A Change of Guard

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Wednesday 16 July 2014

Cambodian police seize opposition MPs as violence hits protest



By Michael Peel and David Pilling in Phnom Penh

A police officer scuffles with protesters during clashes at Freedom Park in central Phnom Penh July 15, 2014. Opposition party supporters clashed with police on Tuesday after an attempted "Free Freedom Park" rally by the opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) against police officers occupying Freedom Park. Freedom Park, where the CNRP had held rallies in support of striking garment workers, has been sealed off by the police since a crackdown on the strikes in January 2014. REUTERS/Samrang Pring (CAMBODIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT)©Reuters
Police and protesters clash in the Cambodian capital's Freedom Park
Cambodian security forces seized three high-profile opposition MPs on Tuesday, after the worst clashes for months in the political crisis plaguing the fast-growing southeast Asian economy.
At least 16 people were injured as activists from an anti-government movement, whose supporters range from diaspora intellectuals to garment workers, attempted to take over a Phnom Penh park in a fresh protest against last year’s disputed election.
The sustained deadlock over last year’s July 28 poll is chipping away at the administration of Hun Sen, the strongman who has ruled for almost 30 years in a country with an expanding export industry and which is an important regional ally of China.
“We need to change the prime minister,” said Uy Srey Nich, a student at the Freedom Park demonstration. “He does not respect human rights and he never gave justice to Cambodia.”
Three parliamentarians, including Mu Sochua – a former women’s minister who once led a campaign to deport Gary Glitter, the British former pop star – were removed from their car and detained by police after the hundreds-strong rally, witnesses said.
Security forces broke up the gathering after clashes between opposition activists and baton-wielding official security guards, some of whom were left bloodied and battered on the ground.
Licadho, a Cambodian non-governmental group, said it was “deeply shocked” by the injuries to at least 10 security guards and six protesters, adding that the government security cadre involved had often attacked demonstrators during a six-month crackdown on peaceful assembly.
The government said 22 guards were injured, in what it called an illegal attempt to occupy a park now cordoned off with barbed wire to prevent it becoming a rallying point. The park was closed in January after at least four demonstrators were killed in Phnom Penh by security forces during protests by clothing workers.

The opposition’s protests and its refusal to take up its seats in parliament over alleged fraud at the election have undermined Hun Sen’s efforts to portray himself as a democrat combining tolerance of criticism with good economic management. While gross domestic product has been growing at more than 7 per cent a year as Cambodia’s cheap labour has attracted manufacturing from higher-cost countries such as China and Thailand, domestic anger has been rising over problems ranging from corruption to land grabs.
Cambodia’s troubles add to the political shake-up under way in a turbulent region that has in the past few months seen a disputed election in Indonesia, a coup in Thailand and riots against foreign businesses in Vietnam.
While Cambodia has been lavished with aid by China and is a valuable supporter in its maritime disputes with other southeast Asian nations, Beijing has shown signs of hedging its bets on Hun Sen. China’s official news agency in December called for the prime minister to act quickly to restore his popularity through “serious and deep reforms”.

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