February 27, 1999
| | |
| ||
| February 27, 1999 | atimes.com | |
| ||
| Southeast Asia Hun Sen gets aid - and a new chance By Suvendrini Kakuchi TOKYO - Japan led international donors Friday inpledging a total of $470 million in aid this year toCambodia, aiming to give the troubled country yet another newstart. But the group of 23 donors, consisting of 16 donor governmentsled by Japan and seven international financial institutions, alsosaid that the effective use of funds would be subject to reviewevery three months. The condition came amid pressure from governments, critics andrights activists who wanted aid tied to a better human rightsrecord in Cambodia and fulfillment of pledges to crack down oncorruption and deforestation and to reorient the military. At the end of the two-day Consultative Group meeting herehowever, Hun Sen's government not only got more than it hadexpected in aid funds, which support nearly half of itsoperating budget. It also got a boost in acceptance - albeit grudging in come cases -by the international community. Aid pledged to Cambodia was a ''watershed event that allowsCambodia to make a bold new beginning on the internationalstage,'' said the World Bank's Ngozi Ojonko-Iwela, chairman of themeeting. The Tokyo meeting was the first to be held among Cambodia'sdonors since the July 1997 ouster by Hun Sen of his co-premier,Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and since last year's elections won byHun Sen's party. Japan, Cambodia's biggest bilateral donor, accounted for thebiggest portion of the aid deal by pledging $100 million, Okonjo-Iwela said at a press conference Friday. Okonjo, the World Bank's director for Southeast Asia and Mongolia,said the bank pledged $75 million. A French delegatesaid his government had offered $28 million. The pledged aid package is a little higher than the $450 millionCambodia now gets annually. Cambodia also got an extra concession from Japan, a promise toresume billions of yen in official loans in the fiscal yearthat starts in April. Tokyo's decision to offer official loans, which constitute amajor portion of Japanese international aid, is the first in 31years and signifies Japan's support for Cambodia. Tokyo had frozenyen loans to Cambodia since 1969. A foreign ministry official could not give details about theseloans, but said Tokyo was likely to start with loans worth 2 billion to 3billion yen to rehabilitate facilities at Sihanoukville port inthe south-east. The bulk of the $470 million in aid will go to povertyalleviation though social development, support for education andhealth and infrastructure. Some money will pass through non-government organizations as well. ''The issue of human rights was discussed thoroughly, but thisconference was more about economic and social stability,'' Okonko-Iwela said. Many doubt the sincerity of reforms promised by Hun Sen, whocame to the donors' meeting seeking $1.3 billion for threeyears. Even Japan called on Hun Sen to implement his commitments onpolitical, economic, and social reforms including urgent issueslike revenue mobilization and forest management. Hun Sen told donors he was not merely making fresh promises towoo donors and ''gain temporary reprieve from criticism." Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy, however, called thegranting of more aid at this point ''the path of leastresistance'' and said giving it would be ''pouring taxpayers'money into the sinkhole for foreign aid that Cambodia hasbecome." He said donors like Japan and others should first find out howCambodia has used the $2 billion in aid it received in thelast decade. Without political reforms of accountability and transparencythose billions ''will disappear into the pockets of thecorrupt once again, and Cambodia will never throw away its beggingbowl,'' added Rainsy, who was here this week. Donors like Japan, however, say Cambodia cannot survive withoutforeign aid. Even while demands are growing for respect for humanrights and better governance, they know that there is even lesschance of improvement if problems like food shortages get anyworse. Whatever some donors think of Hun Sen's rights record,Cambodia's pressing needs are bound to the first priority at thispoint. Thus, a Japanese official said, ''Japan is resolved to lend support, tothe extent possible, for Cambodia's development and prosperity inthe upcoming years." It remains to be seen how firmly donors can and will hold PhnomPenh to its conditions on aid. Discussions at the donors' meeting centered on problems likeillegal logging, an unruly and huge army and a defense budget thataccounted for 35.6 percent of the national budget in 1998. Hun Sen said his country's long internal conflict had causedthe situation, but ''we are now in a position to reshape andreform the military and security apparatus." So Ah, senior minister in charge of the Office of the Councilof Ministers, disclosed a timetable for downsizing the army. Hesaid 11,500 soldiers would be cut in 2000, 11,000 in the two-year period 2001-02 and 12,000 in 2003. Cambodia has appealed for $104 million in financial,technical and material support over the next five years fordemobilizing 55,000 soldiers. By World Bank estimates, Cambodia spends 3.7 percent of GDP ondefense and security, 2 percent on education and 1 percent onhealth. The Bank wants more resources spent on health andeducation instead of defense. (Inter Press Service) | |||||||||
 |
|
Front | China | Southeast Asia | Japan | Koreas | India/Pakistan | Central Asia/Russia | Oceania Business Briefs | Global Economy | Asian Crisis | Media/IT | Editorials | Letters | Search/Archive |
back to the top ©1999 Asia Times Online Co., Ltd. |
