Cambodia
Cambodia exhibits low-range performance across all four categories of the Global State of Democracy framework, ranking in the bottom 25 per cent of the world in each one (Representation, Rights, Rule of Law and Participation). Over the past five years, there have been significant declines in Credible Elections, Free Political Parties, Elected Government, and Access to Justice, reflecting authoritarian entrenchment. Conversely, there has been an improvement in Basic Welfare over the course of the last two decades, a development which has been undergirded by the country’s steady economic expansion. Classified as lower-middle income country, Cambodia’s economic growth has been driven primarily by garment exports, tourism, and the agricultural service sector.
Much of present-day Cambodia was the home of the Khmer Empire (802-1431 CE), which fell into decline in the 14th and 15th centuries. The surviving kingdom was dominated by its neighbors until Cambodia formally became a French colonial possession in 1863. The Kingdom of Cambodia that gained independence in 1953 was never fully politically stable, and King Norodom Sihanouk was overthrown in a military coup in 1970. Since that time, Cambodia has been marked by cycles of political violence and oppression, most notably including the Cambodian Civil War and the Khmer Rouge-led forced labour policies and genocide. More recent history has been dominated by Prime Minister Hun Sen, who took power in 1985 under the occupying Vietnamese government and continued to hold the post after the monarchy was restored in 1993. In 2023 he transferred power to his son, Hun Manet. Both of these rulers belong to the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), which has maintained a de facto one-party state since 2017 and which has regularly acted to entrench its power.
The main issues driving politics in Cambodia are CPP’s entrenching authoritarianism and the conflict between the small-scale farmers that make up 75 per cent of Cambodia’s population and large-scale land acquisitions for cash crop production. Whereas Cambodians once enjoyed some degree of electoral competition - particularly in the 2013 election, where the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) fared well in the capital Phnom Penh and with young voters - the opposition today is greatly diminished. Critical voices are routinely shut down, and the opposition Candlelight Party was banned in 2023 after receiving 22 per cent of the vote in the 2022 local elections. In recent years, the country’s civic space has been shrinking, including deteriorating press freedoms and a lack of freedom of expression.
Only about one-fifth of parliamentary seats are held by women, and fewer than one-in-ten journalists are female. Intimate partner violence and lack of access to family planning remain challenges for Cambodian women. Ethnic minorities and indigenous people, which make up less than 5 per cent of the population, are also underrepresented in government. While the country has made strides in protecting the rights of LGBTQIA+ people, it still has not formally codified any non-discrimination protections.
In the years ahead, it will be important to watch the Rights indicators, particularly Freedom of Expression and Freedom of the Press, for any further regression. In addition, actions taken by the government to limit the competitiveness of elections and intimidate opposition parties could impact Representation metrics. Finally, while the country remains vulnerable to climate change, Basic Welfare may continue to improve, as Cambodia has returned to a state of rapid economic growth.
https://www.idea.int/democracytracker/
February 2024
Cambodia holds senatorial elections
Cambodia held elections for the upper house of parliament on 25 February. Hun Sen’s ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) won 55 of 58 contested seats, down from 58 seats in the previous parliament (four additional seats are appointed, two by the King and two by the National Assembly). Khmer Will, which is running as a proxy for the unregistered opposition Candlelight Party, won the remaining three seats. The election was open to elected officials and local councillors, and the Capital-Provincial Election Commission reported 99.86 percent turnout. Gender representation data in the new Senate was not available. Former prime minister Hun Sen is expected to be elected president of the Senate when it convenes.
Sources: Associated Press, Khmer Times
July 2023
Hun Sen wins fraudulent election and ‘steps aside’
Hun Sen’s Cambodian People’s Party declared victory in National Assembly elections held on 23 July, winning 120 of 125 seats in a stage-managed contest which was held to be neither free nor fair by opposition, election observers, and foreign diplomats. The main opposition Candlelight Party was disqualified in May, and other key opposition figures had been systematically forced into exile or imprisoned on trumped-up charges in recent years. On 26 July, Prime Minister Hun made the expected announcement that he would resign in August and hand over power to his son, Hun Manet, but promised “even if I am no longer a prime minister, I will still control politics as the head of the ruling party.” Women’s representation in the new parliament is 10.4 per cent, down from 20.8 per cent previously and the lowest in twenty years.
Sources: ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights, New York Times (1), New York Times (2), IPU Parline
June 2023
Future candidates must vote now, parliament says
Cambodia’s parliament amended an electoral law on 23 June to bar anyone who does not vote in the 23 July general election from running for future office. Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Cambodian People’s Party will be running essentially unopposed in the upcoming election, as a long-running campaign of intimidation has left nearly all political opponents exiled or in jail, and the sole opposition party, the Candlelight Party, was disqualified in May 2023.
Sources: Reuters, Nikkei Asia
May 2023
Candlelight Party excluded from July national elections
The main opposition party, the Candlelight Party (CLP), was disqualified from competing in July’s national election. Cambodia’s National Election Committee (NEC) refused to accept the CLP application for July polls because it didn’t include a notarized copy of the party’s registration document. The decision was then confirmed by the Constitutional Council, which rejected CPL’s appeal against NEC's ruling. The CLP, which captured around 22 percent of the popular vote at commune elections in 2022, was seen as the only party challenging the Cambodian People's Party (CPP). As the main opposition party, the CLP has faced constant intimidation and pressure, including politically motivated lawsuits and violent attacks on opposition activists and supporters. Analysts and human rights groups argue that CLP exclusion guarantees CPP and its current leader, Hun Sen, victory in what will be elections that are neither free nor fair.
Sources: Voice of America (1), Voice of America (2), The Diplomat, British Broadcasting Corporation
Union leader jailed over casino strike
Chhim Sithar, president of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld, was sentenced to two years in prison for incitement to commit a felony under criminal code articles 494 and 495. Chhim Sithar has been leading a strike since December 2021 in protest against the NagaWorld casino’s dismission of 373 employees amid financial struggles. Sithar was sentenced in January 2022 and released on bail in March 2022; she was then re-arrested in November 2022 for violating bail conditions on international travel. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) have asked for the immediately suspension of the convictions and unconditionally release.
Similar sentences were given to three staff members of the Coalition of Cambodian Farmer Community (CCFC), a community organization that defends land rights of farmers. If convicted on all charges, they could face between five to ten years in prison, and fines.
Sources: Bangkok Post, Associated Press, Radio Free Asia, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch
See all event reports for this country
GSoD Indices Data 2013-2022
Basic Information
Human Rights Treaties
State party
Signatory
No action
Performance by category over the last 6 months
Global State of Democracy Indices
Hover over the trend lines to see the exact data points across the years
Factors of Democratic Performance Over Time
Use the slider below to see how democratic performance has changed over time
