Authorities arrested more than 30 people across Cambodia over the weekend after a heavy security presence was deployed in major cities to stop planned protests against an economic cooperation agreement with Vietnam and Laos.
No demonstrations were held on Sunday in Phnom Penh or elsewhere in the country over the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Triangle Development Area, or CLV.
In a Telegram message posted on Monday, Prime Minister Hun Manet thanked police, military police, soldiers and special forces for “maintaining security, public order, and social stability” by setting up checkpoints on highways and in provincial capitals.
“The planned riot by the extremist group has been thwarted through tough measures and cautious cooperation among competent authorities,” National Police spokesman Chhay Kim Khoeun said.
“These individuals are currently under authorities’ control and will be sent to court for legal actions,” he said.
Earlier this month, overseas Cambodian activists organized protests in South Korea, Japan, Canada and Australia. That prompted Senate President Hun Sen last week to issue a warning of widespread arrests of activists.
The 1999 CLV agreement between the three countries was aimed at encouraging economic development and trade between Cambodia's four northeastern provinces and neighboring provinces across the border.
But some activists recently began expressing concerns that the CLV could cause Cambodia to lose territory or control of its natural resources to Vietnam.
‘Another new defeat’
Hun Sen and other government leaders have treated the criticism as a threat to the country's stability. Three activists were arrested last month and charged with incitement after they posted a Facebook video that discussed the CLV.
Earlier this month, Hun Manet warned against protesting against the government, citing Bangladesh's recent demonstrations that led to the resignation of that country's leader.
The prime minister has said that the CLV won’t result in the loss of any territory. He said on Telegram on Monday that the government has an “obligation to ensure peace, security and safety for all citizens at all costs in order to ensure normalcy of their daily lives.”
Ministry of National Defense spokesman Chhum Socheat noted the lack of weekend protests in a message on Facebook on Sunday .
“This reflects another new defeat of the extremist opposition group overseas that has always been malicious in its attempts to overthrow the government by non-democratic means,” he wrote.
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Australia-based human rights observer Soeung Senkaruna said the large security presence may have been staged by the government to intimidate anyone from criticizing the CLV.
“This was orchestrated so as to flex the muscle of the armed forces by actively deploying weapons,” he told RFA.
Little awareness in Laos
Some Cambodians are worried that multi-decade agricultural land concessions to Vietnamese or Lao investors under the CLV could result in a loss of control of large pieces of Cambodian land.
But a government official in Laos’ Attapeu province told RFA on Friday that he didn’t know of any Vietnamese or Cambodian investment projects there under the CLV.
The province borders Cambodia’s Ratanakiri and Stung Treng provinces, as well as Vietnam’s Kon Tum province.
However, the official, who requested anonymity to speak more freely about government matters, said the Lao government has sent delegates to past CLV meetings.
In February, officials from the three countries met in Attapeu province to discuss cooperation as part of the CLV in clearing unexploded ordnance clearance and preventing human and drug trafficking and illegal border crossings.
A joint coordination committee on the CLV also completed a draft master plan for socio-economic development that is scheduled to be considered at a CLV summit of top government leaders in Cambodia later this year, according to Cambodia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
RFA Laos contributed to this report. Translated by Sovannarith Keo and Phouvong. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.