SRP and HRP To Unite Before 2012 Elections

SRP president Sam Rainsy (L) and HRP president Kem Sokha (R)

10 July, 2009
By CHHORN CHANAY
The Cambodia Daily

Leaders of the Sam Rainsy Party and Human Rights Party announced Thursday that their separate political organizations would become one before the 2012 commune councilor elections though for the moment, the groups remained autonomous as the two parties hammer out details.

Speaking from HRP headquarters in Phnom Penh, HRP President Kem Sokha said the merger was made to better their chances in future elections. He said a recent trip to the US and Canada, where he met SRP President Sam Rainsy, also prompted the proposed union after many ethnic Khmers living there encouraged the merger.

“A big number of members is better than a small number. Consolidation is better than withdraw and the [electoral] result will increase,” he said.

Out of the 123 seats in the National Assembly, the SRP currently holds 26 and the HRP has three.

Mr Sokha added that no decision was made about the name of the new group or who would lead it, but he said that he would support Mr Rainsy as party leader and candidate for prime minister.

Mr Sokha’s recommendation of Mr Ransy to lead this proposed unified party comes as something of a culmination of a long move toward reconciliation between the two opposition leaders, who were often at odds in the run-up to last year’s National Assembly election. Upon founding the Human Right Party in 2007, Mr Sokha fervently claimed that it had the most democratic leadership structure, and challenged Mr Rainsy to set term limits for the presidency of the SRP, and to change the party’s name so that it no longer contained the name of a single person.

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What remains to be seen is whether the merger will result in any electoral gains beyond what the parties have achieved sedately.

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Mr Rainsy could not be reached by telephone and did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment.

SRP secretary-general Ke ‘Sovannroth confirmed the merger for their future election and invited other groups to join together.

“We decided to merge with their HRP, and we welcome other parties that want to join the SRP, too” she said. “We have the same principle; we can merge and work together.”

Koul Panha, director for the committee for Free and Fair Election, said by joining forces the two parties can create a more effective force by using each other’s manpower, political knowledge and funds.

What remains to be seen is whether the merger will result in any electoral gains beyond what the parties have achieved separately. Mr. Panha said the committee by the two was encouraging but it was too early to know if they would fall victim to infighting or other organizational problems.

“That is another big question. That is a big task for them,” he said.

CPP lawmaker form Banteay Meanchey province Pal Sam Oeurn said his party is not worried about an SRP-HRP union. He said opposition parties frequently join together only to split apart later on.

“It is their hobbit to merge and leave,” he said, adding that the ruling CPP had more experience as an organization. “Their democracy has only 24 hours.”

(Additional reporting by Frank Radosevich)