Thursday, 5 March 2009

PM Proposes to Omit National Congress from Cambodian Constitution

2009-03-04
Xinhua
Web Editor: Xu Leiying

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Wednesday that national congress is not a good idea for the country and should be deleted from the Cambodian Constitution.

"The (part about holding) national congress should be omitted from the constitution, because it could cause turmoil for the country if we conduct it," he told a school inauguration ceremony in Takeo province.

According to the constitution, a national congress can be convened, if needed, for all political parties to join and debate relevant issues.

"Now, we have at least 50 political parties which are registered at the Ministry of Interior and it is easy to cause turmoil for the country (if a national congress is held for them), " national television TVK quoted him as saying.

"It is difficult to conduct a national congress," he said, adding that only the major ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) can collect enough votes to omit it from the constitution.

In the 1950s and 1960s, Cambodia used to hold national congress in front of the National Museum near the Royal Palace to seek the best resolution for the problems of the country and also debate the difficult matters that the country faced.

Since the kingdom conducted its first general election in 1993, no national congress has been convened again.

There is now the National Assembly, the top legislative body for the political parties to discuss government issues and participate in management of the country.

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