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OO RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHPF #1613/01 2500947
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 070947Z SEP 06
FM AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7271
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PHNOM PENH 001613 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KJUS KDEM CB
SUBJECT: CAMBODIA'S SEASON OF POLITICAL SILLINESS:  NO 
THREAT TO BROADER REFORM AGENDA 
 
 
 ¶1.  (SBU)  Summary.  Recently, the Cambodian public has 
witnessed its National Assembly attempt to outlaw adultery as 
well as limit its members' freedom of speech in return for 
pensions and other financial benefits.  This was followed by 
the PM vetoing any future Miss Cambodia beauty contests.  The 
ban on a national beauty contest follows in the wake of other 
measures some observers see as the ruling CPP's desire to 
secure the high ground on family values -- and to distinguish 
the CPP from Prince Ranariddh and other FUNCINPEC leaders' 
alleged penchant for mistresses.  Members of the donor 
community and the diplomatic corps worry that the Cambodian 
government's current fixation on less important issues pushes 
more significant reform issues further behind schedule. 
Opposition political leader Sam Rainsy believes the recent 
government actions are designed to distract citizens' 
attention from real issues -- lack of jobs and health care, 
and corruption and Heng Pov.  End Summary. 
 
Legislating Morality 
-------------------- 
 
¶2.  (U)  As the National Assembly returned to work at the end 
of August from its summer recess, one of the first agenda 
items was an unexpected bill criminalizing adultery.  The law 
stipulates that guilty parties could spend up to one year in 
prison and fined up to USD 250.  CPP party members argued 
that nothing less than the morality of the nation was at 
stake, while opposition SRP members said that the state 
should not police people's bedrooms.  CPP and SRP Muslim MPs 
debated whether the law was consistent with Islam.  On 
September 1, 64 National Assembly members (just over the 50 
percent plus one needed) out of 123 MPs voted for the draft 
law; most FUNCINPEC MPs staged a walkout in protest, although 
one FUNCINPEC MP, Princess Sisowath Santa, voted in favor of 
it and two others abstained.  The remaining 63 MPs who voted 
for the law were from the CPP.  SRP MPs either voted against 
the law or abstained.  SRP members worried that the 
legislation could be selectively targeted to individuals for 
political reasons.  CPP MP and National Assembly President 
Heng Samrin assured the media that the law will not only help 
save Cambodian families but will curb corruption as the need 
for money to support mistresses is why public officials steal 
from the state.  In one of the more surreal assessments of 
the law, government spokesman Khieu Kanarith said he opposed 
the draft law as extramarital affairs can be useful to 
relieve stress, and he worried that Cambodia's passage of 
such a law could be damaging to Cambodia's international 
reputation. 
 
¶3.  (U)  NGOs viewed the adultery law as an infringement on 
people's individual rights that did not serve government 
interests.  The Cambodian Center for Human Rights director 
Kem Sokha worried that women would be targeted for 
prosecution more than men.  FUNCINPEC advisor to Prince 
Ranariddh Ok Socheat said that the legislation was an attack 
against the Prince, but denied that Ranariddh's current 
travel outside Cambodia was linked to fears that the Prince 
might be arrested once the law was passed.  While many 
Cambodians interviewed by the media on the issue agreed that 
the law was good in that it supported families and higher 
moral principles, many others did not believe the government 
would enforce the law.  Some observers believe it is moral 
posturing by the CPP and offered that the legislation stemmed 
from growing concerns among CPP wives regarding their 
husbands' fidelity.  They linked the new law to the 
government's ban in May of the new generation of 3D mobile 
phones, which was supported by wives of CPP officials who 
worried that their husbands were viewing sexually explicit 
photos of younger women.  (Comment:  One CPP insider told the 
Embassy that the CPP has more mistresses than FUNCINPEC or 
any other party, and doubted the legislation would have any 
real impact on reducing adultery.  End Comment.) 
 
