UN Security Council Resolution 792 | ||
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Date | 30 November 1992 | |
Meeting no. | 3,143 | |
Code | S/RES/792 (Document) | |
Subject | The situation in Cambodia | |
Voting summary |
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Result | Adopted | |
Security Council composition | ||
Permanent members | ||
Non-permanent members | ||
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United Nations Security Council resolution 792, adopted on 30 November 1992, after recalling resolutions 668 (1990), 717 (1991), 718 (1991), 728 (1992), 745 (1992), 766 (1992) and 783 (1992) noting a report by the Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the Council concerned itself with preparations for the 1993 elections in Cambodia by the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) while condemning the refusal of the Party of Democratic Kampuchea to co-operate.
The Council determined that preparations for the elections, scheduled for May 1993, would proceed in all areas of Cambodia to which UNTAC had full and free access as at 31 January 1993, and called upon all Cambodian parties– Funcinpec, Khmer People's National Liberation Front, the Party of Democratic Kampuchea and Party of the State of Cambodia, to co-operate with UNTAC and establish a neutral political environment for the conduct of free and fair elections with no intimidation, harassment or political violence. [1] It also called on the Supreme National Council to meet regularly under the chairmanship of Prince Norodom Sihanouk.
The resolution then went on to condemn the Party of Democratic Kampuchea (PDK) for its failure to meet its obligations, demanding that it do so under the Paris Agreements as every other party had. It made specific mention that it facilitate full deployment of UNTAC in the areas under its control immediately and not impede voter registration in those area; that it not impede on other political parties in the areas and that it implement fully phase II of the cease-fire, particularly with regards to cantonment and demobilisation. It also urged the PDK to join fully in the implementation of the Paris Agreements including electoral provisions and requesting that the Secretary-General and states remain open to dialogue with the PDK for this purpose. In this regard, the council also called for measures on parties not co-operating with UNTAC to prevent the supply of petroleum products to those parties, announcing it would consider further measures if the PDK continued its refusal to co-operate, including the freezing of its assets held outside Cambodia. [2]
The council then invited UNTAC to establish all necessary border checkpoints and requested states to co-operate in both the establishment and maintenance of the checkpoints. It also supported a decision by the Supreme National Council to set a moratorium on the export of logs from Cambodia in order to protect the country's natural resources, calling on all states, particularly neighbouring states, to respect that moratorium and requesting the Supreme National Council to consider a similar measure relating to the export of minerals and gems. [2]
Finally, the resolution urged all parties to observe the ceasefire, take effective measures against banditry and arms smuggling and protect UNTAC personnel. It further requested the Secretary-General the implications for the electoral process if the PDK continued refusal to co-operate, and to report to the council on developments no later than 15 February 1993. Despite the passing of the resolution, the PDK did not co-operate and killed 13 Vietnamese citizens in December 1992, attacked United Nations personnel and rejected the United Nations peace plan. [3]
Resolution 792 was adopted by 14 votes to none, with one abstention from China, which had expressed concerns that an election without the Party of Democratic Kampuchea (Khmer Rouge) would be "harmful" to the peace process. [4]
The Party of Democratic Kampuchea was a political party in Cambodia, formed as a continuation of the Communist Party of Kampuchea in December 1981. In the mid-1980s, it publicly claimed that its ideology was "a new form of democratic socialism", having ostensibly renounced Marxism–Leninism.
After decades of conflict, Cambodia's modern era began in 1993 with the restoration of the monarchy and end of the United Nations Transitional Authority after general elections were held. Since 1993, the Cambodian People's Party have consistently been in government, and consolidated power in a 1997 coup d'état. Hun Sen was prime minister until transfer of power to his son, Hun Manet, in 2023.
The Cambodian–Vietnamese War was an armed conflict between Democratic Kampuchea, controlled by Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The war began with repeated attacks by the Kampuchea Revolutionary Army on the southwestern border of Vietnam, particularly the Ba Chúc massacre which resulted in the deaths of over 3,000 Vietnamese civilians. On 23 December 1978, 10 out of 19 of the Khmer Rouge's military divisions opened fire along the border with Vietnam with the goal of invading the Vietnamese provinces of Đồng Tháp, An Giang and Kiên Giang. On 25 December 1978, Vietnam launched a full-scale invasion of Kampuchea, occupying the country in two weeks and removing the government of the Communist Party of Kampuchea from power. In doing so, Vietnam put an ultimate stop to the Cambodian genocide, which had most likely killed between 1.2 million and 2.8 million people—or between 13 and 30 percent of the country's population. On 7 January 1979, the Vietnamese captured Phnom Penh, which forced Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge to retreat back into the jungle near the border with Thailand.
The Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea, renamed in 1990 to the National Government of Cambodia, was a coalition government in exile composed of three Cambodian political factions, namely Prince Norodom Sihanouk's FUNCINPEC party, the Party of Democratic Kampuchea and the Khmer People's National Liberation Front (KPNLF) formed in 1982, broadening the de facto deposed Democratic Kampuchea regime. For most of its existence, it was the internationally recognized government of Cambodia.
The United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) was a United Nations peacekeeping operation in Cambodia in 1992–93 formed following the 1991 Paris Peace Accords. This was the first occasion in which the UN directly assumed responsibility for the administration of an outright independent state, rather than simply monitoring or supervising the area. The UN transitional authority organized and ran elections, had its own radio station and jail, and was responsible for promoting and safeguarding human rights at the national level.
