I nfomation Minister Ieng Mouly was moved to send in this letter after
reading Douc Rasy's outspoken remarks in the Post
Douc Rasy's statements, as reported by the Phnom Penh Post of March 25 -
April 7, 1994 on the Cambodian people and the Royal Government, contained a
number of unfounded allegations and charges. On the Cambodian people he said,
for instance, that "Khmers cannot govern themselves"; and, based on past
situations, "we [Cambodians] do not have the tradition of a responsible
democratic government".
I admire Douc Rasy's knowledge about his own
people but to say that they cannot govern themselves, first, is simply a wild
statement with no factual evidence to support.
Secondly, it is verging
on an insult to his nation and to its iron will and determination to brave all
obstacles to elect their leaders in May 1993. And this will and determination
won them admiration all over the world.
This will and aspirations have now been enshrined in the country's
Constitution. Furthermore, since before those elections, all parties have
committed themselves to multi-party liberal democracy, the respect for human
rights and the guarantee and protection of fundamental freedoms, and all of this
has been enshrined in the same Constitution,
Since those elections the
situation has changed drastically for the better. The police state has fast
disappeared; freedom of expression has flourished with the publication of some
thirty newspapers; no one has been thrown in jail for their thoughts or beliefs,
or for their criticism of the government; everybody can go about their business
free of intimidation; and they can present their grievances to the government or
to the National Assembly, as cases of peaceful demonstrations have
shown.
A big step has been achieved in national reconciliation when the
major parties in opposition agreed to form the Royal Government and work
together for the well-being of the Cambodian people.
This government has always responded, and will continue to respond, to the
wishes and aspirations of the Cambodian people. The Government itself as a
group, its individual Ministers and Members of the national Assembly have
listened to the people's grievances and have endeavored to meet their needs. If
Douc Rasy cared to watch TV, listen to radio or read newspapers, he would not
fail to find that what the Royal Government had been doing and its activities,
proving wrong his charges and allegations of absence of responsible democratic
government.
Indeed the Royal Government is facing an enormous task of
rebuilding a country virtually ruined by conflict for more than 23 years.
Nevertheless, it has set out to lay the foundation of the rule of law by
drafting a set of laws befitting a liberal democracy, reorganizing the
judiciary, law courts, government departments and other institutions to enforce
this rule of law and serve the people better. It is also laying the foundation
for economic and social development. Further economic reforms are being
introduced to inspire public confidence and provide assurances and guarantees to
serious investors. There is now monetary stability with the riel around 2,500 to
the dollar, and inflation under control. Economic infrastructure is being
rebuilt as roads and bridges are being repaired and plans for expansion are
being developed. Health services are being improved and education is being
reformed. Plans for the expansion of this sector are also being
developed.
However, as Samdech Krom Preah the First Prime Minister has
mentioned in a recent interview, this foundation is still invisible as it is
under the ground. But this foundation is solid to support the structure that
will soon emerge above the ground. These facts run counter to Douc Rasy's
regrettable charges that "little progress has been made since the elections" and
that "nothing is happening."
Douc Rasy charged that "corruption is
everywhere" and advocated tight control by donor countries otherwise foreign aid
"will be frittered away" and "will quickly disappear into pockets of government
officials and conniving businessmen".
To him government officials and
businessmen are simply ruthless sharks and foreign aid their prey. He wanted to
protect this prey so much so that he advocated that "an international governing
force is the country's only hope", and that foreign experts were needed to come
and tell the Cambodian people "this is how you do it."
The Royal
Government does need foreign technical expertise and many foreign experts have
come to help and they have done a good job.
But it is a pity Douc Rasy
has so low an opinion of his fellow countrymen and of their ability. It is a
pity that a scholar of his caliber did not realize that the Cambodian people,
like other peoples in the world, had high expectations, expectations which no
government, however experienced it might be, could meet in so short a time. It
is also a pity Douc Rasy pinned his hopes on a foreign force whose performance
in Cambodia itself in the past and elsewhere has remained a very moot point to
say the least.
There are of course bad apples in the barrel but the Royal
Government has not hesitated to take action against those bad elements.
Corruption, arbitrariness and exactions on the part of government officials have
been declining, and the Royal Government is convinced that once the principal
laws of the land have been adopted, once the organization of government
departments have been completed, once the judiciary and law courts have been
firmly established, and once justice officers have gained enough training and
skills, room for corruption, arbitrariness and exactions will be drastically
reduced.
Douc Rasy claimed that "human rights are luxury goods - human
rights look like the prize for foreign aid." He forgot that human rights are not
entirely new to the Cambodian people - definitely not a prize for foreign aid.
He should have remembered that the Cambodian people had already won several
human rights back in 1946 when the French rulers of the Kingdom of Cambodia were
forced to give some democratic rights (freedom of expression and of
association). His Majesty the King of Cambodia bestowed human rights to his
subjects in 1947 when he promulgated the 1947 Constitution which transformed the
Kingdom into a Constitutional Monarchy. It should be remembered that the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights came a year after!
Many Cambodians
have since continued to uphold or fight for human rights and democracy, and some
have paid dearly for that. It would be a mockery of the memories of the hundreds
of thousands - if not millions - of fellow Cambodians who fell victims to the
brutal violations of their rights to say that human rights are "luxury goods" or
the "prize for foreign aid". During the peace process all Cambodian warring
parties agreed to the respect for and the motion of human rights in order to
prevent the recurrence of those brutal violations experienced in the past - not
in order to attract foreign aid. In fact, human rights were revitalized in
Cambodian refugee camps in 1988 and three Cambodian warring factions informally
agreed to adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in January
1989.
It cannot be ascertained, however, whether human rights groups,
including Douc Rasy's own, that have emerged under Untac and after, have been
motivated by the prize of foreign assistance or by the sincere conviction of
their founders.
With regard to expatriate Cambodians and their role Douc
Rasy also raised, the Royal Government always welcome them, and a few of them
have returned and served their country. They have never been "unofficially
discouraged from returning" as his wife, Mrs Setha Douc alleged in the same
report. Obstacles to their return are not that they are a threat to positions of
incumbents as Mrs Douc alleged, but the country cannot afford Western-standard
salaries and high positions they are asking, and their prolonged alienation and
inability to adapt themselves into organizations with so many
shortages.
Douc Rasy urged the government to raise the pay of its
employees. The Royal Government has been conscious of this problem all along
since its formation. That pay was raised by 20 percent soon after its formation,
and lately it has decided to give school teachers a pedagogy allowance to top up
their salaries. The Royal Government continues to look for ways of improving pay
in the public sector.
What Douc Rasy wanted was a tall order indeed. He
himself used to say that "Cambodia is a land of miracles", but the Royal
Government like governments around the world cannot achieve miracles in so short
a time.
The Japanese and German governments needed many years in order
to achieve miracles for their counties, but then these countries, unlike
Cambodia, emerged from war with still a lot of skilled manpower around and with
their social fabric almost intact.
I would appreciate it very much if you
would publish this reply to your report on Douc Rasy's allegations and
charges.
Warm regards,
- Ieng Mouly, Minister of Information
