B4-0842/98

Resolution on the situation in Cambodia

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the Paris agreements,

- having regard to the Constitution of Cambodia,

- having regard to the general elections in Cambodia held on 26 July 1998,

- having regard to the United Nations resolutions on Cambodia,

- having regard to its previous resolutions on the subject,

- having regard to the declaration by the ASEAN States of 9 September 1998,

A. whereas at the recent elections in Cambodia a neutral political environment for the elections was never fully established because opposition political parties did not have access to television or radio to broadcast their platforms and were not able to campaign freely, particularly in the countryside,

B. whereas, since late August, opposition supporters have been protesting against the results of national elections held on 26 July 1998, in which the Cambodian People's Party of Second Prime Minister Hun Sen was declared the winner,

C. whereas the human rights situation is rapidly deteriorating with arrests of opposition leaders on spurious grounds and outbursts of violence on the part of Cambodian government forces against peaceful demonstrators, in which at least one person has been killed,

1. Expresses its serious concern at the development of a climate of violence and xenophobia in Cambodia which is threatening the institutional order and civil peace;

2. Takes the view that this climate can largely be attributed to the persistent inability of the main political parties which will be represented in Parliament on the basis of the results of the election of 26 July 1998 to reach a minimum political agreement;

3. Notes that the recent general elections did not give any political party a sufficient parliamentary majority to claim power on its own and that they thus created a moral and political obligation for the three main parties to cooperate;

4. Invites, therefore, the government authorities and the Cambodian People's Party (CPP), on the one hand, and FUNCINPEC and the Sam Rainsy Party, on the other hand, to start without delay or preconditions a process of political consultation so as to halt the escalating violence and establish a spirit of compromise between them in line with the reasoning behind the Paris agreements;

5. Urges the government, the CPP and the opposition parties, in this spirit, to refrain from any initiative likely to exacerbate the political climate and plunge Cambodia into a cycle of confrontation which would have unforeseeable effects; welcomes the fact that FUNCINPEC has distanced itself from the parliamentary boycott;

6. Warns the Khmer government authorities, who control the administration and the armed forces, of the serious consequences which would certainly arise from implementation of the policy of suspending fundamental freedoms such as the freedom to demonstrate or of bringing the opposition parties to heel and intimidating or detaining their leaders;

7. Expresses the hope that a change of attitude on the part of the political parties based on the confidence of the Khmer people will enable King Norodom Sihanouk to play the role of supreme arbiter assigned to him by the country's Constitution in the interest of civil peace and constructive dialogue;

8. Reaffirms the need to establish a close link between the continuation of international aid in general, and European aid in particular, and the continuation of the democratic process, which implies respect on the part of the various Cambodian parties, and especially on the part of the party in power, for the constitutional order, public liberties and political pluralism;

9. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and Commission.

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