Day: March 19, 2024

Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy said Tuesday he believes the United States and European Union can still push his country back on a path toward democracy, even as Prime Minister Hun Manet’s government shows little apparent desire to allow open dissent.

The Cambodian government has suppressed any semblance of an opposition inside the country over the past decade, dissolving Sam Rainsy’s Cambodia National Rescue Party, or CNRP, and preventing its successor parties from taking part in subsequent elections.

Like many other opposition figures, Sam Rainsy – 75 years old and living in Paris – is also subject to multiple arrest warrants if he returns home. His CNRP co-founder, Kem Sokha, has been under house arrest in Phnom Penh for years and was last year sentenced to 27 years in prison for “treason.” 

But in an interview with Radio Free Asia outside the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, Sam Rainsy said that he hoped to convince U.S. lawmakers and the Biden administration that they should not give up on Cambodia’s pro-democracy movement.

“We would like to see the U.S. administration put continuous pressure on the Cambodian government to release political prisoners, to allow a guarantee for freedom of expression and to organize free and fair elections,” he said. “But so far, this has not been achieved yet.”

Growing economic troubles in both Cambodia and its modern-day patrons in Beijing, he said, was creating a situation in which the West could have newfound leverage in Phnom Penh’s decision-making.

Pressure campaign

For years following the 1991 U.N.-organized elections in Cambodia, U.S. and EU governments forced then-Prime Minister Hun Sen to at least pay lip service to democratic ideals and allow a veneer of open society as a condition of receiving billions of dollars in aid money.

But an upgrade in ties between China and Cambodia in 2011 and a subsequent windfall of Chinese aid and investment decreased Phnom Penh’s reliance on Western governments, and allowed Hun Sen’s government to increasingly ignore any outside pressure.

And while the United States and European Union in the 2010s threatened to cut Cambodia off from lucrative trade concessions that prop up the country’s dominant garment export industry, it did not stop the repression of the opposition at the 2018 and 2023 elections.

Since 2023, though, the United States has sought to move away from pressing Cambodia’s government to move back toward free elections to instead seek ways to accommodate Hun Manet and his new government in an effort to stop it getting any closer to Beijing.

But Sam Rainsy said it was only through continued direct pressure that Cambodia’s government would decide to change course.

“Dialogue with Hun Sen, or with Hun Manet, is an illusion,” Sam Rainsy said. “I hope that the U.S. administration will realize that soon.”

“They have been wasting a lot of time believing or hoping the Hun Sen regime will liberalize or will distance itself from China,” he added. “Real and fruitful dialogue with any dictator is just impossible.” 

Ticking clock

The longtime opposition leader said that the West should not give up on hope for a pluralistic Cambodia.

A recent “charm offensive” by Hun Manet to attract Western investment “shows that China’s support is not enough” to shore-up Cambodia’s struggling economy, Sam Rainsy said, and put America and Europe in “a unique position to really push Hun Sen to make concessions.”

Meanwhile, as the years go by, Hun Manet will inevitably strive to establish a sense of legitimacy for his own rule and seek to emerge from his father’s shadow, he added, providing U.S. and EU leaders another avenue to pressure the government to change.

“Hun Sen is not eternal,” Sam Rainsy said. “He is almost 72 now, and he will not be leading the country – or at least pulling the strings from behind the scenes – for too many years to come.”

A claim emerged in Chinese-language social media posts that the European Parliament passed a bill in February to oppose the “One China principle” and support “one China and one Taiwan.” 

But the claim is misleading. The “bill” mentioned is in fact a resolution for policy recommendations. While it acknowledges that Taiwan and China are not subordinate to one another, it highlights the European Union’s “One China policy,” recognizing the government of the People’s Republic of China as the sole legal government of China.

The claim was shared on the popular Chinese social media platform Weibo on March 4. 

“On Feb. 28, the EU Parliament passed a bill against one China … In the bill, they claimed that Taiwan and China are not subordinate to each other, denied the One China principle, and supported one China, one Taiwan,” the claim reads in part.

