CNRP budget announced for soldiers who defect

THE permanent committee of the Supreme Court-dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) said it has a budget for soldiers who defect from Prime Minister Hun Sen when “acting president” Sam Rainsy returns on November 9.

An analyst said such an action amounted to forming a coup, while the government dismissed the claim as “propaganda”.

The CNRP permanent committee on Sunday issued a press release on the results of a two-day meeting in the US.

It did not say how much was in the budget.

The meeting, held in Lowell, Massachusetts, decided on several issues, it said, including preparations for the return of Rainsy and senior CNRP leadership to Asia on November 5.

The delegating of tasks to CNRP members at all levels inside and outside the Kingdom had also been

determined, as had calling on migrant workers to return with them to Cambodia on November 9.

“Preparing a budget for the members of the military that defect from Hun Sen and turn themselves over to protecting the people on November 9,” says the third point of the press release.

Former CNRP lawmaker Ou Chanrath said on Monday that the money used for the return of the CNRP leaders had come from supporters, especially Cambodians living abroad.

He declined to elaborate on the money for defecting soldiers.

Government spokesperson Phay Siphan dismissed the CNRP’s claims.

“This is merely propaganda, nothing more. The government will work to ensure public order and national security in order to increase economic growth. I don’t believe [the CNRP].

“The military fought to save the

countr y. They won’t do anyt hing to cause problems for t hei r n a t i on . T he y h a v e spouses, children and famil ies who need peace. They want to i mprove t he l ivel ihood s of t hei r f a mi l i e s ,’ Siphan said.

Sok Touch, the president of the Royal Academy of Cambodia, sa id on Monday t hat of fering f inancia l assista nce t o s old ier s who defe c t e d amounted to a coup.

“Turning guns [on the gove r n ment] a nd pr o v i d i n g mone y t o t h e m i l i t a r y amounts to a coup or a revolution. This would be an even more serious act of treason – t hey a re goi ng f rom bad to worse.

“T h e C N R P o r t h o s e involved in this meeting have become t ra itorous because they have betrayed the Const it ut ion a nd Ca mbod ia n laws which say t he gover nment is born out of elections,” Touch said.

Politica l analyst Lao Mong Hay said the offer of financial assistance to the militar y was to get them to support Rainsy’s “people’s power” movement to change t he government as had been seen in the Philippines in t he 1980s.

Soldiers had supported the “People Power” series of protests in Manila t hat led to t he o v e r t h r o w of Fe r d i n a nd Marcos.

“Whether such an action is a coup d’état or not is irrelev a nt u n less t hose sold ier s actua lly ta ke t he lead to seize power,” Mong Hay said.

Last week, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Cambodia had sent wa r r a nt s for Ra i ns y ’s a r rest to neig hbouring Laos a nd Thai la nd, a nd t hat ot her s wou ld be s ent t o t he rema i n i ng A sea n member states.

Siphan said the Ministr y of Foreign Affairs and Internat i o n a l C o o p e r a t i o n w a s tasked wit h t his.

However, he said it could be done by sending the warrants to t he emba s sie s of e ach countr y in Phnom Penh.

Ministr y of Foreign Affairs spokesman Ket Sophann did not respond to T he Post ’s request for comment.

Cha nrat h sa id t he CNRP leadership’s pla ns to ret urn on November 9 r ema i ned u nc h a nge d, a nd he wa s unconcer ned by t he a r rest warrants being sent to Asean nations.

However, Touch sa id he bel ieved t hat Ra i nsy would not be able to enter any Asean nation if the warrants reached them.

“This is because a ll Asean nations have a single destiny,” Touch said.

Mong Hay sa id it was not certain whether Rainsy would be arrested.

“O n e c a n n o t b e s u r e whet her a l l Asea n count r ies would heed t he Cambodian pr i me minister’s request to arrest Rainsy, while the quest ion of a r rest was open wit h ot her A sia n c ou nt r ies,” he sa id.