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1 [1] (July 26, 2018)

handle is hein.crs/crsuntaaley0001 and id is 1 raw text is: CRS INSIGHT Cambodian Elections July 26, 2018 (IN10918) Related Author aThomas Lum Thomas Lum, Specialist in Asian Affairs (lum r, 7-7616) Cambodian National Assembly elections, scheduled for July 29, 2018, are expected to be a setback for the country's prospects for democratization. The ruling political party, the Cambodian People's Party (CPP), banned the largest opposition party in 2017 and will run virtually unopposed. Steps taken by the Trump Administration and Congress to respond to the Cambodian government's anti-democratic actions have been met with defiance by the Cambodian leader, Hun Sen. Political History Between 1975 and 1991, Cambodia endured the four-year reign of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, also known as the Khmer Rouge, during which an estimated two million Cambodians died, as well as Vietnamese invasion and occupation, and civil war. The Pari Peace Agremn, signed by Cambodia and 18 other nations pledging to support the country's sovereignty and reconstruction on October 23, 1991, ended the conflict. It also established a liberal democracy with periodic and genuine elections. Since the United Nations administered the first post-war national elections in 1993, the Kingdom of Cambodia has made fitful progress in its political and social development, including the conduct of elections and growth of civil society. Official Development Assistance (ODA), which totaled more than $10 billion between 1995 and 2016 (according to DECD aa), helped restore and develop Cambodian political, social, and economic institutions, most of which were destroyed under the Khmer Rouge (1975-1979). In recent years, assistance from China has roughly matched total annual ODA flows from OECD member countries, and it appears that Prime Minister Hun Sen has embraced Chinese assistance as an alternative to Western aid, which often comes with conditions for democratic governance. Recent Political Developments The Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP), a union of two opposition parties led by Sam Rainsy and Kem Sokha, made significant gains in the 2013 parliamentary elections and 2017 local elections. The CNRP's strength reflected a younger and more globalized electorate that is less focused on Cambodia's past turbulence, more concerned about corruption and inequality, and more demanding about government accountability and performance. Cambodia also has been under pressure to improve the quality of its elections, with many Western governments, including the United States, providing assistance to increase participation, improve transparency, and ensure polls are