11 April 2014
Cambodia's prime
minister said Thursday that he expects a political stalemate that has seen the
opposition boycott Parliament to end by this weekend with a deal between the
two sides. Prime Minister Hun Sen said he and opposition leader Sam Rainsy have
tentatively agreed to sign a pact Friday to implement political reforms, so
that the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party would take parliamentary
seats it won in last July's general election. He said the breakthrough came
during a nearly hour-long telephone conversation between the two men on
Wednesday.
The opposition
challenged the results of the election, alleging it was rigged by Hun Sen's
ruling Cambodian People's Party. The Cambodia Daily newspaper quoted Sam Rainsy
as confirming a tentative agreement for a Friday signing.
A spokesman for the
opposition party and a member of Parliament, confirmed that the two party
leaders spoke, and said they agreed on reform of the state election body and
broadcasting rules, so as to allow the opposition its own television and radio
stations. He said they did not agree on a date for an early general election,
with Sam Rainsy calling for holding in it 2017. Hun Sen said he would agree to
move up the polling date to February 2018 from July 2018, which would allow
voting to take place in better weather, with no likelihood of tropical rains.
Hun Sen said the
agreement would be signed Friday in front of King Norodom Sihamoni at the Royal
Palace if deputy opposition leader Kem Sokha endorses it. The draft agreement
is under preparation, he said.
The opposition
initially demanded an independent investigation into last July's polls, and
refused to take their seats in Parliament when the government would not agree
to the probe. They have been protesting for several months and demanding that
Hun Sen step down and call new elections.
The official election
results extended Hun Sen's 28-year rule by giving his party 68 seats in the
National Assembly, compared to 55 for the Cambodia National Rescue Party — a
significant boost over the 29 seats the opposition held in the previous Parliament.
Source:
No comments:
Post a Comment