Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Old problems persist in new NGO draft law

Old problems persist in new NGO draft law

Old problems persist in new NGO draft law

The latest version of the government’s draft law on NGOs, which was approved by the Council of Ministers in January, is identical to an earlier version made available to civil society in 2011, with several outstanding concerns still intact, the Cambodian Center for Human Rights said yesterday.

Working from a copy provided by the government late last month, CCHR found that the draft law – despite having addressed many of civil society’s concerns – was likely to be passed as is, still with several troubling articles, including vague language that “could not be much worse for foreign NGOs and associations”.

Under the draft law, the government is not obligated to provide a reason for denying foreign NGOs applications and there is no mechanism to appeal such a decision.

What’s more, “foreign organizations are only entitled to implement ‘aid projects’, which could be used to reject or de-register foreign organizations for supposed breach of purpose if they engage in advocacy”.

Given that the government has said that it will accept no more input on the law, the fact that the draft provided last month is identical to the 2011 version “further indicat[es] that the RGC [Royal Government of Cambodia] will most likely adopt the draft [law] of 2011 without further consultations”.

Preap Kol, executive director of Transparency International Cambodia, said yesterday that while his group is technically registered as a local NGO, “we do have concerns along with civil society”.

“The secrecy, the lack of transparency and consultation has raised concerns about what the motivation of the law is,” he said.

“Any law that has a good intention, it should be widely consulted [on], especially among the civil society organisations that are the main subject of the law.”

If the government pressed ahead with the unchanged law, he continued, “it would not be a surprise to us”.

Ruling party lawmaker Cheam Yeap said yesterday that the Council of Ministers’ version had not yet made it to the National Assembly – though it might arrive by the end of the week – and that he was unsure whether there would be any efforts to change it.

MOST VIEWED

  • Wing Bank opens new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004

    Wing Bank celebrates first anniversary as commercial bank with launch of brand-new branch. One year since officially launching with a commercial banking licence, Wing Bank on March 14 launched a new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004. The launch was presided over by

  • Girl from Stung Meanchey dump now college grad living in Australia

    After finishing her foundational studies at Trinity College and earning a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Melbourne in 2022, Ron Sophy, a girl who once lived at the Stung Meanchey garbage dump and scavenged for things to sell, is now working at a private

  • Rare plant fetches high prices from Thai, Chinese

    Many types of plants found in Cambodia are used as traditional herbs to treat various diseases, such as giloy or guduchi (Tinospora cordifolia) or aromatic/sand ginger (Kaempferia galangal) or rough cocklebur (Xanthium Strumartium). There is also a plant called coral, which is rarely grown

  • Ministry using ChatGPT AI to ‘ease workload’; Khmer version planned

    The Digital Government Committee is planning to make a Khmer language version of popular artificial intelligence (AI) technology ChatGPT available to the public in the near future, following extensive testing. On March 9, the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications revealed that it has been using the

  • Cambodia returns 15M Covid jabs to China

    Prime Minister Hun Sen said Cambodia will return 15 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to China for donation to other countries. The vaccines in question were ordered but had not yet arrived in Cambodia. While presiding over the Ministry of Health’s annual meeting held on

  • Wat Phnom hornbills attract tourists, locals

    Thanks to the arrival of a friendly flock of great hornbills, Hour Rithy, a former aviculturist – or raiser of birds – in Kratie province turned Phnom Penh tuk tuk driver, has seen a partial return to his former profession. He has become something of a guide