CALD Internship Report

Name of Intern: So Serey Yuth

Country: Cambodia (Sam Rainsy Party)

Internship period: 27 August 2003 - 29 October 2003

Observations and Impressions

I-  Democracy in Practice in the EU

Compared to many European countries, Cambodia society is messy and new to the practice of democracy.  On other hand, some current member countries of the EU have had much more experience with making democracy work.  Particularly, the European  Parliament displayed a great degree of decorum among members, respect for procedure rules, and in-depth professional knowledge of policy issues in their respective committee.

I also found really interesting thing  that the EU has adopted the legislation for students in Europe and Asia to research and share experiences within their internships including ideas to develop their own countries when they return.

As for the media it was really wonderful for me to circulate around Europe, observing people from all around the world, especially through media.  In Cambodia we are fond of watching the USA movies; and embracing American culture, more so than Europe.  Now I see there is much more to see in the world and I would recommend the EU to try to promote European culture and values by using satellite and cable to circulate news, movies and theatres, etc.

I was impressed to see that generally for political parties in each country of EU they have had equality of right to access the state media and use of public buildings for campaign rallies.

I found one organisation called International Federation for Liberal Youth, it very useful to build the capacity of youth on democracy process and illiterate.

I also had the opportunity to attend the public hearing on the case of detainees who have been held at the US prison camp at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, in which it was said that the US has abused the international laws of basic human rights and EU has an important role - as the only major international power block to the  US - to seek for Guantanamo detainees equal rights to access the lawyers and treat them as detainees under the Geneva Convention.

European Policies on education paying attention to the political institutions and politics of both western and Eastern European states in order to ensure that all children do have universal rights to attend school, and I was pleased to see that children of Cambodian parents in the EU are entitled to attend school.

European Policy on Media, the objective of the first program, was to promote the development of the European audiovisual industry. 

There seems to be a lot in common in member states of the EU in equal access to education, healthcare, public service facilities, etc.  They seem to show care for the vulnerable - for example, "street kids" have the chance to attend centres for skill training, learning to trust and be trusted and even be given funds to start businesses.  We have none of that in Cambodia.     Society seems much more peaceful and secure - there are no guns hanging around, the armed forces are under control and well organised, every persons, even the ministers or high ranking officials are not above the law.  I heard that even a Royal prince was prosecuted for dangerous driving.

I leaned that before arriving in Brussels that the creation of the EU and in the particular the Common Market was both political and economic achievements .  In Strasbourg I had opportunity to attend the presentation session of the EU election observers for Cambodia, Rwanda and Venezuela, and I attended group meetings on human rights defence policy on Burma, regarding the resolution to immediately release Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi and political prisoners.  I was also lucky to have attended meetings with the UN and ER representatives on the joint relationships with each other to establish the platform since 1994 to achieve the human rights issues.

I also glad that the EU policy still strong as the partnership with South East Asia and it is also make possible to the South East  Asian in supporting the regional stability on Human Rights, Democratic Principles, Governance, justice home Affairs issue, still supporting the development of less prosperous country and fight against terrorist. I would like  to see the EU putting more challenging initiatives into helping Cambodia country.  The efforts of the Vietnamese government to swallow Cambodian territory  and kill its people in the cold blood  are to be deplored.  The policy of the Vietnamese government of encouraging HIV effected prostitutes, and exporting old medicine and adulterated alcoholic drinks, is also indefensible.  If these things are not stopped, I truly fear for the future of my country.

II-  Relationship and European Foreign Policy.

EU´s and ESDP (European Security and Defence Policy) are becoming much more coherent and substantive, such as creating a more unified EU Foreign Affairs structure and increasing spending on defence. 

I found the important policy of the EU is working to promote and cooperation between countries by sharing and learning from each other including culture, religion and minority languages without any internal interference inside countries in Europe.  The EU has also to play a very important role in relationships with Asia, as with other regions of the world, to safeguard the common values, fundamental interests, independence and integrity of the union, in conformity with principles of the UN charter, to strengthen the security the security in all ways, preserving peace and strengthening the international security, to promote the international cooperation, and develop and consolidate democracy and the rule of law, and respect for human rights and fundamental freedom.  In addition EU as a whole has consistently made a significant contribution to peace keeping efforts across Asia, and to the  restoration or consolidation of democracy in countries such as the Cambodia during the elections from 1993 until to day with financial support, EU has also attending in the Paris Peace Agreement in 1991, to find out the resolution for Cambodia and also support the peace talks in Sri Lanka by adopted its Rapid Reaction Mechanism.

In the Economic Relations EU is a second largest regional trading partner in total with Asian in both exports and imports.  It was very important to exchange the products by quantity, quality and marketing.  Cambodia wishes to enter the World Trade Organisation and with free trade, because of our lower labour costs, we could export agricultural produce to the EU, if present barriers and subsidies were removed.  I would ask the EU to agree to this, as it would allow our poor people to work their way out of poverty rather than depending on development aid projects.

I also had opportunity to attend the public hearing on European Defence(NATO).  This year NATO have played the important role and strategic relationship NATO-EU, marked in particular by a joint declaration and EU access to NATO military assets.  While the EU tries to increase its military within their responsibilities, such as taking over NATO´s peacekeeping force in Macedonia in March 2003.  NATO transatlantic relationship is faced with most uncooperative US administration most of EU have ever known and it is unprecedented level of scepticism about the value of the alliance.  Renegotiating the structure of European defence and security will undoubted create tensions between EU and the United State.

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