October 22, 2002

Development and the Rule of Law in Cambodia

    It has already been some time since I had my last chat with you. In the meantime, we observe daily the signs of economic progress here and there in Phnom Penh: many new houses currently under construction are taking their final shapes; some roads in town have been rehabilitated with fresh yellow center lines supposedly to prohibit overtaking; new traffic lights have been installed and big new advertisement signboards have appeared here and there hovering high in the air. In the suburbs, a number of large empty plots of land hitherto reserved untouched now show some movement with the construction of factories; newspapers report the completion of the belated renovation of the Olympic Stadium and the opening of a new market in Tuol Kok.

　 My recent trip to Siem Reap and Sihanoukville impressed me that large cities other than Phnom Penh also show signs of new development. Although rural areas remain almost untouched and suffer from poverty, we can say that Cambodia is lively with economic development. If the present trend continues to gather momentum, Cambodia after five to ten years will be really wonderful with provinces also receiving the benefits of development: a dream which is quite likely to be realized.

    Despite all these welcome phenomena, my anxiety looms when I observe some scenes of disrespect of the law in relation to these phenomena. For instance, so many cars overtake other cars in a very dangerous manner crossing over the yellow center lines as if there were no center lines; traffic lights are often not respected; luxurious vehicles without registration number plates hurtle through the streets seemingly more abundantly, and so forth. The authorities may be working hard trying to control traffic violations, the illegal possession of firearms, cracking down on smuggled vehicles, checking overloaded vehicles, but the situation of "impunity" still remains a reality.

    I am afraid that this situation seriously undermines not only the sound development of Cambodian society but also reduces the efficiency of reforms. The rule of law is the declared policy of the Royal Government of Cambodia. The Government is expected to exert increased efforts to drastically improve the situation especially during this nascent period of development. The Government of Japan is willing to assist　these efforts together with the donor community.

Drafting the Cambodian Civil Code and Civil Procedure Code: a Japanese Approach

    The Japanese Government, through JICA, has been actively participating in the legal and judicial reform of Cambodia. Japanese jurists have been working hard jointly with Cambodian legal experts to draft the Cambodian civil code and civil procedure code: the fundamental legal instruments that govern the daily life of a society.

    The drafting exercise has been conducted for three and a half years now and legal experts of the two countries have come to the final stage of the codification. In March next year they will come up with the whole text in the Khmer language of over twelve hundred and seventy articles of the civil code and some five hundred and forty articles of the civil procedure code. Last week (October 15th and 16th), they held a national seminar on these draft codes with the high presence of Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen. The two-day seminar in which a large number of Japanese and Cambodian professors and legal experts participated demonstrated that the joint working groups have functioned well. I would like to analyze the background of this successful process in the following manner.

    (1) Japan introduced the European legal system in the latter half of the 19th Century when it started to catch up with the Western world after two and half centuries of isolationism. For instance Japan tried to adopt the French civil code. But in the process we found that an outright introduction of the French system into Japanese society did not go well. It took a few decades to modify foreign laws to adapt them to the Japanese reality of that epoch. Based on this experience, the Japanese side is convinced that while it is important to establish a modern legal system, laws which do not take into account traditional legal, socio-economic and cultural aspects of the country cannot live long. Thus, Japanese experts have always consulted their Cambodian counterparts so that the codes they are assisting to draft are adaptable to Cambodian society.

    (2) Japan considers Human Resources Development (HRD) as a crucial element in its cooperation to any developing country. Thus from the very beginning of the drafting of the civil and civil procedure codes, we have conducted the exercise jointly with our Cambodian partners. In drafting articles or determining the definition of terminologies, Japanese and Cambodian legal experts discuss together so that they arrive at a common notion of the terminologies. It is not through a unilateral manner that the Japanese jurists draft the codes and give them to the Cambodian side. By consulting their Cambodian counterparts, Japanese experts become familiar with the Cambodian legal environment and thus can provide more appropriate advice. Moreover, Cambodian experts have been regularly invited to Japan for trainings. This is a joint effort of HRD. One of the Japanese leaders told me with a happy smile (!) that as a result of more than three years of such effort, the capacity of their Cambodian friends has been built up remarkably. In fact I was impressed by the good quality of the interventions of Cambodian experts in the seminar. Incidentally, this way of capacity building is adopted also by the Japanese teams who work in the restoration of the Angkor monuments. A number of Khmer experts in archaeology, conservation and restoration are in the making! With some pride I would like to call it a Japanese approach.

    (3) Japanese professors, lawyers and officials involved in this drafting exercise have become quite enthusiastic about their work here. They are normally very busy with their own work in Japan but they devote so many hours in preparation for this project and come so often to Cambodia. They seem to have a passion for helping construct a good legal system in Cambodia perhaps remembering the Japanese experience of the 19th Century. Through this exercise, they have come to have a genuine love of Cambodia. They push me, so that the Japanese Government continues to help this country.

    Prime Minster Hun Sen highly commended the efforts of the lawyers of the two countries and expressed a strong hope that Japan will continue to assist Cambodia even after the drafts are completed. As a matter of fact, after completion the two important draft documents must undergo examination by the Council of Ministers and thereafter by the National Assembly. After adoption, Cambodians must enforce these basic laws. Coherence between the two basic codes and other specific laws such as the Land Law, family laws, etc., must be also assured. Coordination among donors which assist Cambodian legal and judicial reforms is also an important element. Thus there are still so many delicate processes that must be followed in the future. In the meantime, lawyers, judicial officials and legal experts must be recruited and trained so that they can apply and enforce the laws appropriately so that the rule of law prevails in this country.

    There still remains a long way to go. However, the process of close cooperation and a good working relationship between Japanese and Cambodian experts has been established and enhanced the capacity of Cambodian experts. They have become a precious asset for the future of the Cambodian legal system. We would like to continue this successful cooperation.

Phnom Penh: a New Center for International Gatherings

    Cambodia is busy preparing for the forthcoming ASEAN＋3 Summit Meeting to be held in Phnom Penh in early November. Since last year, the Cambodian Government has hosted quite a few international conferences in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. The ASEAN＋3 Summit is the largest and the highest level international event of this genre. Altogether, 14 heads of state or government will gather next month in the Cambodian capital. Until next summer, Cambodia assumes the presidency of the ASEAN and will continue to host a series of ASEAN meetings. The international community has confidence in Cambodian peace and stability and trusts its leadership. A bravo for Cambodia! This means that greater international attention will be drawn to this country. It is time for Cambodia to show to the world that this country is capable of achieving sound economic and social development based on the rule of law.