The Phnom Penh Post - ENGLISH: “Promise after win” plus 9 more

The CPP do not provide that money to the residents in Prey Veng during the campaign. It is just a promise to provide it after an election win.

Nearly all of Phnom Penh's communes have voter registration rates in excess of 100 per cent, amounting to more than 145,000 additional names, with one commune topping the 200 per cent mark, an analysis of previously unseen government population data reveals.

Further analysis of the already public National Election Committee voter list shows there are more than 25,000 exact duplicate names in Phnom Penh alone, despite previous NEC assurances that exact duplicates had been removed.

That data as well as leaked commune-level numbers obtained by the Post draw detailed maps of over-registration.

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These bloated registration rates raise concerns that ballot rigging could be conducted in specific areas through various methods, from more sophisticated manipulation of voter identity documents to simple ballot stuffing.

The huge spike of names in Phnom Penh, where 83 out of 96 communes have more than 100 per cent registration, is repeated in key electoral provinces across the country. In Kampong Cham, a total of about 129,000 more voters than people of voting age are registered in 137 of 173 communes.

For battleground provinces Kandal and Prey Veng, the number of excess voters in 122 of 127 communes totals more than 114,000 and 64,000 in 96 of 116 communes, respectively.

In some cases, comparisons of the late 2012 NEC voter registration list and the government-produced, UNDP-sponsored commune/sangkat database (CDB) reveal there are as many as 9,000 additional registered voters across individual communes.

One of the major concerns to monitors is that the NEC has issued an unusually high number of Identification Certificate for Election (ICE) forms — nearly 500,000 — after the voter-registration period closed late last year. Election watchdogs have warned that these forms can be easily misused to claim excess names.

Laura Thornton, resident director of the National Democratic Institute, said the fact that there were "way too many" names on the voter list, direct duplicates and an unusually high number of ICEs all amounted to "a concerning cocktail of information".

"The concern is that if you have a bunch of extra names on the voter list that you want to take advantage of, an easy way would have been to get an ICE issued in the name of a duplicate name," she said.

"So if a party wanted to use names, that would be the easiest way to do it."

Though ICE forms were used legitimately to register people to the voter list, Thornton explained that the only legal use for the hundreds of thousands that had been issued after registration was in the rare event that some lost their identification through theft or bad luck.

"To think that [so many] people would need that, it's just not plausible," she said.

Another way the additional names could be exploited was if polling officials simply did not check IDs, though this was considerably more risky because, unlike ICEs, such actions could be spotted by polling monitors.

"What will be fascinating to see will be … what happens on Election Day, what is the turnout in those areas and how many people will vote with ICEs."

Provided the applicant has two witnesses and photos, ICEs can be approved by commune chiefs — more than 97 per cent of whom belong to the ruling Cambodian People's Party.

NEC secretary-general Tep Nytha maintained the high number of ICEs issued since registration was required to account for all of those who might have lost their ID.

"We have issued 480,000 ICEs since registration to vote [ended]. From January to this time, we are totalling it and will have a number tomorrow," he said yesterday.

Nytha said the NEC had cleaned many duplicated names from the voter list, though some had not been cleared because slight variations in spelling could make identification difficult.

But he declined to specifically address questions about direct duplicates in Phnom Penh and said he would have to look into figures of over-registration before commenting.

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The highest rates of over-registration coincide with two things: the provinces that are worth the highest number of seats at the election and the provinces in which the opposition are considered to have the greatest chance of making inroads. In safe CPP rural provinces, the over-registration rate is far lower.

By sheer number of names registered above the government CDB population figures, communes in Phnom Penh stand out, with Toek Thla commune in Sen Sok district at 9,472 (136.9 per cent) and Tonle Bassac commune in Chamkarmon district at 9,197 (168.0 per cent).

The highest percentages of over over-registration, meanwhile, are found in Chang Krang commune in Kratie province's Chet Borei district (209.5 per cent) and at Chaktomuk commune in Phnom Penh's Daun Penh district (202.3 per cent).

But it is inner Phnom Penh that is most disturbing as a whole. There, 12 of 41 communes have an over-registration rate above 135 per cent. In these inner-city communes, the opposition fared above-average.

A total 25,251 voters registered on the NEC list for Phnom Penh, meanwhile, have exactly the same name with the same spelling, same date of birth and same gender.

In a statement issued in April, the NEC announced that "for double names which were found on the 2011 voters lists by Comfrel … NEC did not completely delete because the NEC deleted only the names which have the same data."

