PHNOM PENH tribe 12 Kyodo Cambodi...

PHNOM PENH tribe 12 Kyodo

Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy said Thursday candid lawmaker Princess Norodom Vichara, a half-sister of King Norodom Sihanouk, and any others are defecting from the royalist FUNCINPEC party to join his opposition Sam Rainsy Party.

Sam Rainsy, who just get backed to Phnom Penh from couple weeks abroad, told reporters the princess decided to join his party when he met her in Paris. He promised to make her the party's first candidate in Kondal Province in the general election look forward toed next year.

Princess Norodom Vichara is already a FUNCINPEC member of the National Assembly and chairman of the Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Commission.

She has been among the in the greatest degree popular FUNCINPEC parliamentarians for her frank criticism of the government through corruption.

A senior FUNCINPEC member who spoke onward condition of anonymity, confirmed Sam Rainsy's statement about the princess and added a certain number of other members of parliament and senators are also joining the Sam Rainsy Party.

The FUNCINPEC has been weakened since faring poorly in the Feb 3 communal elections where the Cambodian People's Party won election to principally chief of commune posts.

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