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Cambodia's new challenges in As



Subject: Cambodia's new challenges     in Asean

Editorial & Opinion 

     Regional Perspective:
     Cambodia's new challenges
     in Asean

     PHNOM PENH -- When Prime Minister Hun
     Sen met Asean Secretary General Rodolfo
     Severino early this week in Phnom Penh, he
     reiterated that Cambodia will uphold the
     Asean spirit and solidarity. 

     It is a very reassuring statement from the
     man, who earlier had criticised and made
     sarcastic remarks about the grouping. 

     The meeting between Hun Sen and Severino
     was symbolic as it capped the long years and
     often rough road that Cambodia took to
     associate with Asean one way or another.
     When former foreign minister Prince Norodom
     Sirivudh attended the Asean meeting in
     Singapore in 1993 as guest of the host -- the
     first official contact with Asean after the
     United Nation-sponsored election a year
     earlier -- and said that Cambodia wanted to
     join Asean there was immediately a sense of
     deja vu. Cambodia would have been the first
     of the former Indochinese states to be
     admitted into Asean. But as it turned out, it
     took six years to fulfil that dream. 

     Although Cambodia's turbulent relations with
     Asean has ended, the country is facing a
     double dilemma: how to conduct itself inside
     the grouping and fulfil its commitments within
     the framework of Asean. 

     One of the biggest changes in Cambodia
     today concerns politics and rhetoric. Hun Sen
     is no longer taking up a combative position
     against his political opponents at home or
     feeling unwanted by the region, which used to
     frown upon his leadership. 

     The extent of political transformation that has
     taken place inside Cambodia -- from a petty
     Marxist-Stalinist state into an emerging
     modern nation with all the symptoms of a
     young democracy -- is remarkable. 

     Of late, Hun Sen has begun to talk about
     good governance and transparency,
     anti-corruption, democracy and respect for
     human rights. Doubtless, as western donor
     countries and non-governmental organisations
     have repeatedly pointed out, he still has a
     long way to go to match his words with
     deeds. Nonetheless, the international
     community and aid donors consider his verbal
     gestures as a good start. They are more
     ready than ever before to give him the benefit
     of the doubt and expedite their assistance
     given the long war-ravaged years the country
     has gone through. 

     Cambodia today is one of the freest
     members of Asean. The care-free lifestyles
     and freedom of its people have been the envy
     of their northern and western neighbours. The
     country has all the right ingredients, albeit
     fragile, to move forward towards a civil
     society. Human rights, citizen and grassroot
     organisations have proliferated. Despite
     official intimidation, the Cambodian press is
     relatively free and critical in serving as a
     watchdog. Without doubt, Cambodia needs to
     improve a great deal on the rule of law. 

     As a former Indochinese state, being vibrant
     and free can pose a serious problem. Indeed,
     Cambodia has been very sensitive in the
     handling of its relations with former
     ideological allies since the Cambodian conflict
     ended. The Cambodian leaders have acted
     and talked as if their country's radical political
     transformation or ''political correctness'' is an
     isolated case and will have no impact on their
     friends. 

     They fear that if they over-emphasis the
     political aspect, it will weaken -- if it has not
     already happened -- their
     several-decades-old fraternal ties. Cambodia
     is not ready for that eventuality. For one
     thing, the former Indochinese countries had
     been through the thick and thin with
     Cambodia. They are blood brothers. As far
     as Cambodia is concerned, other Asean
     countries have yet to reach that threshold. 
     In a similar vein, they also need to capitalise
     on the country's newly found democracy to
     garner more international support and attract
     foreign investment. Indeed, with a compulsory
     quarterly-review by donor countries of their
     assistance, Cambodia's future development
     path is interlocked with the donors' prevailing
     desire for an open and free society. 

     Another dilemma is how Cambodia can catch
     up with Asean activities and commitments.
     Although Cambodia has taken longer than
     other new Asean members in preparation for
     admission, it still has a lot of homework to do.

     Cambodia does have sufficient bureaucrats
     who are familiar with Asean and its
     procedures and working habits. Numerous
     officials have been trained in the past four
     years at the Jakarta-based Asean
     Secretariat and at member countries' national
     secretariats. But these experienced
     personnel normally end up moving around and
     assuming other responsibilities unrelated to
     Asean and some of them have been assigned
     posts overseas. 

     So far, Laos and Burma have been able to
     train officials who can handle Asean-related
     affairs, including attending and conducting
     meetings. For instance, Burma held a series
     of Asean meetings in the past three months.
     Cambodia will have ample time to prepare as
     it will host the Asean annual meeting only in
     2003. 

     Until recently Cambodia was faced with
     factionalism within the Foreign Ministry,
     mainly because of the quotas between the
     Cambodian People's Party and Funcipec.
     Since joining Asean, Hun Sen and Foreign
     Minister Hor Namhong have moved to instil a
     new spirit of cooperation by not taking party
     affiliation into account in reassignments, new
     positions and appointment of ambassadors. 

     In relation to Asean, Hun Sen also pledged to
     pay Cambodia's admission fee promptly,
     which stands at US$590,000, and an
     additional one-time contribution of $1 million
     to the Asean Fund. Cambodia still needs
     technical assistance to fulfil its obligations as
     part of the Asean Free Trade Area by the
     target year of 2010. 

     Cambodia's standing in the 21st Century will
     depend on how well it balances its links with
     old and new friends in Asean. While its
     fledgling democracy can best serve the
     national interest in the eyes of the
     international community, it can antagonise the
     conservative elites of neighbouring countries
     who believe in one-party rule. With
     Cambodia's flexibility and past diplomatic
     finesse, as shown by King Sihanouk over half
     a century, it will be a country to reckon with in
     continental Southeast Asia. 

     BY KAVI CHONGKITTAVORN 

     The Nation