Cambodia National Rescue Party candidate Son Chhay said his party had found instances where one person's name had been repeated on the voter list up to seven times and that the same tactics had stopped the opposition from winning a single commune chief position in Phnom Penh in the 2012 commune election.

"This success gave them [the CPP] another idea, that they will do the same for this election so they increase the number of extra voters," he said.

"This is the thing that we are very concerned about right now."

Sam Rainsy Party senator Mardi Seng said he was shocked to hear how high the rates were but was, at least anecdotally, well aware of the problem.

"I'm one of them. I've found my name in two different communes, and I am very interested in who is voting for me in the other place."

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY MEAS SOKCHEA

South Korea-based coffee chain Caffé Bene plans to open a Phnom Penh shop in in October, making it the latest entrant into a crowded market with numerous international and local coffee chains all angling to caffeinate Cambodia's rising middle class.

General manager of Caffé Bene in Cambodia, Jinsil Lee, said yesterday that construction is in progress and the shop will open in Phnom Penh's Boeung Keng Kang 1 area, already a bastion of pricey coffee and tea options.

There is still potential for a new player, however, because "the economic level [in Cambodia] is rising", she said.

The store will differentiate itself from other coffee chains through "specialities from Korea", she said, adding that they are concentrating on specialty desserts.

Caffé Bene announced in January that it was on the hunt for staff. The store was initially planned near Central Market on Monivong Boulevard, where a sign still hangs on the side of a building that seems to be under renovation.

Rami Sharaf, CEO of the parent company controlling Express Food Group, the local owner of UK-based chain Costa Coffee, said he isn't overly worried about the extra competition.

The way he sees it, customers are becoming more willing to pay two or three dollars for their cup of coffee.

Two more Costa Coffee branches are expected to open next month, he said: one along the riverside near the Royal Palace, and a second on a Phnom Penh university campus. In November, it plans to open a fourth branch in Vattanac tower.

Despite the presence of international brands such as Costa or Gloria Jean's Coffees, a number of local chains such as Brown and T&C have held their ground.

"Local brands can do well as long as they can deliver a product with a consistent quality and the right ambiance," said Karl Johan Remoy, general manager of Indochina Research (Cambodia) Ltd.

"It is not only about the coffee. In Phnom Penh, controlling service levels can be challenging considering the difficulty of finding qualified staff. International brands with their global training programs may have to rethink their staffing strategies to stay competitive," he said.

Remoy said Cambodian-owned Brown, a local brand with Khmer-style design, is still the most popular coffee shop town.

"Looking at their followers on Facebook they have over 45,000 likes and 1,300 people talking about them. In contrast, Costa Coffee has 10,000 followers and 500 people talking about them."

Kouch Sokly, managing director of CBM Corporation Co Ltd, the company that owns local chain T&C, said they have a different target group than international brands, and for that reason, do not see the newcomer cutting into their businesses.

People around the world will soon be able to go online and view close-up pictures of Phnom Penh's streets and the temples of Angkor Wat, Google representatives announced in Phnom Penh yesterday.

Google Street View is using cars with special 360-degree panoramic cameras to collect the imagery. Starting in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap's Angkor Archaeological Park, the company will then fan out across the country.

Google and government officials said they believe the launch will contribute to showcasing Cambodian culture while raising awareness for the country as an attractive destination for visitors.

"By making the photos available online, people will realise Cambodia's potential more easily," Pak Sokhom, undersecretary of state of the Ministry of Tourism, said yesterday. "After seeing the images, they will dream about a real visit."

Once the images are available – the project will take a few months – the user can explore an area from a 360-degree, street-level view.

Cooperating with the Apsara Authority, which manages Angkor Wat, Google can capture the imagery of Angkor Archaeological Park free of charge for six months starting in August.

Google has developed technology that blurs human faces and vehicle number plates to render them unidentifiable.

For the first time in recent memory, the Ministry of Economy and Finance has released growth projections for the first half of the year, and the numbers are good.

Some say too good.

The ministry's preliminary data claims that from January through June, economic growth stood at 7.6 per cent, an announcement that critics are questioning not only for accuracy but for timing.

The national election is days away, and positive statistics would reflect back on the ruling Cambodian People's Party, which is facing an increasingly vigorous challenge from the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party.

Kang Chandararot, president of the Cambodian Institute for Development Study, expressed doubt about the findings.

