Defiant Hun Sen rejects ASEAN peace plan

Defiant Hun Sen rejects ASEAN peace plan

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP): A peace mission to Cambodia failed
yesterday when defiant Hun Sen flatly rejected outside mediation,
and the country's exiled prince warned that a full-blown civil
war could break out.

Hun Sen's refusal to accept a peace proposal by the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) - which would have
required him to share power - brought the initiative to a halt.

Hun Sen met for almost two hours with foreign ministers from
Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia to discuss Cambodia's
turmoil in the wake of bloody conflict.

The ministers, who were representing the seven-nation ASEAN,
had hoped to convince Hun Sen to relinquish total control in
favor of a caretaker government until elections can be held.

"We think that at present the royal government does not need
ASEAN to take part in helping solve the issue," Hun Sen's
spokesman Svay Sitha said.

Hun Sen's exiled rival, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, reacted by
warning that a new and terrible civil war could engulf his
already violence-ravaged country, but he stopped short of calling
for an armed resistance.

He said some 20,000 armed troops remained in Cambodia ready to
fight Hun Sen, but indicated they lacked ammunition.

"I am really afraid that we are stepping into a new civil war
that will be terrible in terms of loss of human life and in terms
of destruction," Ranariddh told reporters in Bangkok, Thailand.

The prince said he preferred political pressure to resolve
Cambodia's problems. He announced the formation of a Union of
Cambodian Democrats, consisting of four former opposition
parties, which pledged "a non-violent, diplomatic solution to the
current crisis."

Hun Sen has faced growing international scorn after deposing
co-premier Ranariddh and leaving dozens in the capital dead early
this month.

Ranariddh on Friday agreed to call off his armed resistance as
part of the ASEAN deal. His forces have suffered a series of
battlefield defeats and it is unlikely they could mount an
effective military threat against Hun Sen in the foreseeable
future.

At the press conference yesterday, Ranariddh said he was not
currently heading an organized resistance. He said that given the
"executions, murders, killings committed by Hun Sen, the people
of Cambodia ... do not have any choice but to resist and organize
as a resistance."

Hun Sen has repeatedly called Ranariddh a criminal who fled
the country, rejected claims the prince was deposed in a military
coup.

"Hun Sen clearly told the ASEAN delegation that the issue we
have in Cambodia is not a political nor a military one," Svay
Sitha said. "It is a legal one."

Smiling and relaxed, Hun Sen greeted the visiting dignitaries
at the Council of Ministers building in Phnom Penh.

"We were given quite a clear indication that His Excellency
Hun Sen believes that ASEAN at this stage should not contribute
to finding a solution," Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas
told reporters after the meeting. "ASEAN will only assume a
contributing role if all sides are willing."

Another diplomatic effort has been launched by Washington,
which said Friday it will not accept Hun Sen's takeover and plans
to confront him in Phnom Penh.

U.S. envoy

U.S. envoy Stephen Solarz is flying to Asia this weekend to
rally support for the U.S. position from several countries and
Cambodian King Norodom Sihanouk.

Solarz is likely to face the same defiance from Hun Sen.
Just days after Hun Sen ousted Ranariddh, ASEAN voted to delay
Cambodia's membership in the regional economic bloc. It also
includes Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.

Hun Sen asked the organization to reconsider its decision,
saying it had been made in haste, his spokesman said.

The ASEAN foreign ministers put forward a four-point proposal
aimed at ending the crisis in Cambodia. It called for ending
fighting, installing a caretaker government to prepare for new
elections and acceptance by both sides of peace accords that led
to UN-organized balloting in 1993.

Hun Sen has threatened to arrest Ranariddh if he returns to
Phnom Penh, accusing him of negotiating with final remnants of
the Khmer Rouge guerrilla group to launch a terror campaign.

Both Hun Sen and Ranariddh have wooed the loyalties of
thousands of former Khmer Rouge rebels who defected in the past
year.