FCU – UNTAC, the Force Communications Unit UNTAC, was the Australian component of the UNTAC mission in Cambodia.
The People's Republic of Kampuchea (PRK) was a partially recognised state in Southeast Asia which existed from 1979 to 1989. It was a satellite state of Vietnam, founded in Cambodia by the Vietnamese-backed Kampuchean United Front for National Salvation, a group of Cambodian communists who were dissatisfied with the Khmer Rouge due to its oppressive rule and defected from it after the overthrow of Democratic Kampuchea, Pol Pot's government. Brought about by an invasion from Vietnam, which routed the Khmer Rouge armies, it had Vietnam and the Soviet Union as its main allies.
United Nations Security Council resolution 668, adopted unanimously on 20 September 1990, after noting the ongoing political discussions and efforts regarding a just and lasting peaceful situation in Cambodia, the council endorsed the political framework that would enable the Cambodian people to exercise their right to self-determination through U.N. organised elections.
United Nations Security Council resolution 745, adopted unanimously on 28 February 1992, after recalling resolutions 668 (1990), 717 (1991), 718 (1991) and 728 (1992), the council, after examining a report by the Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali on 19 February 1992, authorised the establishment of the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC), following on from the political settlement agreed in Paris on 23 October 1991. It was the first occasion where the United Nations had taken over administration of a state, as opposed to monitoring or supervising.
United Nations Security Council resolution 766, adopted unanimously on 21 July 1992, after recalling resolutions 668 (1990), 717 (1991), 718 (1991), 728 (1992) and 745 (1992), the Council acknowledged and expressed its concern at the difficulties experienced by the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) in the implementation of a political settlement in Cambodia signed at the Paris Conference on 23 October 1991.
United Nations Security Council resolution 783, adopted unanimously on 13 October 1992, after recalling resolutions 668 (1990), 717 (1991), 718 (1991), 728 (1992), 745 (1992) and 766 (1992) and noting a report by the Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the council welcomed the progress the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) had made in Cambodia in accordance with the Paris Agreements, however it recognised various security and economic concerns facing UNTAC.
United Nations Security Council resolution 810, adopted unanimously on 8 March 1993, after recalling resolutions 668 (1990) and 745 (1992), the council, after deploring continuing political violence in Cambodia in violation of the Paris Agreements as well as attacks and detention of members of the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC), discussed upcoming elections to the Constituent Assembly, as part of a process of national reconciliation.
United Nations Security Council resolution 826, adopted unanimously on 20 May 1993, after recalling resolutions 668 (1990), 745 (1992) and 810 (1993), the council supported the five million Cambodians who registered to vote despite violence and intimidation and discussed further preparations for the upcoming elections.
United Nations Security Council resolution 835, adopted unanimously on 2 June 1993, after recalling resolutions 668 (1990), 745 (1992), 810 (1993), 826 (1993) and other relevant resolutions, the council expressed appreciation for the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) in the aftermath of recent elections in Cambodia.
United Nations Security Council resolution 840, adopted unanimously on 15 June 1993, after recalling resolutions 668 (1990), 745 (1992), 810 (1993), 826 (1993), 835 (1993) and other relevant resolutions, the Council endorsed the results of the 1993 general elections in Cambodia.
United Nations Security Council resolution 860, adopted unanimously on 27 August 1993, after recalling resolutions 668 (1990), 745 (1992), 840 (1993) and other relevant resolutions on Cambodia, the Council confirmed plans for the withdrawal of the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC).
United Nations Security Council resolution 880, adopted unanimously on 4 November 1993, after recalling Resolution 745 (1992) and other relevant resolutions on Cambodia, the Council concerned itself with the withdrawal of the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) from the country.
The Cambodian National Unity Party was a political party set up by the Khmer Rouge on 30 November 1992, during the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia to participate in the elections that year. The party was led by Khieu Samphan and Son Sen. It succeeded the Party of Democratic Kampuchea after 1993. As with the PDK, the National Army of Democratic Kampuchea was said to be its armed wing. Its professed aim at its founding was to "work towards implementing multi-party liberal democracy." Its radio station was known as the Voice of the Great National Union Front of Cambodia until being replaced in July 1994 by PGNUNSC Radio.
General elections were held in Cambodia between 23 and 28 May 1993. The result was a hung parliament with the FUNCINPEC Party being the largest party with 58 seats. Voter turnout was 89.56%. The elections were conducted by the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC), which also maintained peacekeeping troops in Cambodia throughout the election and the period after it.
The Cambodian Constituent Assembly was a body elected in 1993 to draft a constitution for Cambodia as provided in the 1991 Paris Peace Agreements. The writing of the Cambodian Constitution took place between June and September 1993 and it resulted in the transformation of the political situation of Cambodia from civil-war-marred, autocratic oligarchy to a constitutional monarchy. Achieved under the guidance, auspices and funding of the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC), the drafting of the constitution was the culmination of a larger, $1.6 billion effort to end the decades-old country’s civil wars and bring the warring parties into political, rather than military competition. The result of the process was the creation of a constitution for Cambodia that, at least on paper, guarantees free political competition, regular elections, equal rights and representation and universal suffrage.