takhmau district, Kandal province – A CPP commune chief intimidated voters at Wat Prek Russei polling station, an election observer charged Sunday.
“The commune chief and the village chief walked around the polling area when the election started,” said Hang Virak, an election observer with the neutral Committee for Free and Fair Elections.
“He stood right next to the people, smiled and asked them how they were doing. He greeted the people, but his eye watched the voting,” Hang Virak said.
Sam Rainsy Party, Funcinpec and Comfrel election observers all said Takdal Commune Chief Keo Mon stayed at the polling station after he cast his vote, a violation of election law. Keo Mon denied the allegations.
“After I voted I walked back to the main gate of the pagoda and sat down with the police for awhile,” Keo Mon said. “I did not talk to people, but people came to talk to me. How do I make people scared if I sit 200 meters away from the polling station?”
Comfrel said it would file a formal complaint with the Kandal Election Committee. The incident marked one of the only major complaints here on a day marred more by disorganization than intimidation. While voters said they felt free to vote for any party, they were upset by long lines and the slow voting process.
At the Teacher Training Center of Takhmau, where Prime Minister Hun Sen had voted an hour earlier, lines 60-people deep waited outside in the midmorning sun to cast their ballots.
Attempting to maintain order, election committee members let only a few voters at a time into the polling station. But the slow lines frustrated some people. A crowd pushed on the blockaded doors and broke through, swarming the registration table. “I pushed together with many others because it is hot,” said Long Van, 35. “I cannot wait longer. I am not angry, but this is the way to force them to work faster.”
Long lines in the early morning led to confusion and impatience at polling stations throughout the district, election observers said. Some voters could not find their names on the long registration lists.
“Things were quite chaotic,” said a Nicfec observer at Prek Russei Primary School. “People are inexperienced. They don’t know what to do. It’s very frustrating. We can’t intervene. We can only observe.”
Most voters were all smiles as they left the polling station, showing off their ink-stained fingers. Although many refused to reveal their vote, the majority said they wanted peace more than anything.
“I prepared myself to vote like a boxer prepares himself for a fight,” said Youn Poun, 65, a former Lon Nol soldier. “I vote for peace. I don’t want the young generation to face war as I did.”
Amid the frenzy of early morning voting, election observers did not see any blatant problems.
“I don’t know yet whether the election will be free and fair,” said Keo Soley, 22, an election observer at the Teacher Training Center. “We’ll know more when we count the ballots.”
