Interior Minister Sar Kheng has ordered former national military commander Nhek Bun Chhay to change the proposed logo of his prospective new political party because it is too similar to the former logo of Funcinpec, the royalist party he broke away from earlier this month.
Prince Norodom Ranariddh, the leader of Funcinpec, filed a complaint with the ministry soon after Mr. Bun Chhay went public with his new party and logo, a near carbon copy of the logo Funcinpec had used for years before abandoning it last year.
In a decision signed and dated Wednesday, Mr. Kheng agrees that the proposed logo of Mr. Bun Chhay’s Khmer National United Party was too close to Funcinpec’s, in breach of the Law on Political Parties.
“The Ministry of Interior is of the opinion that the Khmer National United Party has a logo that another party has already used.
So the Ministry of Interior has asked His Excellency [Mr. Bun Chhay] to change the logo of the party to comply with the law,” the decision says.
Mr. Bun Chhay could not be reached for comment. On hearing of the prince’s complaint last week, he had replied: “I will not change the logo.” (Khuon Narim)
