: How far down the track towards that reform is Cambodia, do you see?

SUBEDI: Well, as I say, for instance, there has been some progress in some areas. In some areas the progress has been frustratingly slow, but the purpose of my mission is to engage in a dialogue with the government to discuss these very issues and this time, the meetings have been productive.

HILL: You met with a government representative, in fact, the President of the Cambodian Human Rights Committee, who called by biased towards the Opposition and your views inaccurate. What's your response?

SUBEDI: Well, I do not agree with that assertion, I'm an independent and objective and impartial United Nations expert. I listen to all sides of the equation . I receive regularly, whether I'm on a mission in Cambodia or not, regularly information, petition, complaints, reports from different actors, from people from different walks of life send me that information. I verify some of the information. I come to my own conclusion and I write my reports in an objective, impartial and independent manner.

And there was a document that Mr Om Yentieng referred to which never reached me. But now he has given me a copy of that one, which I look forward to reading and reflecting upon  when I write my next report.

HILL: So you have reports from the Cambodian government or at least one of their representatives. But do you believe that the Cambodian government in turn has taken any real notice of your past recommendations?

SUBEDI: Yes. During this mission, I met with President of the Foreign Relations Committee of the National Assembly, President of the Cambodian Human Rights Committee, President of the Cambodian National Election Committee, the Secretary of the State in the Ministry of Justice, and Secretary-General of Senate and representatives of different political parties and I was given the impression that they are looking at my recommendations with a view to implementing as much as they can.

HILL: Do you have any concerns in the lead up to the July elections, including worries about violence?

SUBEDI: Of course, going by the past history of the country, I will continue to monitor, that will be in my mind and I would like to do my best and along with me, many other international actors are doing their best to make sure that Cambodia receives appropriate assistance to hold the national elections in a free and a fair manner and in a peaceful environment.

HILL: You gave a lecture at the Royal University of Law and Economics, and during the question and answers session with the students, it was basically hijacked by other students criticising you and insisting Cambodia has no human rights problems. Do you think there is still a need for a UN Human Rights envoy to Cambodia?

SUBEDI: Indeed, there is still a need for it, because whether, regardless of my personal position. The country still needs international assistance to reform its state institutions  to accelerate the process of democratisation to make democracy stronger and to have rule of law, a genuine one in this country,

The international community has invested heavily in Cambodia since 1991, when the Paris peace accords were concluded, since 1993, when UNTAC  assisted the country in conducting the first general elections. Since then, the international community has invested heavily, the international community has had an interest in making sure that the government of Cambodia, the people of Cambodia, are able to move along the road to democracy.

HILL: Do you feel that your report back to the UN Human Rights Council in September, will be more positive than the last one?

SUBEDI: Well, it's not a matter of positive or negative. It's an objective analysis and that's what I have always done. I will also write my report bearing in mind that I'm an independent, objective, and impartial United Nations Special Rapporteur.

Based on the information I have received, there are areas in which not enough progress has been made and that will be registered in my report.

Source: ABC