John Kerry: “the pending bill prohibits the Administration from providing aid to the central government of Cambodia pending…”

“the pending bill prohibits the Administration from providing aid to the central government of Cambodia pending certification by the Secretary of State that Cambodia has held free and fair elections, that the Central Election Commission was comprised of representatives from all parties, and that the Cambodian government has established an international panel of jurists to try individuals who have committed genocide against the Cambodian people. I share the Committee's view that aid can be a source of leverage in dealing with the new Cambodian government, and I agree that we should use our aid to encourage the Cambodian government to establish a credible, internationally acceptable genocide tribunal. However, I do not believe that the conditions in the bill provide us with effective leverage because they are outdated and irrelevant to the realities on the ground in Cambodia today. All of us who are involved with Cambodia recognize full well that the elections held last July in Cambodia were a mixed bag at best. The process leading up to the elections had flaws. The elections themselves were quite successful in terms of large voter turnout, lack of intimidation, international monitoring, and lack of violence. But they were less than perfect. Cambodians know this, but they have moved on. They have formed a new coalition government with what appears to be a workable power sharing arrangement between the two major parties. They have an effective opposition party.”