The Cambodian government will have to enact substantial political reforms if it wants to retain a preferential trade agreement with the European Union, a Swedish lawmaker has warned. Under the agreement, known as Everything But Arms, Cambodia can export goods to the EU duty free, but that arrangement is contingent on the nation complying with international conventions regarding human and labor rights.
Cambodia needs to enact genuine democratic reforms, Asa Eriksson told Voice of America in an interview shortly after meeting opposition leader Kem Sokha at his house in Phnom Penh.
“I haven’t seen any progress. We did see small, small things happening in late autumn. But it’s not enough at all. And I would say that … to me, at least, it looks more like cosmetics: things that should tell us that the process is going in the right way, but I’m not sure that the government is willing to do the changes that are needed,” she said.
In full: https://www.voanews.com/east-asia-pacific/swedish-parliamentarian-visits-opposition-leader-cambodia
