In preparation for the 2003 national elections, the Ministry of Interior ordered all provincial governors in the country to stop election-related violence and intimidation at a twice-annual Interior Ministry meeting on Monday, officials said.
The ministry also proposed to transfer authority of the country’s border police from the ministry to provincial governors in a move toward decentralization, officials said.
Currently, if there is a problem at the border, the border police report to both the Ministry of Interior and the provincial governor, said Var Kim Hong, head of the government’s Joint Border Committee, who did not attend the Ministry of Interior meeting.
He said the proposal, which is about “efficiency,” would free border police to report only to the provincial governors, who would then have the authority to solve disputes without approval from the central government.
Hun Neng, governor of Svay Rieng, said the ministry also urged provincial authorities to increase security for the national elections scheduled for July 2003. He said the ministry voiced its desire for a reduction in intimidation, killings and shootings stemming from the elections.
“The authorities have told us we need to make [individual provinces] more secure for the next election,” said Chap Nhalivuth, governor of Siem Reap, who attended the two-day meeting.
In the run-up to February’s commune council elections, at least 17 candidates or activists from the Sam Rainsy Party or Funcinpec were reported to have been killed.
Human rights groups including the UN and Human Rights Watch reported numerous cases of intimidation against candidates and voters.
The ministry also asked governors to “speed up” issuing identification cards to their residents, to aid registration for the 2003 elections, Kampot Governor Puth Chandarith said.
While the national elections were a top priority at the meeting, the ministry also allowed governors to voice concerns and give reports on the progress of reforms in their provinces, Puth Chandarith said.
“We discussed the goals for our provinces for the next six months,” he said, adding that the Kampot authorities will try to crack down on illegal immigration and resolve border disputes with Vietnam and land title disputes within the province.
The meeting is scheduled to conclude today.
