Advocacy in Cambodia: Increasing Democratic ... - Pact Cambodia

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Increasing Democratic Space The rapid growth of NGOs and the open environment in which the government allows them to operate are distinct advantages for advocates in Cambodia. engagement and mitigate potential conflict. Characteristics Facilitating Advocacy The rapid growth of NGOs and the open environment in which the government allows them to operate are distinct advantages for advocates in Cambodia. NGOs and associations are able to organize conferences, conduct education activities and distribute publications, although access to mass media is sometimes hindered. Government officials are for the most part willing to attend advocacy events. This favorable environment has facilitated establishment of networks among NGOs and with the government, UN, and other international agencies. While the preponderance of international organizations and donors working in Cambodia has its drawbacks, their presence has a facilitating influence on advocacy in the country. Most international agencies recognize the importance of civil society participation in policy formulation and provide for participation in their own internal policies. This is especially true of the UN, World Bank, and Asian Development Bank, all of which make civil society participation a condition to obtaining support or loans as a matter of policy. On the global scene, empowerment of citizens at the local level has become a generally accepted requisite for sustainable advocacy. In Cambodia this is translating into palpable donor pressure on NGOs to assist community leaders to become advocates rather than to advocate on their behalf - a message that comes through clearly in the findings of this report. Given the relatively short history of civil society organizations in Cambodia, advocacy has made great strides to date and the increased maturity of advocacy campaigns is evident. Ten years ago government officials were extremely wary of NGOs and likely perceived the sector as a temporary inconvenience that could be shut down at any time. Local NGO leaders, who remembered all too clearly what it was like to live under a communist regime were easily alarmed, for example, when in the mid- 1990s a provincial governor sent letters to all local NGOs asking for names and home addresses of all staff. A decade of interaction between the government and civil society has done much to improve the working environment however, as officials begin to understand differences between the role of government and that of civil society organizations, and NGOs become less fearful and more adept at engaging the government. A final characteristic that has facilitated NGO advocacy efforts is often underestimated in significance. In his rhetoric, the Prime Minister has been a constant defender of the poor, openly talking about corruption and the need to fight it. He has publicly apologized a number of times to the Cambodian people for prevalent corruption in the country. For ordinary citizens who fear powerful individuals, knowledge that the man at the top supports their cause in principle gives them confidence to express their grievances. Advocates understand the power of political figures’ rhetoric and have moved quickly to videotape speeches in order to play them back to villagers in rural areas. Inhibitors to Advocacy Despite the above facilitating characteristics, however, there are other factors that can inhibit the advocacy process. Within the Cambodian context, lack of popular representation and the absence of rule of law significantly inhibit the success of advocacy efforts. When policy makers are not elected (such as governors) and enforcement is not regular and consistent, it is unreasonable to expect success using traditional advocacy strategies of working through representative government at all levels of society. Although there can be success in changing policy, success does not necessarily lead to policy A workshop on child labor organized by LICADHO. Sihanoukville, February 2002. 10
implementation. Without policy implementation, problems remain at the local level with the stakeholders who are affected. Occasionally when a minister or politician is not well disposed towards an issue the discussion comes to a standstill. Reasons for this may vary. Politicians may see the issue as unimportant or threatening to their agenda. Or, they may be concerned, but feel that they do not know enough about the issue to address it confidently. Alternatively, the advocacy effort itself may only involve a handful of NGOs that have not developed enough legitimacy and clout to be taken seriously. In these cases, the absence of pressure from other sources can weaken NGO advocacy efforts. The timing of the advocacy campaign with government could simply be wrong. For example, government officials may be busy with budget deadlines, donor meetings, or other pressing obligations. In these cases, advocacy techniques such as focusing media attention on