A House of Representatives bipartisan resolution authored by Congressmember Alan Lowenthal (CA-47) and Congressmember Matt Salmon (AZ-05) calling for the respect of human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Cambodia has unanimously passed out of the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s Asia and the Pacific Subcommittee. The resolution now heads to the full House Foreign Affairs Committee for consideration.
“I am deeply concerned that there is an accelerated deterioration of democracy and human rights in Cambodia,” Lowenthal said. “This resolution states, unequivocally, that the United States supports an environment in Cambodia that not only respects political opposition, but both human rights and the rule of law.”
The resolution points out that under the nearly 30-year rule of Prime Minister Hun Sen, political freedom in Cambodia has been under increasing threat from the Hun Sen government.
“It is critical for Cambodia’s standing in the global community that the upcoming general election in 2017 and 2018 be free and fair,” Lowenthal said. “Credibility for this election can only be achieved if the Hun Sen government ends all political repression and respects the rights and freedoms of the Cambodian people.”
The credibility of the last general election, held in 2013, was criticized by numerous domestic and international organizations.
While the Cambodia National Rescue Party, the country’s main opposition party, made historic gains in the 2013 election, opposition party members face continual harassment by security forces and the Cambodian government. The government of Hun Sen has acted to restrict not only the political opposition, but civil society, nongovernmental organizations, and independent media, according to Lowenthal’s office.
Since the 2013 elections, opposition parliamentarians have been expelled from parliament, harassed by the government, and even attacked in the streets of Phnom Penh, Lowenthal said.
Source: Lowenthal’s office
