In the photograph, Funcinpec President Prince Norodom Ranariddh stands alone in front of a crowd of cheering party supporters. The message is clear: Funcinpec is vibrant, strong and unified under the prince’s leadership.
This photo adorns the front page of the royalist party’s newsletter—released to selected media for the first time—in what appears to be a step toward improving the party’s image.
The 18-page newsletter includes descriptions of the prince’s activities, news from the National Assembly and information about party affairs. The prince’s wife and daughter are also featured.
The most prominent articles are testimonials from two high-profile Funcinpec officials—parliamentarian Princess Norodom Vacheara and military Deputy Commander-in-Chief Khan Savoeun—professing their continued loyalty to the party.
The issue is dated “September” and was distributed to The Cambodia Daily and the Phnom Penh Post, Cambodia’s two English-language newspapers, said Noranarith Ananda, head of the prince’s inner circle of advisers.
Noranarith Ananda said the publication was not given to Khmer-language newspapers or to television or radio stations because they are not considered independent.
The newsletter has been published monthly for three years and distributed to national party leaders and government officials, said Noranarith Ananda, who edits the publication. Its budget limits its print run to only 500 to 1,000 copies, but party higher-ups often photocopy it to distribute it to grass-roots supporters, he said.
The editor said its release to the two newspapers is intended to “keep the media posted” about the party’s doings. But the release comes after months of strife within the party over the royalists’ performance in February’s commune council elections, the attempt to replace co-Minister of Interior You Hockry and the Interior Ministry’s recent selection of five “dignitaries” to lead the National Election Committee.
Earlier this month, Kem Sokha became the first high-ranking official to quit the party. The former senator and Funcinpec deputy secretary-general said he could no longer work for such an ineffective political party.
Previous controversies have involved Khan Savoeun—whose failed bid to replace You Hockry displeased a large party faction—and Princess Vacheara—who met with opposition leader Sam Rainsy in Paris but denied that she had agreed to switch parties.
Recently appointed Funcinpec spokesman Kol Pheng praised the newsletter’s release, calling it “an important tool for publicity.”
While the Sam Rainsy Party has fully grasped the Western art of spin—besieging media outlets with news releases aimed at keeping the opposition in the public eye, the CPP still keeps as tight a grip on information about its affairs as it does on its power.
But Funcinpec has tended toward the other end of the spectrum: Constant, uncoordinated leaks from a number of officials have regularly aired the party’s dirty laundry.
Kol Pheng, secretary-general of the National Assembly, was appointed as spokesman in the aftermath of the Khan Savoeun debacle, which led to a five-day legislative boycott that shut down the Assembly on the eve of a crucial vote. Other party members were then forbidden to discuss the party’s internal affairs with journalists, in an attempt to present a united front to the public.
As national elections, scheduled for next July, approach, the newsletter plans to expand its circulation, Noranarith Ananda said.
