Cambodia vs. Laos
Government
| Cambodia | Laos | |
|---|---|---|
| Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Cambodia conventional short form: Cambodia local long form: Preahreacheanachakr Kampuchea (phonetic transliteration) local short form: Kampuchea former: Khmer Republic, Democratic Kampuchea, People's Republic of Kampuchea, State of Cambodia etymology: the English name Cambodia is an anglicization of the French Cambodge, which is the French transliteration of the native name Kampuchea | conventional long form: Lao People's Democratic Republic conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: Mueang Lao (unofficial) etymology: name means "Land of the Lao [people]" |
| Government type | parliamentary constitutional monarchy | communist state |
| Capital | name: Phnom Penh geographic coordinates: 11 33 N, 104 55 E time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: Phnom Penh translates as "Penh's Hill" in Khmer; the city takes its name from the present Wat Phnom (Hill Temple), the tallest religious structure in the city, whose establishment, according to legend, was inspired in the 14th century by a pious nun, Daun PENH | name: Vientiane (Viangchan) geographic coordinates: 17 58 N, 102 36 E time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the meaning in Pali, a Buddhist liturgical language, is "city of sandalwood" |
| Administrative divisions | 24 provinces (khett, singular and plural) and 1 municipality (krong, singular and plural) provinces: Banteay Meanchey, Battambang, Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Speu, Kampong Thom, Kampot, Kandal, Kep, Koh Kong, Kratie, Mondolkiri, Oddar Meanchey, Pailin, Preah Sihanouk, Preah Vihear, Prey Veng, Pursat, Ratanakiri, Siem Reap, Stung Treng, Svay Rieng, Takeo, Tbong Khmum municipalities: Phnom Penh (Phnum Penh) | 17 provinces (khoueng, singular and plural) and 1 prefecture* (kampheng nakhon); Attapu, Bokeo, Bolikhamxai, Champasak, Houaphan, Khammouan, Louangnamtha, Louangphabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan (Vientiane)*, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun, Xekong, Xiangkhouang |
| Independence | 9 November 1953 (from France) | 19 July 1949 (from France by the Franco-Lao General Convention); 22 October 1953 (Franco-Lao Treaty recognizes full independence) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 9 November (1953) | Republic Day (National Day), 2 December (1975) |
| Constitution | history: previous 1947; latest promulgated 21 September 1993 amendments: proposed by the monarch, by the prime minister, or by the president of the National Assembly if supported by one fourth of the Assembly membership; passage requires two-thirds majority of the Assembly membership; constitutional articles on the multiparty democratic form of government and the monarchy cannot be amended; amended 1999, 2008, 2014, 2018 | history: previous 1947 (preindependence); latest promulgated 13-15 August 1991 amendments: proposed by the National Assembly; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote of the Assembly membership and promulgation by the president of the republic; amended 2003, 2015 |
| Legal system | civil law system (influenced by the UN Transitional Authority in Cambodia) customary law, Communist legal theory, and common law | civil law system similar in form to the French system |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: King Norodom SIHAMONI (since 29 October 2004) head of government: Prime Minister HUN SEN (since 14 January 1985); Permanent Deputy Prime Minister MEN SAM AN (since 25 September 2008); Deputy Prime Ministers SAR KHENG (since 3 February 1992), TEA BANH, Gen., HOR NAMHONG, (since 16 July 2004), BIN CHHIN (since 5 September 2007), YIM CHHAI LY (since 24 September 2008), KE KIMYAN (since 12 March 2009), AUN PORNMONIROTH (since 24 September 2012), Prak SOKONN, CHEA SOPHARA (since 5 April 2016) cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and appointed by the monarch elections/appointments: monarch chosen by the 9-member Royal Council of the Throne from among all eligible males of royal descent; following legislative elections, a member of the majority party or majority coalition named prime minister by the Chairman of the National Assembly and appointed by the monarch | chief of state: President THONGLOUN Sisoulit (since 22 March 2021); Vice President PANI Yathotou; Vice President BOUNTHONG Chitmani (since 22 March 2021) head of government: Prime Minister PHANKHAM Viphavan (since 22 March 2021); Deputy Prime Ministers CHANSAMON Chan-gnalat, SONXAI Siphandon, KIKEO Khaikhamphithoun (since 22 March 2021) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the National Assembly elections/appointments: president and vice president indirectly elected by the National Assembly for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 22 March 2021; prime minister nominated by the president, elected by the National Assembly for 5-year term election results: THONGLOUN Sisoulit (LPRP) elected president; National Assembly vote: 161-1; PANI Yathotou and BOUNTHONG Chitmani (LPRP) elected vice presidents; National Assembly vote NA; PHANKHAM Viphavan (LPRP) elected prime minister; National Assembly vote: 158-3 |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral Parliament of Cambodia consists of: Senate (62 seats; 58 indirectly elected by parliamentarians and commune councils, 