Sam Rainsy Party meets in Manila the second time around

The Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) of Cambodia, a CALD member party, organized a meeting at the new premises of CALD secretariat in Makati City last July 1, 2010. The gathering, attended by Members of Parliament and party officials from SRP, was set in order for the party to meet their exiled opposition leader Sam Rainsy.

Hon. Sam Rainsy, Member of Parliament and former CALD chair, was sentenced in absentia in January 2010 on charges of racial incitement and destroying demarcation posts on Cambodia’s border with Vietnam. His parliamentary immunity was lifted in February 2009 when Prime Minister Hun Sen charged him with criminal defamation for accusing the Prime Minister of corruption. It was restored after paying a fine, but was lifted again in November 2009 for the border demarcation case. Since Mr. Sam cannot enter Cambodia without being arrested, the SRP was forced to meet in another country.

This was the second time that SRP held their meeting in Manila. The last one was in November 15, 2005 when Mr. Sam’s parliamentary immunity was stripped forcing him to go into exile. Mr. Sam and his party, the leading opposition party in Cambodia, have been repeatedly charged with political lawsuits, allegations of incitement, criminal defamation and disinformation, and civil court charges since 1995.

According to Hon. Mu Sochua, MP, head of the SRP Women’s Wing and chair of the CALD Women’s Caucus, the meeting was very productive and fruitful. The opportunity to meet with the party leader as well as with MPs from SRP would help pave way to the next vital steps of SRP.

“We are grateful for the warm hospitality our liberal friends in Manila have shown,” says Mr. Sam. He also expressed that beyond the success of the party meeting, solidarity in action was definitely in place through the efforts of CALD.

The SRP also attended the recently concluded CALD Manila Conference last June 28 -30. The conference hosted liberal international delegates to attend the inauguration of President Noynoy Aquino, presidential candidate of the Liberal Party of the Philippines (LP) and former secretary general of CALD. The LP is a founding member-party of CALD.

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This post was written by CALD