"I was surprised with the projection because this is the first-ever report that [the government] released for the first half of the year. They never release it," he said. He added, "I am really sceptical with the figure because, based on some indicators, I don't see any strong sectors" that can be accelerators for the growth.

According to the report, the agricultural sector grew by 4.2 per cent; the industrial sector went up by 9.3 per cent; and the garment sector rose by 7 per cent. Construction, the financial sector, and hotel and restaurant services also contributed to the growth.

"I see the demand side is not strong in the export markets," Chandararot continued. "As far as I know, the flow of foreign direct investment in this period also dropped, so it's likely garment exports, which dominate our export sector, went up very little.

"The figure requires all other sectors to have accelerated more than 7.6 per cent."

Cambodia's GDP expanded 7.3 per cent last year. The Asian Development Bank in April projected that Cambodia's economy would grow 7.2 per cent in 2013, picking up to 7.5 per cent next year along with recovery in Europe and the United States.

Son Chhay, a Cambodia National Rescue Party candidate, said that the announcement was nothing more than a public relations move ahead of the election.

"Well, I don't think the growth projection is good for our people and investors now, so what the people want to see is their actual performance."

Officials at the Ministry of Finance could not be reached yesterday.

Taking an altogether different view, Grant Knuckey, chief executive of ANZ Royal Bank, said that projection is heartening.

"Domestic growth was also evident through higher trading volumes for consumer goods in particular," Knuckey said. "My view is that the weak economic outlook for Europe is not a particularly significant issue for Cambodia's growth."

The battle for Phnom Penh at Sunday's national election will be fought out with the years-long Boeung Kak land dispute still unresolved, after the city's governor announced yesterday a solution would be found only after the ballot, villagers said.

Governor Pa Socheatvong, who in May promised to resolve the drawn-out dispute, visited the site yesterday, villager Heng Mom said.

The pledge leaves the already-divided Boeung Kak community considering which party is more likely to provide them with a solution to their woes.

In recent weeks, Mom has been accused of being bought by the CPP for publicly speaking out against her former friend and cellmate at Prey Sar prison, Tep Vanny.

"But my family and I have always supported the CPP," she said yesterday. "I have joined CPP rallies, even though I felt disappointed … when they bulldozed my home."

Mom, whose house carries CPP signs on its front, can be forgiven for being disappointed. But why support the party that destroyed her house?

"I'll vote for them again, because they need to pay me back," asserted Mom.

Vanny said yesterday that she was "very pleased" the governor had visited Boeung Kak. But some of the families she represents said police had kept them away from the governor.

Last Friday, when opposition leader Sam Rainsy made a triumphant return to Cambodia, one of Vanny's group, Nget Khun, 73, was pressed up against the stage at Freedom Park, awaiting his homecoming speech.

"Before, I supported the CPP," she said yesterday. "But since they tried to steal my home and land, beat me as we protested … I have stopped supporting them.

"I have followed the CNRP since I saw that their seven policies included focusing on rescuing poor people from land disputes."

Sia Phearum, Housing Rights Task Force secretariat director, said it was disappointing the government had not resolved the dispute before the election.

"The previous governor promised not to evict them after the election and then did," he said. "But it's their right to choose who they will vote for."

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Amid growing concerns over voter irregularities, the Cambodia National Rescue Party said yesterday that they were trying to double the number of observers at each polling station to four.

"In the original plan, it was just two per station, but we know there are more likely to be [cases of] cheating with the ghost voters, people being mobilised from elsewhere, and we're thinking we'd like to increase [the number of observers] with another two," said lawmaker candidate Son Chhay.

The push has come after increasing instances of malfeasance, said Chhay, who noted that in previous elections, the opposition only ever had two observers.

"It's becoming very serious; there's more [problematic] activity … so I think it's important for us to show the government we have support from the public [to ensure] the vote cannot be stolen."

A day after the National Election Committee struck down his request to be added to the candidate list, CNRP head Sam Rainsy sent a letter to National Assembly president Heng Samrin and a second to the NEC calling for a revision.

In the second NEC letter, Rainsy argues that his Royal pardon automatically invalidates the earlier decision of NEC to strike his name on grounds of his conviction.

"Since King Norodom Sihamoni granted a Royal Pardon on July 12 to me, it is automatic that I receive the valid immunity and prerogative of my lawmaker status in accordance with Article 15 of [the] law on the status of lawmaker," he wrote in his letter, a copy of which was obtained by the Post.

NEC secretary-general Tep Nytha said he had not seen Rainsy's letter, but he would send it on.