the issue are not likely to move the subject forward and advocates find themselves at a dead end. Another major obstacle to advocacy in Cambodia is a lack of understanding among advocates about where civil society intersects with government. Given that a group would like to advocate, it is unclear how the group should approach government. The entry point into the policy dialogue has not been firmly established and an approach strategy that is successful once may not be when used at a different time or in a different context. Currently, many advocacy campaigns rely on personalities rather than procedures, which inhibits a more uniform approach that leads to success. In some Asian countries, activism depends to a large degree on student movements and a strong popular base built on people’s organizations. Students usually advocate for political change and popular organizations advocate for political, economic, and social change. In Cambodia, both of these aspects are weak, creating an obstacle to effective popular advocacy. Students are not strongly literate and do not appear to be developing their own political agendas. Student activism in the 1990s was primarily limited to demonstrations for improved studying conditions and demands that the language of instruction be changed from French to English. Unlike other countries in Southeast Asia, the student movement in Cambodia has displayed very little political awareness. Similarly, Cambodia does not have a strong history of community-based organizations. NGOs form the main civil society structures and their more longterm popular base is limited to lending groups, user groups, or self-help groups organized as part of development programs. Communities are in part resistant to organizing because of failed collective experiments stemming from forced labor under the Khmer Rouge regime. This situation presents a significant obstacle to current efforts to mobilize popular support and legitimize advocacy campaigns, although there are untapped opportunities to do so in the future. When civil society intersects with government - Election Monitoring Organization (EMO) representatives meet with Minister of Interior H.E. You Hok Kry at the Ministry of Interior to discuss the Commune Council Election Law. Increasing Democratic Space 11
Page 1 and 2: advocacy in cambodia: increasing de
Page 3 and 4: executive summary The Cambodian non
Page 5 and 6: sectors reviewed in this document
Page 7 and 8: livelihood of populations, includin
Page 9 and 10: Pursat Rice Miller’s Association,
Page 11: Protected Forest and Land Dispute:
Page 15 and 16: drafts incorporated into the new La
Page 17 and 18: the relocation site and not at the
Page 19 and 20: Landless Families: O’thkov Villag
Page 21 and 22: Short-term and long-term implicatio
Page 23 and 24: EMOs do not traditionally base thei
Page 25 and 26: or even fearful to solve conflicts,
Page 27 and 28: collection of information on public
Page 29 and 30: each month. Facilitating Engagement
Page 31 and 32: analyzing impact of advocacy activi
Page 33 and 34: communities and NGOs can work with
Page 35 and 36: influencing the legislative process
Page 37 and 38: informal contacts and being able to
Page 39 and 40: CHART OF LEGISLATIVE PROCESS (10) K
Page 41 and 42: considerable public attention, but
Page 43 and 44: lessons learned Advocates have lear
Page 45 and 46: ecommendations The following are re
Page 47 and 48: conclusion Outside of human rights
Page 49 and 50: conclusion of the forum, the govern
Page 51 and 52: level can sustainable resource use
Page 53 and 54: literature, interviews, and field v
Page 55 and 56: Future Considerations The following
Page 57 and 58: Timeline of Land Issues Over the Pa
Page 59 and 60: The new Land Law will require betwe
Page 61 and 62: labor The garment factory labor mov
Page 63 and 64:
input from AFL-CIO, the largest lab
Page 65 and 66:
intervene are by activating the Lab
Page 67 and 68:
ights have, in principle if not in
Page 69 and 70:
commune council election law The ca
Page 71 and 72:
maximize the group’s collective i
Page 73 and 74:
communication between EMOs and dono
Page 75 and 76:
The CCEL campaign was the first opp
Page 77 and 78:
in every four women (25%) aged 15-4
Page 79 and 80:
estimates the number of sex workers
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elections saw an increase to 14 fem
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healthcare. While many women know t
Page 85 and 86:
losing influence. For this reason,
Page 87 and 88:
plaintiffs at a disadvantage. A sec
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level to increase interaction betwe
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courses for members of the media (p
Page 93 and 94:
economic issues NGOs are advocating
Page 95 and 96:
come together to discuss problems a
Page 97 and 98:
the issue on the government’s age
Page 99 and 100:
premier center for rights-based and
Page 101 and 102:
Penh. Watson, Gabrielle, 2000. Advo
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