More than 40,000 observers to monitor Cambodia's poll on Sunday

PHNOM PENH, Jul 24, 2013 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- Around 40,141 national and 85 foreign observers will inspect Cambodia's fifth parliamentary elections on Sunday, Secretary General of the National Election Committee Tep Nytha said Wednesday.


National observers will come from 35 associations and non- governmental organizations.

International observers are from countries including the ASEAN members, Russia, New Zealand, India, the United States and the United Kingdom, as well as international organizations like European Election Observation Mission, he told Xinhua over telephone.


Eight political parties will compete in the elections on Sunday with around 9.67 million eligible voters.

A month-long election campaign kicked off on June 27 and will complete on Friday.

Tep Nytha said during the first four weeks of the campaigns, the National Election Committee has received 297 complaints filed by political parties against each other. About 249 of them have been solved.

Those complaints are about party sign or banner destruction, campaigning disruptions, intimidation and campaign-related violence, he said.

Two main parties among the contesting parties are the ruling Cambodian People's Party of longtime Prime Minister Hun Sen and the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party of recently-pardoned leader Sam Rainsy.

Hun Sen's party is widely expected win the majority vote in the polls. One of the world's longest-serving leaders, Hun Sen, 61, has been in power for 28 years and vowed to rule for another decade.