Cambodia activates draft law amid Thai border tensions
Cambodia’s National Assembly unanimously approved a revised conscription law extending mandatory military service to two years, narrowing the eligible age range to 18-25 and increasing penalties for evasion, amid ongoing border disputes with Thailand. The move follows violent clashes last year over contested colonial-era borders, with both nations accusing each other of occupying disputed territories despite a December ceasefire.
Cambodia’s National Assembly passed a revised conscription law on May 13, activating a two-year mandatory military service that had been dormant since 2006. The bill, approved unanimously by all 114 lawmakers including Prime Minister Hun Manet, extends service from 18 months to 24 months and reduces the eligible age range from 18-30 to 18-25. Penalties for draft evasion during peacetime rise to two years in prison, while wartime evasion now carries a maximum five-year sentence. The law revives a 2006 conscription policy that was never enforced due to lack of implementation decrees. Cambodia has historically relied on voluntary recruitment, but Hun Manet justified the change by citing threats to national sovereignty. Tensions with neighboring Thailand escalated last year after two clashes over disputed border areas, resulting in dozens of deaths and over 1 million displaced persons. The conflict stems from unresolved sections of a 500-mile boundary drawn during French colonial rule, with both countries claiming control over contested regions. A ceasefire was reached in late December, but Cambodia alleges Thai troops still occupy parts of the border, demanding their withdrawal. Thailand counters that it merely reclaimed territory Cambodian forces had previously seized. Hostilities persist, particularly among younger Cambodians, as the legal and military measures take effect.
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