The opposition CNRP, seeking to have the official results of the 2013 legislative elections which saw the ruling CPP win by a small margin overturned, still beats the campaign trail, keeping the momentum going ahead of a three day demonstration planned to start on September 15th.
The photographs from the 2013 elections can be seen HERE on my regularly updated website…
The National Election Committee in Cambodia has confirmed the results of the 2013 legislative elections: 68 seats (22 less compared to the previous elections) for the ruling CPP, 55 (26 more than last time) for the opposition CNRP. That is 3,227,729 votes for the CPP or 48,79% against 2,941,133 votes or 44.45% for the CNRP (the rest of the % goes to a few -now insignificant- parties). None of the officially filed complaints turned out to be a game-changer (they were mostly rejected).
It is close.
Based on numerous allegations of vote rigging, the CNRP quite obviously does not agree with the results. At a press conference this sunday, a 3-day demonstration was announced starting September 15th. It is not clear yet if it will be a sit-in, a march or a sleep-in at ‘Freedom Place’.
It certainly will increase the tension a notch. The relatively tolerant attitude until now of the authorities towards the public manifestations, be it from striking workers or the CNRP, may well fade away. This time the large amounts of police and army units supported by armoured vehicles in and around the capital might play a less passive role.
The photographs from the 2013 elections can be seen HERE on my regularly updated website…
The opposition CNRP confirms its support base is solid by gathering between 12,000 and 15,000 people at and around ‘Freedom Park’ to protest the Cambodian 2013 legislative elections. The CNRP gained an impressive number of additional seats at the expense of the ruling CPP but claims outright victory after having collected evidence of large-scale fraud. The allegations of fraud were mostly rejected by the Constitutional Council. The official and final results will be announced Sunday September 8th.
What will be the next move? Who, from the CNRP or the CPP, will make the first strategic mistake? Exciting times in Cambodia…
More on the 2013 elections HERE.
This time the ‘Youth Group for Peace’ managed to deliver its message to (a few of) the armed forces near the Ministry of Defence: words of peace accompanied with a few lotus flowers. A massive deployment of armed forces in the Phnom Penh area ahead of a probably peacefull mass ‘gathering’ organised by the opposition CNRP to dispute the past legislative elections’ results, has triggered a fair amount of concern amongst the population of a violent outcome of the demonstration.
Some 40 citizens and monks gathered yesterday evening at the ‘knotted gun’ sculpture in front of the Chroy Changva bridge to pray for a peacefull resolution (see als HERE and HERE) of the 2013 legislative elections which allegedly saw massive frauds and ahead of a much anticipated/feared mass ‘gathering’ of the opposition CNRP supporters tomorrow morning.
More on the 2013 elections HERE…
After ending their 10-day long strike (see HERE and HERE) at the SL Garment Processing (Cambodia) Ltd factory, some 600 workers, mostly members of the CAWDU (Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Union) were fired by the management. Today, about 1500 marched for three hours from their factory to city hall and blocked Monivong boulevard for several hours.
UPDATE: following the demonstration, the fired workers were allowed back at their workplace the next day.
Busy day yesterday: ‘Free Yorm Bopha’ demonstration in the morning (see HERE). And that same afternoon: rehearsal in non-violent demonstration techniques staged by the opposition CNRP ahead of the much anticipated mass demonstration planned for saturday regarding the alleged frauds in the 2013 legislative elections (see HERE).
Yorm Bopha, land rights activist, has spent 365 days at the Prey Sar prison today. She was sentenced based on what is widely seen as trumped up charges. She is an Amnesty International Prisoner of Conscience. Her community, the people from Boeung Kak lake and those from Borei Keila, joined in a demonstration at Wat Phnom, followed by a march to the Supreme Court to once again ask for her release. Her community is entangled in a land issue since 2007.
The whole story can be found HERE and HERE.
Or you can dig deep into Cambodian land issues through the ‘The Quest’, an app for the iPad available HERE.