Chapter Four: Case Studies of Non-Compliance
In this chapter, I select three bilateral disputes as cases of non-compliance to further examine if Cambodia could act freely when the incident is concerning Cambodian interests. The first case is about The Office of the Council of Ministers. This is the most obvious incident to show how Cambodia behaves when differences in opinions occur.
The second case is regarding the illegal wildlife trade found in Chinese Chamber of Commerce Office in Phnom Penh. The issue is worth investigating because Cambodia did not treat the Chinese chamber with the greatest courtesy as expected. The third case is related to Chinese nationals who were arrested for internet phone call scams. A shocking number of Chinese nationals are being sent home incessantly. This reflects the kingdom’s door is not wide open for everyone who hails from China. The more detailed reasons why they are chosen will be illustrated in the beginning of each section.
Since China and Cambodia are close-knit friends, I aim to look for places where Cambodia is capable of making its own decisions when facing clashing interests. The research question proposed in this thesis seems to have a self-evident answer, for most people believe that Cambodia is a Chinese client state. However, if one conflicting case can be found, then it is reasonable to infer that Cambodia would change its path for its own good when needed instead of always pleasing China. In the following passages, I expand upon three cases for the purpose of searching for the answer to the proposed question. They were arranged according to decreasing intensity from the highest intensity to the lowest.
4.1 Prime Minister’s Office Controversy, April 2009.
The first case of non-compliance is about the Chinese-built building in the capital of Cambodia. The grand building is conspicuous on the street in Phnom Penh and the case was selected because it is not only an embarrassing reminder to China but also an object of ridicule to the locals. It is assumed that China wants control over Cambodia by the alleged wiretap in the Chinese-designed building but naturally enough, both countries deny such allegation. If it is really not about keeping tabs on Cambodian government, then China must be craving for more friendship and loyalty, though their friendship couldn’t get better. The reason for Cambodia to shoot China down is imaginably because
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of the protection of sovereignty and also the peace of mind when it knows the office is safe and the building is not kept under surveillance by another country.
The Office of the Council of Ministers in Phnom Penh was funded by China. The building has a peculiar design which an almost pyramid-shaped construction resides in the hollow center (indicated in Picture 4.1). It is said Prime Minister Hun Sen did not like the design of the building because it resembled a mausoleum.6 Plus, there was a suspicion that phone lines might have been tapped by China, says a local tour guide. More credibly, an anonymous government source told The Phnom Penh Post that “the prime minister was in fact not happy with several aspects of the Chinese-designed building” (Hayes and Sokheng, 2009, para. 10). Therefore, Prime Minister wanted a second building next door which was designed by Khmers and built in a Khmer style (Hayes and Sokheng, 2009, para. 6). The newly-built structure next to the Chinese-funded building is called The Peace Palace, a.k.a. the Office of the Prime Minister of Cambodia (indicated in Picture 4.2).
Picture 4.1 The Office of the Council of Ministers
Source: Wikimedia (2012)
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Council_of_Ministers_headquarters,_Phnom_P enh_(2012).jpg (accessed on 3 April, 2019)
6 This information was acquired through the conversation with the local tour guide in 2016.
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Picture 4.2 The Peace Palace (the Office of the Prime Minister of Cambodia)
Source: Wikimedia (2012)
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=27248698 (accessed on 3 April, 2019)
According to Hayes and Sokheng (2009), the inauguration of the Chinese-funded edifice was supposed to take place on April 4, 2009. Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers, denied that the delay had anything to do with the unlucky number 4 which sounds like “death” in Chinese. He said both buildings would be inaugurated on November 8, 2010 (Hayes and Sokheng, 2009, para. 5). Even though Phay Siphan explained that the reason Prime Minister wanted a second building was due to lack of space in the Chinese-built structure to host international conferences, rumors of Hun Sen disliking this Chinese gift have been circulating. It is indeed very embarrassing for China to be given the cold shoulder. Nonetheless, The Chinese Ministry of Commerce said such report did not conform to the facts and stressed that Cambodian government has never expressed any complaint about the Chinese-funded building (聞育旻, 2009, para. 1 - 2).
This incident is very unusual because Cambodia invariably accepts everything China offers with great joy such as military equipment, financial aid, massive infrastructure projects and so on. The kingdom just cannot thank China enough. “About 70 percent of roads and bridges in Cambodia have been funded by China” (Retka, 2017, para. 1).
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National Highway 6 of Cambodia is such an example. According to people.cn (2018), it connects the capital Phnom Penh with Siem Reap where the mysterious ruins of Angkor Wat are located. One tour bus driver says it used to take 8 hours for just a one-way trip.
Now it only takes 4 hours to commute between two places. Therefore, it is called by the locals as “the best road in Cambodia.” A Khmer proverb goes, “Where there is a road, there is hope” (孫廣勇 and 趙益普, 2018, para. 3 - 11). Obviously, Cambodia’s
appreciation to China is beyond words. With China’s tremendous support, Hun Sen did not fret over the US’s warning of cutting aid when Cambodia’s Supreme Court dissolved the country’s main opposition party in 2017. “Hun Sen welcomes and encourages the U.S.
to cut all aid” (Prak, 2017, para.8). Hun’s utterances manifested audacious defiance and it just shows he couldn’t care less when China’s got his back.
In light of past events, this incident of the Chinese-funded building is really out of the ordinary. Even though both sides denied any complaint about the building, conflicting voices can be heard anywhere. Besides, it is worth noting that according to the news release of Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (MOFCOM) (2009), The Peace Palace under construction was not a new prime minister office building, but an international conference center (“柬方對中國援建,” 2009, para. 3). However, The Peace Palace, also known as the Office of the Prime Minister of Cambodia is in truth the
principal workplace of the Prime Minister. China’s official statement was to avoid embarrassment as well as appease Chinese public opinion because China not only lost money but also lost face. Nobody would expect that Cambodia never knew “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”
This costly gift from China is a total debacle and triggered much criticism in the Chinese public who has accused the government of practicing dollar diplomacy. The Chinese government has been blamed for only providing what the leader and the
government want without paying much attention to what the people really need there (修 羅陛下, 2009, para. 9). However, considering this accusation, it is not entirely true because we have seen a lot of changes from China when it does help Cambodia with schools, hospitals, infrastructure and the like that truly benefit the locals. But then again it is also said that China is given to achieving its goals by bribery or by sending gifts, big or small, to please the recipient (修羅陛下, 2009, para. 7). Since this incident makes China look bad, there is not much information to be found on the Internet because China’s army of censors are very good at removing negative comments. We can see from this case
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study that notwithstanding their unbreakable friendship, Cambodia does not necessarily obey China in every way.