Lawmakers and human rights activists are pushing for the US government to cut $70 million in annual aid to Cambodia if upcoming elections are not conducted fairly.
Hun Sen’s Cambodian People’s Party has held power in the country since the Khmer Rouge overthrow in 1979.
The legitimacy of the July 28 elections has been called into question, with allegations of intimidation, foreign media broadcast blocks and a shortage of unaffiliated observers. A report prepared for US Congress last month blames closer relations between Cambodia and China for undermining the influence Western donors have on human rights and democracy issues.