Oct. 26, 2001

MY TRIP TO THE WESTERN PROVINCES AND GOOD GOVERNANCE ISSUES

Last month I enjoyed a very interesting tour to Battanbang, Pailin, Sisophon, Poipet, and Siem Reap. It is always fascinating to look around the country-side and it allows me to better understand a broader situation of Cambodia. All through my foreign service career, whether it was in France, the Philippines, the former Soviet Union, South Korea or Hawaii, the countries where I have worked so far, it has been my established practice to travel widely and meet as many people as possible in the country of assignment. This has allowed me to grasp a better overall picture of these countries. Let me tell you about some of my impressions from my last trip around the Western border region of Cambodia.

It was my first visit to Pailin and I had an opportunity to meet many local people including ex- Khmer Rouge(KR) soldiers. I was interested to learn how these people felt about the future tribunal proceedings, which would judge their former senior leaders. While some respect and sympathy still seems to remain for those leaders, I concluded that many former soldiers are weary of fighting again, even if tribunals begin. Perhaps this former KR stronghold could be guaranteed greater stability through the development of the region by rehabilitating the roads and giving the local people the possibilty to meet their needs through agriculture. The central governmnet and the donor community may well give a thought to it.

The border towns of Pailin and Poipet are at different stages of development. Yet they share some common characteristics, which differ in their degree and intensity. There is the now continuous ebb and flow of migrants and traders, and the casinos, often flamboyant, attract gamblers with money to spare. However, the local authorities struggle with the development of their towns and the provision of assistance to the poor. I gained the impression that the authorities of both cities did not have the appropriate financial means to meet thier obligations. The power to collect taxes by the local authorities or the system of budget assistance from the central government may not yet be well defined or structured. I sincerely hope that at a time when Cambodia is undertaking a policy of reform through decentralization, the situation will improve.

The situation regarding the collecton of taxes from the casinos or the control of traffic and trade at the border may not be transparent. Smuggling remains a chronic problem. There are also talks about the forced relocation of people in order to build new casinos. Besides these border problems, whenever I travel in the countryside I often observe a large number of huge, overloaded trucks travelling at a high speed and as a result, damaging the already frail roads and bridges. There seems to be little control of those overloaded trucks.

All of these issues pertain to the question of good governance in Cambodia and have an important bearing on development. I believe that the Cambodian authorities could do a little better, even under the present circumstances. Incidentally, I consider the presence of good governance to be a key element for the development of any country. Japan as the world's leading donor nation, maintains this elemnt as an indispensable principle of its aid policy. Thus the Official Development Assistance(ODA) Charter of the Japanese Government stipulates in particular that Japan will implement its ODA to help ensure the efficient and fair distribution of resources and 'good governance' in developing countries......

THE COMMUNE ELECTIONS AND JAPAN

Another objective of my last trip to the Western provinces was to see how the local people and politicians are preparing for the upcoming commune elections.
I had imagined that under the present circumstances the conditions would not be very favourble for conducting these elections next year. However, after visiting a number of provinces and communes and meeting many local party leaders, provincial and communal election commitee members, newly selected clerks as well as other local leaders, I am now much more optimistic. Of course, some problems and deficiencies still remain, but I observed that local people are conscientiously pursuing the preparations despite the difficulties. I perceived a growing awareness on the part of the local people, that they would be able to decide and carry out the task of their future development by themselves. It seems also that the political parties, including the opposition, are strengthening their local networks and relations with their headquqarters in Phnom Penh I highly commend the bold step of the Royal Governmnet of Cambodia in proceeding with the decentralization and deconcentration reforms under difficult circumstances. I am certain that in the long run, this exercise will promote the process of democratization throughout the Kingdom.

The Japanese Government is supporting the commune election preparations through the contribution of $ 3 million(US) to the National Election Committee and our Embassy financed the voter education projects and the clerk training programs conducted by a number of local NGOs. These NGOs included; The Women's Media Center of Cambodia, The Combodian Committee for Free and Fair Elections (COMFREL) and The Cambodian Institute of Human Rights(CIHR).

HOW ABOUT CAMPAINGNING FOR PUTTING GARBAGE WHERE IT BELONGS?　

Last month I took a few days holiday and traveled to Vientiane and Luang Prabang with my wife. In many respects it was interesting to compare the two neighboring countries of Laos and Cambodia. Laos was lucky in that it could start its reconstruction much earlier than Cambodia and the cleanliness of the cities, towns and villages impressed us very much. The reason seems to be that Lao people are accustomed to disposing of their garbage in conveniently placed trash boxes or cans and do not throw their garbage on the streets or elsewhere. Besides that, they seem to have the habit of regularly cleaning their streets and areas around their houses.

I suggest that this behavior is a matter of habit and it could be realised too in Cambodia through continuous mass education. Political leaders should take the lead with the initiative to start a nation-wide campaign. Japan, too, has been doing so and most recently our Prime Minister Mr. Koizumi talked about a "Zero Garbage" campaign. In the case of Japan this is important for addressing the proplem of Global Warming and for Cambodia it is vital for its development, especially for building its tourism industry.