"First, I have not received the letter, and second, I will submit it to [the] NEC when we receive it," said Nytha, adding that he had doubts. "NEC does not have enough time, as we are busy with a lot of work on the election."

Rainsy was sentenced to 11 years on charges widely believed to have been politically motivated, and had spent nearly four years in self-exile until the amnesty overturned his sentences earlier this month.

The Supreme Court Chamber of the Khmer Rouge tribunal issued two rulings yesterday: one upholding the trial chamber's decision to separate Case 002 into "mini-trials" and a second instructing court administrators to investigate the possibility of forming a second panel of judges to begin hearing Case 002/02.

The decision flew in the face of predictions by court observers and parties to the proceedings, many of whom had forecast that Case 002/01 would be the court's last, and some of whom raised questions about legal issues arising from beginning a second trial before a decision had been rendered in the first.

In its rulings, the Supreme Court Chamber "instruct[ed] the Office of the Administration of the ECCC to immediately explore the establishment of a second panel", and ordered that Case 002/02 "commence as soon as possible … [and] comprise at minimum the charges related to S-21, a work site, a cooperative and genocide".

Panhavuth Long, a program officer at the Cambodian Justice Initiative, called the ruling "a very lousy decision".

"I also wonder whether the SCC is violating its judicial jurisdiction," he said, noting the higher chamber's role as a decider of appeals. "Can you decide something that has not been asked by the prosecution or the defence?"

Prosecutor Andrew Cayley said in an email Monday that the prosecution had "concerns about starting a second trial before the first judgement is delivered, which will need to be adequately addressed".

Lead civil party co-lawyer Elisabeth Simonneau-Fort also said via email Monday that civil parties "will not request" the formation of a new panel, and that financial constraints made the prospect "almost impossible".

According to court spokesman Lars Olsen, national salaries have not been paid for June, and the court's "national side has currently no funding".

Logistically speaking, Panhavuth said, finding a new panel of judges in a few months while still going through official UN recruitment procedures may not be "realistic", and he raised the question of "whether they can even find qualified judges, given what is going on here".

Meanwhile, parties at the Khmer Rouge tribunal hashed out a bevy of lingering trial management issues yesterday, in what will be the court's last public hearing until October 9, the tentative date for which closing arguments are scheduled.

After hearing submissions from all parties, the trial chamber issued a litany of on-the-spot decisions, saying no new — or old — witnesses would be called, and that all parties would be granted an additional 25 pages for their closing briefs, in light of the fact the court may yet admit a host of witness statements and Case 001 transcripts into evidence.

A weather forecast predicting heavy rain in the next five days is causing some trepidation among election monitors, who fear flooding might keep some voters from the polls.

Minister of Water Resources and Meteorology Lim Kean Hor issued a warning Monday that a low-pressure system hitting the Mekong Delta region could cause downpours, leading to overflowing of the Mekong, Bassac and Tonle Sap rivers and the Tonle Sap lake.

Floods would most disenfranchise poor voters who support opposition parties, said Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights.

The ruling Cambodian People's Party would likely be able to send transportation to pick up party loyalists, while opposition supporters may remain stuck in the mud, he said.

"I think it will be worst for [opposition supporters] living in poor communities who are not in a position to seek their own transportation to polling stations in the case of flooding," Virak said. "But it will benefit CPP."

In light of the forecast, election observers and some voters have been preparing raincoats, rafts and boats, Virak said.

Hang Puthea, head of election monitor Nicfec, said he was worried risks associated with travelling to polling stations in severe weather could keep voters from casting ballots, diminishing the legitimacy of the results.

Storms could "lower the number of voters, and lead to some parties doubting the election results in some polling stations," Puthea said. "However, we hope that each polling station will be located on higher ground for safety."

The National Election Committee has already taken certain precautions, selecting the locations of their 19,009 polling stations as places not likely to flood, NEC secretary-general Tep Nytha said.

A men's doubles pair from the Badminton Association of the Ministry of Interior scooped a bronze medal from the 2013 Thanh Cong Championship, which was held in Vietnam's Can Tho province over the weekend.

Kung Phally and Bun Heng ousted a team from Ho Chi Minh in straight sets before defeating another local squad 21-17, 15-21, 21-6. In the third round, the Cambodians came unstuck falling 19-21, 21-14, 21-19 to another Ho Chi Minh duo.

The Kingdom sent six teams to compete in the event that featured 240 Vietnamese sides.