Cambodia’s record of peaceful democratization

 

Despite criticism, there are reasons to believe that the July 23 election will be legitimate

by Sim Vireak July 5, 2023    Asia Times
 

 

Prime Minister Hun Sen's long-ruling party will seek yet another mandate in July 2023. Photo: Wikimedia Commons / Alex Willemyns

On July 23, Cambodia will witness another historical milestone, the seventh quinquennial national election.

This election further reflects the peaceful democratization in Cambodia based on the rule of law.

Cambodia is a rare example among post-conflict nations in three aspects.

First, it is among the few post-conflict countries that did not fall back into civil war.

From a historical perspective, peace is the most important prerequisite for Cambodia as it continues to develop into one of the most successful post-conflict nations. Many nations, such as Afghanistan, Congo, Haiti, Lebanon, Somalia, Sierra Leone, and Sudan, that received United Nations peacekeepers in the 1990s are still in conflict.

In contrast, since the UN-brokered election in 1993, Cambodia has been generally peaceful without large-scale conflict.

After the integration of the remaining Khmer Rouge forces in late 1998 through the “win-win” policy of Prime Minister Hun Sen, Cambodia united its national army for the first time. That was key to eliminating a structure of violence that had existed in Cambodian politics for a long time.

For instance, until late 1998, Cambodian political parties still controlled different factions of the army, and therefore the system provided room for violence when different parties could not reconcile their differences. The clash in July 1997 was the prime example of armed struggle between troops that were loyal to the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) and the FUNCINPEC party.

Therefore, for a country like Cambodia, achieving unity of the national army cannot be underrated in terms of its contribution to peace.