Original report from Washington
30 September 2009
Cambodia needs an independent body to oversee police performance, a Hong Kong-based right group recommends, claiming the National Assembly’s traditional oversight duties are failing because the police and Assembly are stacked with ruling party members.
“In other countries, there are independent committees to oversee police performance,” said Lao Monghay, a researcher for the Asian Human Rights Commission. “If police officers abuse citizens, people can file complaints to the body. Right now there is a chance, because Cambodia is drafting a bill for police, in which such an independent body could be included.”
The National Assembly is “politically implicated” and “controlled by the ruling party,” he said, making an independent body more important.
Police have put out suggestion boxes in recent months, but critics say these have not been used. However, Lt. Gen. Keat Chantharith, a spokesman for the national police, said not many police mistakes had been reported because not many police abuse their positions.
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