Cambodia ruling party sweeps parliament after vote with no opposition

PHNOM PENH: Cambodian leader Hun Sen has swept all seats in parliament after holding an election with no opposition, as the country settles into one-party rule and a government that could face questions of legitimacy on the world stage.

The strongman has been in power for 33 years but the vote late last month was widely decried as a sham after a crackdown on the rival Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), which was dissolved by the Supreme Court in November.

A spokesman for the National Election Committee told AFP Wednesday as official results were released that the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) won all 125 seats up for grabs and took nearly 77 percent of the vote.

In a post on his Facebook page later Wednesday Hun Sen said the election was “free, fair and just.”Cambodia’s new government will be formed next month but problems of credibility could dog the regime as experts believe Hun Sen will try to bolster popular support at home.

“It’s like pushing a cart uphill,” said independent political analyst Meas Ny. “From now on the new government will be under attack and defending itself.” The results were in line with preliminary tallies and Hun Sen said in a speech earlier in the day that he would take suggestions from parties who contested the election on ideas to “build the country.”

Nineteen other political parties took part in the sixth national vote since UN-backed polls in 1993 but many are new or obscure and posed no challenge.The dissolved opposition is planning on ramping up efforts with governments abroad to put more pressure on Hun Sen.

“We will not abandon more than half of the country who voted for change but were excluded from exercising their choice,” Mu Sochua, deputy CNRP leader, told AFP from self-exile. The White House has said it would consider expanding travel sanctions against Cambodian officials but so far no punitive actions have been taken. The CPP pointed to 83 percent voter turnout as evidence that a boycott by the opposition failed, but allegations of voter intimidation and some 600,000 spoiled ballots undermined the claims.Hun Sen has held onto power for decades through a complex mix of development dollars and alliances in the police, army and courts.