Cambodia: Police official warns of colour revolution

Top police official claims that local and international groups 'take advantage with actions that aim to topple the government'

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By Lauren Crothers / Anadolu Agency | 17 March 2016

PHNOM PENH--Days after a Cambodian student was jailed for referencing a “colour revolution” a top police official has warned of the danger of such a movement influenced by local and international NGOs.

The Phnom Penh Post on Thursday quoted Deputy National Police Commissioner Chhay Sinarith as having said that local and international groups “take advantage with actions that aim to topple the government.” 

“Tension in society resulting in turmoil can happen again, but bigger than in 2015, because 2016 is the year we are heading into commune elections and the general election is in 2018.”

Sinarith's remarks, made at an internal security meeting at the Ministry of Interior on Wednesday, come days after student Kong Raya was jailed for 18 months over a Facebook post he made last year, which referenced a so-called color revolution -- a term that has become synonymous with a wave of anti-government mass movements in recent years, mainly in the former Soviet bloc. 

Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan told Anadolu Agency on Thursday that the comments were more of a “precaution by the armed forces” to potential agitators, because everything is “under control right now”.

“They have to standby every second; that is their job.”

He said the government aims to “control peace and stability to make people confident in doing business, for investors and others.”

Yim Sovann, spokesman of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party, told Anadolu Agency that the comments “did not reflect reality”.

“The reality is social justice, respect of human rights, poverty, corruption and the problems that haven’t been solved since a long time ago,” he said.

“When there are demonstrations, we have to look at the root cause. When there is injustice, people can’t survive on a small salary, of course they have to stand up and call for a decent living. But they have no power to do a decent revolution.”

After the disputed 2013 elections, hundreds of people took to the streets to highlight a number of issues. But ultimately, the wave of mass protests over government rule and an unsatisfactory minimum wage for garment workers peaked and ended in Jan. 2014, when government forces shot dead five civilians during a strike.

Two other civilians had also already been shot dead by state forces in other protests in Sept. and Nov. 2013.

Since then, such numbers have not been replicated.

Political analyst Ou Virak told Anadolu Agency on Thursday that the talk of a such a revolution was outdated and more of a “sign of paranoia” than anything else.

“They have to always appear to be really onto something or after something and exposing a potential colour revolution by NGOs is a juicy thing to mention to get the attention of their bosses,” he said, adding that any revolution would have been likelier “two or three years ago.”

Since the crackdown, however, calls for change have largely faded from the public discourse.

“People are much more complacent now. Look at the crackdown," Virak said.

"People thought the genie was out of the bottle and young people couldn’t be stopped, but there is too much trauma in the Cambodian psyche and you saw beatings and shootings of protesters, and people retracted back into fear.”