Needed:  Regime Changes in Burma and Cambodia

October 2, 2002

Senator Mitch McConnell
361-A Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senator McConnell:

It is hideous that those who are terrorists themselves, such as the military thugs in Burma and strongman of Cambodia, Hun Sen, are capitalizing on America’s grim September 11^th tragedy.  It is not only ironic that they should want to commit to fighting terrorism, but also calculating. They are using this joint declaration to fight terrorism as a blank check to continue to terrorize all those who are fighting for a genuinely democratic Cambodia.  Well-targeted United States support for democratic values and world order can make a crucial difference in the broader international community.

World Cambodian Congress for Peace and Development (WCCPD), an advocacy organization for democracy and the rule of law in Cambodia is deeply grateful to you and your staffs for your continued support for a democratic Cambodia.  You have repeatedly isolated and identified Hun Sen as a killer.  Several reasons show that his intention in supporting the ASEAN declaration to fight international terrorism is not only absurd, but also disingenuous and dangerous.

Terrorists acts when defined in such loose terms as “…acts of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, committed wherever, whenever, and by whomsoever, as a profound threat to international peace and security” give Hun Sen and his CPP the justification to continue their crimes.   Any entity that opposes the Hun Sen government falls under this definition.  Democratic forces challenge Hun Sen, thus democratic forces are terrorist threats to be eliminated.  Attacks against democratic forces Ron Abney and sole opposition leader Sam Rainsy amply illustrate this trend of violence.  

Criminals like Hun Sen should be held accountable to their victims and therefore, they are not the appropriate party to address the issue of justice or reconciliation for local or international crimes.  The Khmer Rouge genocide and crimes against humanity have not been addressed to this day. Numerous accounts have reported that Hun Sen, a former Khmer Rouge guerrilla, repeatedly obstructed justice by interfering with the United Nation’s attempt to set up a credible tribunal that would meet international law and standards. 

Justice and reconciliation has to come through formal mechanisms.  Cambodia lacks an impartial and accountable legal system in addition to an effective law enforcement apparatus. It is not possible for the present Cambodian government under the CPP to promulgate and enforce the rule of law. These elements, which are the fundamental pillar of justice and reconciliation, are needed to move a country like Cambodia to effectively and genuinely deal with its past and current abuses and to move it into a civil society.

As a dominant power in the international system, the United States is in a unique position to affect fundamental changes in the Cambodian government. The U.S. has an interest in encouraging international order even in a region that is, at the moment, not high on its priority list, but one in which sufficient U.S. tax dollars have been committed.  Most importantly, the U.S. should not underestimate its ability to catalyze action from the broader international community against terrorist acts committed by the likes of Hun Sen and his CPP government. 

Your invaluable and timely contribution, Senator McConnell, gives those brave men and women who are now at the frontline of the fight against terrorism more confidence and encouragement to assume a leadership role and to continue to make their own contributions.  In short, WCC thanks you for fostering the sources of American power:  democracy and the rule of law. 

Sincerely yours,

Theoul Thuch                                         Mabbeskal Man

WCC Chairman                                      WCC President