BAKC presidential candidates state platforms for election
THE Bar Association of the Kingdom of Cambodia (BAKC) is set to elect a new president in October to replace outgoing President Suon Visal.
Four prominent lawyers are vying for the position, including Ly Chantola, Sam Sokong, Long Dara, and Ket Khy.
The four candidates have expressed varying views on how to improve the institution.
Chantola told The Post on Sunday the role is an honour in the legal profession and society.
“I a lways contribute to strengthening and promoting BAKC and the lega l profession. As BAKC president, I will have the opportunit y to lead and issue policy and enforce priorit y actions on behalf of my fellow attorneys. I want to see excellence and prestige i n t he profession,” Chantola said.
He said should he be elected, he would enforce an eightpoint action plan that includes restricting the recruitment of lawyers who did not go through professional training, strengthening lawyer quality, and improving cooperation with relevant institutions.
Lawyer Sam Sokong said he wants to make the BAKC an independent institution. He wants to see lawyers trusted by the public and clients.
“A lawyer is not an agent that brings a bribe to the court in order to win a case for a client,” he said.
Should he be elected, he would strengthen discipline, qualifications, and cooperation with international lawyer associations in order to exchange knowledge and experiences, and defend Cambodians living abroad.
“I want the BAKC to be independent and not under orders from any person, institution, or political party. Secondly, I want BAKC to be accepted locally and internationally. We want to connect with international lawyer associations and we want to defend our people outside of Cambodia,” Sokong said.
Long Dara said he has attempted to stand as a candidate for 10 years. He fights for this position because he wants to stop the increasing number of lawyers who enter the profession based on experience and not professional training. He said an increasing number of lawyers has created “lawyer inflation” criticised by the public.
Should he be elected, he wants the public to understand the role of lawyers and their dignity. He would make the profession a part of the government’s judicial reform efforts.
“In order to make my point applicable, I need participation from colleagues and their recommendations. I will discuss with the BAKC bar council to contribute to the government’s efforts in making
Cambodia a country under the rule of law,” Dara said.
Ket Khy said he would deliver a message about his policy on election day. But what he wishes to change within the BAKC is to put an end to some bad practices such as voting by proxy.
“Campaigning for votes by inviting others to a drinking party is also a bad practice. A qualified leader with good ethics cannot be elected through such practice. Drinking together can be called vote-buying. This makes good candidates unable to win support if they don’t have money to throw a party to garner votes,” Khet Ky said.
Incumbent BAKC president SuonVisal could not be reached for comment on Sunday.
BAKC deputy secretarygeneral Liv Sovanna said during his two terms in office, Visal kept 90 per cent of his promises.
He said Visal improved the capacity of lawyers who jumped into the field by experience. He also focused more on practice than theory in producing new lawyers.
Sovanna said Visal started negotiating with lawyers association in South Korea, Thailand, and Malaysia –three countries with many Cambodia migrant workers.
When a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is signed with each of them, poor migrants in those countries will be provided legal services, Sovanna said.
An MoU with the lawyers association in Thailand was almost completed but was postponed due to Covid-19. When signed, BAKC will station three lawyers there for six months at a time. The plan will depend on the incoming president, he said.
Sovanna said BAKC wants to be an institution that is trusted by clients and the public.
A BAKC member who spoke on condition of anonymity also called for a fair election.
“The coming BAKC election should be done on the basis of equality, transparency and lawyer professionalism. The profession is independent and free and it contributes to judicial sectors”.
He also requested the new BAKC president make the institution independent, free, dignified, and free from corruption.
Cambodia currently has 1,579 lawyers and 408 apprentice lawyers, according to BAKC.
A lawyer is not an agent that brings a bribe to the court in order to win a case for a client