The People’s Republic of China considers Taiwan a renegade province over which it holds sovereignty, even though the distinct Republic of China, or ROC, government has had sovereignty over the island since 1949. 

While the ROC currently only maintains official diplomatic relations with 12 countries, its government still maintains many unofficial diplomatic missions around the world, among them both with the European Union and many of its individual member states. Under pressure from Beijing, most of Taiwan’s diplomatic missions adopt the politically ambiguous term “Taipei” as their name. 

In 2021, Taiwan established its representative office in Lithuania under the name “The Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania,” within the European Union member state. 

This move provoked China, leading to a downgrade in diplomatic relations with Lithuania, as well as import restrictions and sanctions against Lithuanian officials who visited Taiwan.

The similar claim has been also shared in other Chinese-language social media posts, but it is misleading. 

Not a bill

Keyword searches found that the European Parliament passed the annual resolution of the Common Foreign and Security Policy on Feb. 28, not a bill. 

The resolution outlines the European Parliament’s specific policy recommendations for the upcoming year. 

A review of the resolution found no mention of the European Union opposing “One China” or supporting “one China and one Taiwan.”

Instead, the resolution reads that the European Union’s “One China policy” recognizes the government of the People’s Republic of China as the sole legal government of China.

However, articles 118 and 119 of the resolution do note that “Taiwan and China are not subordinate to one another” and that “only Taiwan’s democratically elected government can represent the Taiwanese people on the international stage.”

One China policy vs principle

The “One China principle” is a core conviction of the People’s Republic of China – that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China and that it should be governed from Beijing. 

But the United States and European Union hold to a distinct “One China policy,” which takes no position on sovereignty over Taiwan. 

In its annual resolution, the European Union said it remains committed to its “One China policy” and recognizes the government of the PRC as the sole government of China. Within the framework of this long-established policy, the bloc pursues cooperation and exchanges with Taiwan in areas of common interest.

Translated by Shen Ke. Edited by Taejun Kang and Malcolm Foster.

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Hong Kong’s Legislative Council on Tuesday passed a strict national security law known as Article 23 that makes treason, insurrection and sabotage punishable by up to life in prison, and that will likely widen an ongoing crackdown on peaceful dissent.

All 89 legislators voted in favor of the Safeguarding National Security bill, which will come into force on Friday, after lining up to sing the praises of the legislation at a special session attended by Chief Executive John Lee.

Critics say the ruling Communist Party has a broad and vaguely defined interpretation of many of the crimes in the bill, and that “national security” charges are already being used to prosecute people for peaceful dissent and political opposition in the city.

The Council has lacked any political opposition since changes to the electoral rules, and many former pro-democracy politicians have fled a crackdown on public dissent under the 2020 National Security Law, while others are on trial for “subversion.”

The law targets five types of offenses. It can punish people for “treason,” “insurrection,” and “sabotage” with life in prison, while those found guilty of “espionage” can face up to 20 years. Those found to have committed crimes linked to “state secrets” and “sedition” face up to 10 years in prison.

The new law also gives new powers to the police and courts to extend pre-charge detention for those held on suspicion of endangering national security to up to 16 days and to restrict detainees’ meetings with their lawyers. 

Under the law, the authorities will also have the power to revoke the passports of anyone who flees overseas and is considered an “absconder.”

The legislation is mandated by Article 23 of Hong Kong’s Basic Law, which has provided a constitutional framework for the city since the 1997 handover to Chinese rule. 

It was recently rebooted after being shelved following mass popular protests against it in 2003.

Edited by Malcolm Foster and Luisetta Mudie.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with his Philippine counterpart in Manila on Tuesday to lay the groundwork for a summit between the leaders of the United States, the Philippines and Japan next month.

U.S. President Joe Biden, Philippine leader Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will meet in Washington on April 11 for trilateral talks that will focus on protecting a “free and open” Indo-Pacific region, according to the White House.

Speaking at a press conference alongside Blinken, Filipino Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo said the three-way summit aimed to capitalize on “complementarities” between the countries, notably in infrastructure, critical minerals, energy and maritime security.

