VZCZCXRO1172
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHPF #0102 0440914
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 130914Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0387
RUEHRC/USDA FAS WASHDC
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS PHNOM PENH 000102 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS 
STATE FOR OES/DWOOD 
STATE FOR EEB/TPP/MTAA/ABT/MSZYMANSKI 
USDA FOR FAS/SFROGGETT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAGR ECON ETRD TBIO KPAO CB
SUBJECT: CAMBODIA RESPONSE TO DEMARCHE ON CARTAGENA PROTOCOL 
 
REF: STATE 11910 
 
¶1. (U) Econoff delivered Reftel demarche to Oum Pisey, Ministry of 
Environment (MOE) Technical Advisor and national contact for 
Cambodia's National Biosafety Framework development.  There is an 
inter-ministerial biosafety planning group that includes the 
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), the Ministry 
of Industry, Mines and Energy (MIME), and the Ministry of Commerce 
(MOC), but the MOE has the lead on all negotiations and policies 
related to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CPB). Contacts at 
MAFF deferred to the MOE for all questions regarding biosafety 
policies in Cambodia. 
 
¶2. (U) Oum Pisey said that the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) 
will not send a delegation to the February 23-27 meeting in Mexico 
City due to funding constraints.  However, Econoff relayed USG 
concerns regarding the meeting's proposed topics, and Oum Pisey 
provided some feedback on the RGC position on each of these topics. 
Given that biosafety and biotechnology are still new issues for 
Cambodia, the RGC has not yet formulated a strong opinion on several 
of the proposed topics. 
 
-- Definition of Damage:  The RGC has not yet indicated a preference 
towards a broad or narrow definition of damage.  Oum Pisey indicated 
that the RGC would likely support a "middle-of-the-road definition", 
based on the country's own biosafety law.  The law does not 
explicitly define "damage", but does refer to areas beyond the scope 
of the CPB, such as economic and socioeconomic harm. 
 
-- Definition of Operator:  The RGC has not yet decided how it would 
propose to define "operators" liable for damage in the movement of 
living modified organisms (LMOs).  Oum Pisey said that developing 
countries were likely to push for a broad definition that could 
include all stakeholders in the value chain, from sources to 
distributors. 
 
-- Standard of Liability (Strict versus Fault-Based):  The RGC 
supports a fault-based standard of liability, consistent with its 
civil liability code.  There is a draft sub-decree to Cambodia's 
biosafety law which would also define a fault-based standard of 
liability, but Oum Pisey was not sure when this sub-decree would be 
promulgated. 
 
-- Financial Security:  The Minister of Environment has not yet 
outlined the RGC's position on mandatory use of insurance or other 
financial instruments for shipments of LMOs.  However, Oum Pisey 
predicted that the RGC would align itself with other ASEAN members 
on this issue. 
 
-- Binding vs. Non-binding:  The RGC supports a binding civil 
liability system, but Oum Pisey thought that it would be difficult 
for international stakeholders to reach a consensus on and to 
implement such a system.  He said that at a minimum, the RGC would 
try to implement binding civil liability terms in its bilateral 
agreements with trade partners. 
 
 
 
RODLEY