Cambodian Opposition Refuses to Call Off Parliament Boycott
Cambodia’s opposition said it will not attend the scheduled opening of parliament next week despite a request by the king to call off their boycott. The opposition continues to insist that the ruling party agree to an independent investigation into allegations of massive voting fraud in July’s election. The letter from King Norodom Sihamoni, Cambodia’s constitutional monarch, came after three days of opposition protests attended by tens of thousands of people in the capital. … Yim Sovann, a spokesman for the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party, or CNRP, said Wednesday that as matters currently stand the opposition would not attend the opening of parliament. Yim Sovann said MPs were obliged to take into account an earlier letter from King Norodom Sihamoni – dated August 7 – in which the monarch called on both parties to find a peaceful solution to the post-election crisis. “The solution cannot be found yet. So we have to find the solution. Also we have to respect the letter of the king – in the letter of the king dated the 7th, the king wants unity, wants a solution, but so far there is no unity, there’s no solution. So we have to find justice, we have to find a solution, we have to find a way to unify all of the political forces first before we go to the parliament,” said Sovann. … The ruling CPP has said that with the release of the official results, the time for revisiting the vote has passed. … Although no date has yet been set for further negotiations, Yim Sovann said he hoped a meeting would take place before the scheduled opening of parliament next week. …
Robert Carmichael
http://www.voacambodia.com/content/cambodias-opposition-rejects-offer-to-attend-parliaments-opening/1752326.html