Blinken said that collaboration on defense and economic issues would only result in all three countries becoming stronger. “So that’s what the summit is about, as well as our work together to uphold international law,” he said.

He and Manalo had discussed ways of streamlining the budding trilateral alliance “to make sure that even as we have this leaders’ summit, we have mechanisms in place to make sure there are things working together day in day out.”

Blinken’s visit comes at a crucial moment in bilateral relations between the two allies, who have ramped up defense cooperation amid increasing Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea, including in waters that fall within the Philippine’s exclusive economic zone.

China claims nearly all of the South China Sea while dismissing the territorial claims of several Southeast Asian nations and Taiwan.

Manalo said he had thanked Blinken for Washington’s “consistent support,” particularly in regards to Chinese harassment of Filipino supply boats.

In the most recent incident, four Filipino sailors sustained minor injuries earlier this month when China Coast Guard boats intercepted a supply vessel and fired at them with water cannons.

“We discussed regional issues, especially the situation in the South China Sea, and I stated that the Philippines is committed to managing disputes in accordance with our national interests, the rules-based international order and international law, especially UNCLOS,” Manalo said, referring to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

“We reaffirmed our shared view that a strong and capable Philippines would make a formidable ally for the United States.” 

Blinken reiterated Washington’s “ironclad commitments” to defend the Philippines from outside aggression.

He also said the two allies had shared concerns about Chinese “actions that threaten our common vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific,” including within the Philippine exclusive economic zone.

On Tuesday, China’s foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said the U.S. had no right to interfere in disputes between Manila and Beijing and China would take the necessary actions to defend its territory.

“Military cooperation between the United States and the Philippines should not harm China’s sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea, let alone be used to prop up the Philippines’ illegal position,” Lin told a regular briefing, according to a report from Reuters. 

Blinken is expected to meet with Marcos later on Tuesday. The Philippine leader recently returned from a trip to Germany and the Czech Republic in which he criticized Beijing’s expansive territorial claims and sought support for a free and open South China Sea. 

Camille Elemia contributed reporting from Manila.

BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated online news organization.

Gunmen in northern Myanmar assassinated a religious leader in a Christian community in what sources close to the man’s family are calling a targeted attack.

Three men carrying guns stormed 47-year-old Nammye Hkun Jaw Li’s computer shop in Kachin state’s Mogaung township on Monday. 

“Three men came and said they wanted to print on vinyl and shot him dead. They shot him in his stomach twice, and when he did not die, they also shot him in the head,” said a source close to the family in Nam Ma Tee village, asking to remain anonymous for security reasons. 

Nammye Hkun Jaw Li was active in anti-military protests in Kachin state and a well-known community leader. He was also a former township executive of the Kachin Baptist Convention and a member of a community-based anti-drug organization called Pat Jasan.

Nam Ma Tee villagers are still investigating the identity of the men who killed Nammye Hkun Jaw Li, who is survived by his wife and three children.

Political fighting in Kachin state has taken a religious turn before.

Nearly two years after the country’s 2021 military coup, the junta ordered the arrest of prominent Christian leader Hkalam Samson on Dec. 4, 2022 for his close ties to the Kachin Independence Army. He was sentenced to six years in prison on April 7, 2023.

The area has also seen a resurgence in fighting as rebels take territory from the junta military. The Kachin Independence Army has seized a major road and 14 junta camps in addition to shutting down a regional airport with missile attacks in Kachin state. Junta troops have retaliated with indiscriminate attacks on civilians, torching homes and dropping bombs on villages in February. 

Most recently, junta shelling in Kachin state’s Kan Ni village killed two mothers and their three children, villagers told RFA on Wednesday.

More than 10,000 residents have fled their homes in fear of battles across six townships, including Bhamo and Hpakant, according to a joint statement by civil societies in Kachin state.

A March 16 statement by the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners reported 11 civilians were killed in Kachin state from March 1 to 15 by heavy junta artillery and airstrikes.

Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan and Mike Firn.