Cambodia is in its throes of profound and radical economic and social change. In its
economic growth within the last years, the country has taken a leading position relative to
other Southeast Asian countries. While Cambodia, with its 15 million inhabitants, has set
goals for progress in the expansion of democratic institutions, political and social conflicts
have increased. From the perspective of political development studies, this appears to be
symptomatic for societies that have achieved the leap into the industrial age and integration
into a globalized economy in specific sectors of their economy. On the other hand, they still
have major structural challenges to overcome, such as poverty, rural underdevelopment,
and a general growth in social inequality.
Thus, ongoing development of a democratic society in Cambodia depends primarily on
solutions for urgent social problems. From this perspective, a pluralistic media environment
could make a decisive contribution. Such an environment can help move citizens towards
participation in political, social and cultural life. A positive sign is that many issues are
already under discussion – in the streets, in squares, in cafés and restaurants and even in
the media. Young Cambodians – more than 50 percent of the population is under 25 years
– increasingly use the internet and social networks in order to make their voices heard. But
traditional media such as television and radio also play a significanct role.
Newspapers, radio, television and the internet can only fulfill their functions as a reflection
of a pluralistic society when all political groups and parties in the country respect the
freedom of speech and press, which are anchored in the country’s Constitution. Journalistic
independence is also essential for media producers. Journalists need “democratic air” to
breathe. This points towards the problem of media regulation: it must create a framework
in democratic societies in which journalists of all media formats can carry out their duties
on a professional level.
Regulations are therefore not an instrument of political paternalism, but rather a method for
promoting a democratic and pluralistic media culture. State and government are often, as
experience shows, not the best choice for the development of an efficient and transparent
regulatory system. Regulations function best when the participants themselves are committed
to and convinced by the reasons and purposes of rules or guidelines. Yet regulations should
not lead to a lack of accountability or arbitrariness as this would result in the unwillingness
of the stakeholders to participate. Regulations should therefore have “bite” in practice,
i.e. stakeholders should follow the rules as if they were traffic rules, so that all can move
forward more efficiently.
Two basic principles should prevail for media regulation in Cambodia:
1. Consistent application of the principles of the rule of law on the basis of the constitutional
rights of freedom of speech and press (Art. 35 and 41: Cambodian Constitution).
2. Transparent and predictable regulative decision-making that is oriented towards
professional journalistic standards.
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Thus, the best-suited regulation model appears to be one of “incentivized statutory” regulation.
This means a mixture of voluntary and positive incentives open to all media formats and
producers. These can be professional publishers or radio/television broadcasters, but also
bloggers in a semi-professional field, who regularly write for a broader audience.
The recommendations of this study rely heavily on the Irish regulatory model, seen worldwide
as positive example.