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BREAKING NEWS: U.S. Embassy Seeks Tolerance for Opposing Political Views

PHNOM PENH: The U.S. Embassy in Cambodia has noted that Cambodia conducted communal elections on 5 June. Chad Roedemeier, the US Embassy Spokesperson in Phnom Penh, told EAC News, that the Embassy "joins many Cambodians in calling for accountability, inclusivity, and transparency in an electoral process that denies participation and political rights to many stakeholders."

He further stated that the Embassy urges authorities “to strengthen multiparty democracy in Cambodia by tolerating opposing political views, fostering competition through inclusive elections, promoting the free exchange of ideas, and allowing civil society and the media to operate freely.”

In an interview with EAC News on Sunday, Lay Sam Ol, an 80-year-old resident of Kandal province, said she had participated in both the 1993 national elections and the commune council elections of 2002, as well as every election that came after. She said she was happy to go to the polls because it was the people's right to choose their favorite party to serve the public.

"I am happy to be able to vote in Kandal province," she said.

Another resident of Kandal province in her thirties also told EAC News that she was happy to take part in the commune council elections, and said she found the voting arrangement was done correctly and easily for the people to own their vote.

She said, “I feel happy, as a Cambodian, I have the right to choose the people I like. This election went smoothly, peacefully, without coercion, we can choose who we like.”

On the morning of Monday, 6 June, international observers held a press conference, announcing that the 5 June election was calm, transparent, free, and in accordance with international law.

Observers also said they were very interested in how the election process went smoothly and that the voters were happy and willing to vote. The observers also noted that more than 7 million people, nearly 78 percent of the population, went to the polls and that the election ran like others in different countries.

The representative of the International Observers, Hubert Moise Hal Haddad, said that he has been involved in many election observation missions, and he found the Cambodian election to be of an equal standard to the French elections he has participated in before.

A total of more than 7.1 million people nationwide, equivalent to more than 80.19% of the 9.2 million registered voters, went to the polls for the 5th Mandate Commune/Sangkat Council on Sunday, 5 June. There were 17 parties in total competing for 11,622 commune council seats nationwide out of 1,652 communes.

All political parties held campaigns for 14 days before the election day.



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