Limiting Speech 
--------------- 
 
¶4.  (U)  On August 30, the National Assembly passed a new law 
that would pave the way for a parliamentarian to be charged 
with a crime and detained prior to lifting of parliamentary 
immunity.  CPP, FUNCINPEC and SRP MPs voted in favor of the 
new law; the only dissenting vote came from SRP MP Keo Remy. 
The new law also provided a clause that many see as limiting 
MPs' right to speak freely on issues -- this particular 
article has been deemed by some to be unconstitutional and 
has created a firestorm of debate.  Some SRP members 
unwittingly voted for the new law as they neglected to read 
the draft legislation carefully and did not consult closely 
with senior SRP party officials.  The law provided pensions 
and funeral benefits, so many MPs were happy with the draft 
 
PHNOM PENH 00001613  002 OF 002 
 
 
law.  CPP officials and others have suggested that the law is 
not intended to limit speech, but to encourage responsible 
debate. 
 
¶5.  (U)  Article 12 says that MPs may be arrested and 
detained in cases where the parliamentarian commits a crime 
in flagrante delicto.  Article 11, however, maintains that a 
two-thirds majority of MPs is needed to lift an MP's 
immunity; the 50 percent plus one rule does not apply.  The 
relevant section related to freedom of speech is Article 5, 
which says that an MP may not use his or her immunity to 
abuse an individual's honor, social customs, public order and 
national security.  According to FUNCINPEC lawmaker Monh 
Saphan, the law was in draft form for nearly a year, and MPs 
from all three parties had initially been involved in the 
drafting.  However, SRP MP Keo Remy complained that SRP 
suggestions for the draft law -- such as establishing a 
National Assembly commission to review any lifting of an MP's 
immunity prior to a vote -- are not included. 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  SRP leader Sam Rainsy told A/DCM on September 7 
that he regretted the SRP did not handle the vote well.  Son 
Chhay is the party's National Assembly whip and was out of 
the country when the debate and vote took place.  He would 
have organized a stronger debate and mobilized all SRP MPs to 
reject the draft law, said Rainsy.  The SRP has since 
petitioned the Constitutional Council to review the law and 
assess its conformity to the Cambodian Constitution.  Article 
80 of the Constitution notes that National Assembly members 
may not be arrested or prosecuted for opinions expressed in 
the conduct of their official duties.  Rainsy complained that 
the public debate on this bill and the adultery law are 
simply diversions to distract the public from the 
government's shortcomings in dealing with real issues of 
corruption, lack of jobs and healthcare, and to push the 
media away from the Heng Pov story, which has received a 
great deal of press attention in Cambodia. 
 
Ban on National Beauty Contests 
------------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (U)  On September 5 during a visit to Svay Rieng 
province, PM Hun Sen announced that there would be no 
national Miss Cambodia beauty pageants as long as he remains 
the Prime Minister.  The PM urged that the country focus its 
efforts and attention on poverty reduction, and wait until 
per capita incomes exceed USD 1,500 before reinstating the 
contest.  He disparaged beauty contests and the way in which 
contestants normally wear swimsuits and other revealing 
costumes.  The PM said that local contests could continue as 
long as the pageants did not display the national flag or in 
any way suggest the beauty show was linked to the country's 
image.  NGOs and political opposition figures criticized the 
PM for focusing on a non-issue instead of marshaling the 
country's resources more effectively to fight poverty. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  While these recent stories have captured a good 
deal of public attention, they are relatively insignificant 
in terms of Cambodia's broader reform agenda.  The new 
legislation's ability to rein in free speech among MPs is 
doubtful, and even some NGOs concede it may be constitutional 
and may not pose a real impediment to open debate.  We agree 
that the CPP's focus on morality issues is a time-honored, 
worldwide legislative diversion to draw attention away from 
more meaningful issues, and has slowed progress on 
long-awaited legislation.  The adultery law was drawn up in a 
few months' time and pushed to the top of the National 
Assembly's agenda while other more important bills that have 
languished for months (or years), e.g., the counter-terrorism 
bill, draft anti-trafficking law, anti-corruption 
legislation, etc., continue to await National Assembly 
action.  Even the Japanese Embassy is unhappy with the RGC's 
recent fixation on issues of little political significance 
when there are serious reforms at stake, and reportedly plans 
to raise this with the government.  End Comment. 
MUSSOMELI