The National Assembly Friday passed the commune administration law and will begin debate on the draft commune election law Monday.
Despite overwhelming support among lawmakers for the administration law, election monitors have been quick to criticize the legislation for giving too much power to dominant political parties and allowing the central government a larger than necessary role in local governance.
The Assembly’s approval of a provision requiring that Interior Ministry-appointed commune clerks be installed to advise newly-elected commune councils has critics worried that government officials will be able to unfairly influence local leaders.
And a second provision banning non party-affiliated candidates from the ballot, monitors claim, prevents independents from running and is likely to discourage new ideas from being introduced to the politically stagnant leadership that exists in many communes today.
Co-Minister of Interior You Hockry argued that ballots will not be restricted only to the country’s three main political parties. Candidates from the 47 political parties registered during the 1998 general elections will also be able to run for commune leadership.
This proportional system of candidacy is also endorsed by the international community.
Delayed since the late 1990s, elections in Cambodia’s more than 1,600 communes are now tentatively scheduled for early 2002.
