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Pluralism and Local Governance in Cambodia’s Commune Councils

Abstract

Since the institution of Cambodia’s local elections in 2002, opposition parties have managed to attain, on average, 25% of commune council seats, rendering the commune as an important arena for pluralistic governance. This project asks whether the degree of opposition representation in commune councils matters for local outcomes. Drawing from an original dataset of over 16,000 contracts for commune infrastructure projects, I first estimate the effect of a single additional opposition-held seat on measures related to procurement. The results provide systematic evidence that increased opposition party representation corresponds with significant increases in the competitiveness of local procurement, consistent with better local governance, but no effect on the price at which local contracts are secured. To corroborate the quantitative findings, I draw from over sixty interviews with commune councilors that provide insight into how pluralism in the council works in practice. Ultimately, the findings suggest that local opposition representation in Cambodia can have meaningful, if limited, effects on governance, even in a constrained political environment.

Bio

Speaker: Lucy Right is a PhD candidate in Political Science at Duke University in the U.S., and a Visiting Fellow at the Cambodia Development Resource Institute’s (CDRI) Center for Governance and Inclusive Societies. Her dissertation research examines how the opposition party’s participation in commune government in Cambodia has affected the quality of local governance, drawing on qualitative fieldwork, novel observational data, and an original survey of elected leaders. In addition to her dissertation research, Lucy has published research on Cambodian civil society and has contributed to research reports on topics including local governance, solid waste collection, and poverty in Cambodia.

Moderator: Professor Magnus Fiskesjö is originally from Sweden. He has long been fascinated with Cambodia and its history, but he visited Cambodia for the first time only in 2012. He received his education in Sweden, Denmark, China, and the US, where he completed his doctoral studies in Anthropology and Asian Studies at the University of Chicago. His doctoral work focused on the history and political anthropology of the Wa people of Myanmar and China. Before his PhD, he worked in Sweden’s foreign service and was stationed in Beijing and Tokyo. Later he served as the Director of the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities, in Stockholm, Sweden, one of Europe’s foremost museums of Asian art and archaeology. During this period, he began to take an active interest in the politics of heritage and the issue of repatriations from Western museum collections.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the publications and through webinars are solely those of the authors or speakers. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of The Center for Khmer Studies, Inc. The designations employed in the publications and through the webinars, and the presentation of material therein, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of The Center for Khmer Studies, Inc. as to the matters discussed therein. The responsibility for opinions expressed in the publications and webinars are solely those of the authors or speakers, and the publication does not constitute an endorsement by The Center for Khmer Studies, Inc. of the opinions, views or issues discussed therein.

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