(North Korea) and afterwards a draft constitution, reviving a constitu-
tional monarchy, was put for open debate in the National Assembly.
Within five days of discussion (September 15 to 19 , 1993 ) this constitution
was adopted with 113 votes in favour, 5 against and 2 abstentions.^49
The 1993 constitution is replete with democratic aspirations and values,^50
rejecting political authoritarianism. It can only be reviewed or amended if a quarter
of the Legislative Assembly proposes such a review or amendment to the king,
the prime minister and the president of the Assembly.^51 Amendments are effected by
a two-thirds majority in the Assembly. The first amendment to the Constitution was
made in 1994 to allow the king to delegate his duty of signing laws into force to the
acting head of state should the king be indisposed and hospitalised abroad.^52
The 1997 coup d’e ́tat and further constitutional amendments
After the Constitution came into force, leadership in the government was divided
between two co-prime ministers – Prince Ranariddh and Hun Sen. The intense
rivalry between the two men and their followers resulted in a very uneasy and
unstable situation in government, especially with both sides attempting to attract
defecting Khmer Rouge troops into their respective folds. In 1997 , Hun Sen staged
a successful coup d’e ́tat to oust Ranariddh as his co-prime minister.
53
Ranariddh
fled but later returned to stand trial for illegal importation of weapons and for
secretly negotiating with the Khmer Rouge. He was sentenced to thirty years’
imprisonment and fined US$ 50 million. His father, King Sihanouk, pardoned
him and this paved the way for his return to national politics.
54
In the general election that followed on 26 July 1998 , Hun Sen’s CPP were the
big winners, with sixty-four of the 120 seats, while FUNCINPEC won forty-three
seats, followed by the Sam Rainsy Party’s fifteen-seat gain. The CPP and
FUNCINPEC agreed to form a coalition government even though Hun Sen and
Ranariddh remained hostile to each other. Following the elections, the Legislative
Assembly passed an amendment to the Constitution on 8 March 1999 ; the most
(^49) Ibid., at 48 – 9.
(^50) Art. 51 , Constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia (Constitution of Cambodia), 1993 , states
that ‘Cambodia adopts a policy of liberal democracy and pluralism’. Art. 153 forbids any
revision or amendment that affects ‘the system of liberal and pluralistic democracy and the
regime of Constitutional Monarchy’. See Sorpong Peou, ‘Cambodia: after the Killing
Fields’, pp. 41 – 2.
(^51) Constitution of Cambodia, Art. 131. (^52) Constitution of Cambodia, Art. 28.
(^53) For details on how things boiled over, see Sorpong Peou, ‘ 1997 : Back to square one?’ ( 1998 )
38 ( 1 )Asian Survey 69 at 69 – 71.
(^54) See Sorpong Peou, ‘Cambodia in 1998 : from despair to hope?’ ( 1999 ) 39 ( 1 )Asian Survey 20
at 20 – 1 ; see also John M Sanderson and Michael Maley, ‘Elections and liberal democracy
in Cambodia’ ( 1998 ) 52 ( 3 )Australian Journal of International Affairs 241.