Time for ASEAN to act

When government forces captured the last stronghold of troops loyal to deposed co-premier Prince Norodom Ranariddh on Sunday, it signaled Second Prime Minister Hun Sen's ascendance to de facto ruler of Cambodia.

But fighting between warring factions could continue for months. Hun Sen, in his bid to consolidate power, has pledged to stamp out the dwindling Khmer Rouge rebels who have taken sides with Ranariddh in the current power struggle.

Moreover, as Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy said yesterday: "O Smach may fall at any time because even steel can be pierced ... but there are likely to be many other O'Smachs all over Cambodia which will show the determination of the Cambodian people to resist (Hun Sen's) tyranny."

As a result, all previous efforts to bring peace and stability to a war-torn Cambodia may have been to no avail. This is despite the work of the international community, including the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia in the late 1980s and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the early 1990s.

Judging from the latest developments in Cambodia, it is high time for ASEAN to step in and, when necessary, exercise its influence to solve the Cambodian problem. ASEAN, despite its policy of non-intervention in a country's internal problems, can no longer remain a spectator.

ASEAN could perhaps persuade or insist Hun Sen allow Ranariddh to return and take part in the general elections, which are scheduled for next May. The prince's return would be on the condition that he does not have to face trial for alleged illegal collaboration with the outlawed Khmer Rouge.

If Hun Sen agrees, he will be demonstrating his solidarity to ASEAN. Cambodia would have become a member of the association had it not been for the bloody ousting of Ranariddh early last month.

The prince's return would also allow Hun Sen to show the international community that the scheduled elections will be carried out freely and fairly. This would ease the tension among coalition factions and prompt them to iron out their differences peacefully.

ASEAN, therefore, should not hesitate to make a more concerted effort and take concrete steps to help solve the Cambodian problem. Even if its actions are interpreted as intervention it is, nevertheless, a constructive move which will benefit the region.

In a world being condensed by globalization, no one country can solve its problems in isolation, especially if the problems include armed conflict which threatens to spill-over and compromise the security of other nations.

Although the number of Cambodian refugees who fled into Thailand was less than last decade -- between 21,000 and 30,000 compared to some 400,000 in the late 1980s -- it is already a burden for the Bangkok government.

ASEAN's help and intervention, obviously, are needed to rein in the armed conflicts.

Cambodia's long history resembles a maze through which the country has been stalked by successive revolutions and civil wars.

International and regional power politics must ensure that the current civil war does not escalate, thereby threatening peace and security in the region.