2 indirectly elected by the National Assembly, and 2 appointed by the monarch; members serve 6-year terms) National Assembly (125 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms) elections: Senate - last held on 25 February 2018 (next to be held in 2024); National Assembly - last held on 29 July 2018 (next to be held in 2023) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - CPP 96%, FUNCINPEC 2.4%, KNUP 1.6%; seats by party - CPP 58; composition - men 53, women 9, percent of women 14.5% National Assembly - percent of vote by party - CPP 76.9%, FUNCINPEC 5.9%, LDP 4.9%, Khmer Will Party 3.4%, other 8.9%; seats by party - CPP 125; composition - men 100, women 25, percent of women 20%; note - total Parliament of Cambodia percent of women 18.2% | description: unicameral National Assembly or Sapha Heng Xat (164 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote from candidate lists provided by the Lao People's Revolutionary Party; members serve 5-year terms) elections: last held on 21 February 2021 (next to be held in 2026) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LPRP 158, independent 6; composition - men 128, women 36, percent of women 21.9% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Council (organized into 5- and 9-judge panels and includes a court chief and deputy chief); Constitutional Court (consists of 9 members); note - in 1997, the Cambodian Government requested UN assistance in establishing trials to prosecute former Khmer Rouge senior leaders for crimes against humanity committed during the 1975-1979 Khmer Rouge regime; the Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia (also called the Khmer Rouge Tribunal) was established in 2006 and began hearings for the first case in 2009; court proceedings remain ongoing in 2019 judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court and Constitutional Council judge candidates recommended by the Supreme Council of Magistracy, a 17-member body chaired by the monarch and includes other high-level judicial officers; judges of both courts appointed by the monarch; Supreme Court judges appointed for life; Constitutional Council judges appointed for 9-year terms with one-third of the court renewed every 3 years subordinate courts: Appellate Court; provincial and municipal courts; Military Court | highest courts: People's Supreme Court (consists of the court president and organized into criminal, civil, administrative, commercial, family, and juvenile chambers, each with a vice president and several judges) judge selection and term of office: president of People's Supreme Court appointed by the National Assembly upon the recommendation of the president of the republic for a 5-year term; vice presidents of the People's Supreme Court appointed by the president of the republic upon the recommendation of the National Assembly; appointment of chamber judges NA; tenure of court vice presidents and chamber judges NA subordinate courts: appellate courts; provincial, municipal, district, and military courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Cambodia National Rescue Party or CNRP [KHEM SOKHA] (dissolved by the Cambodian Supreme Court in November 2017; formed from a 2012 merger of the Sam Rangsi Party or SRP and the former Human Rights Party or HRP [KHEM SOKHA, also spelled KEM SOKHA]) Cambodian Nationality Party or CNP [SENG SOKHENG] Cambodian People's Party or CPP [HUN SEN] Khmer Economic Development Party or KEDP [HUON REACH CHAMROEUN] Khmer National Unity Party or KNUP [NHEK BUN CHHAY] Khmer Will Party [KONG MONIKA] League for Democracy Party or LDP [KHEM Veasna] National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia or FUNCINPEC [Prince NORODOM RANARIDDH] | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [BOUNNYANG Vorachit]; Prime Minister THONGLOUN Sisoulit elected general secretary in mid-January 2021 note: other parties proscribed |
| International organization participation | ADB, ARF, ASEAN, CICA, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MINUSMA, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNISFA, UNMISS, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ADB, ARF, ASEAN, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador CHUM SOUNRY (since 17 September 2018) chancery: 4530 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-7742 FAX: [1] (202) 726-8381 email address and website: camemb.usa@mfaic.gov https://www.embassyofcambodiadc.org/ | chief of mission: Ambassador KHAMPHAN Anlavan (since 21 July 2019) chancery: 2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-9148; [1] (202) 332-6416 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4923 email address and website: embasslao@gmail.com; laoemb@verizon.net https://laoembassy.com/ consulate(s): New York |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador W. Patrick MURPHY (since 23 October 2019) embassy: #1, Street 96, Sangkat Wat Phnom, Khan Daun Penh, Phnom Penh mailing address: 4540 Phnom Penh Place, Washington DC 20521-4540 telephone: [855] (23) 728-000 FAX: [855] (23) 728-700 email address and website: ACSPhnomPenh@state.gov https://kh.usembassy.gov/ | chief of mission: Ambassador Peter HAYMOND (since 7 February 2020) embassy: Ban Somvang Tai, Thadeua Road, Km 9, Hatsayfong District, Vientiane mailing address: 4350 Vientiane Place, Washington DC 20521-4350 telephone: [856] 21-48-7000 FAX: [856] 21-48-7040 email address and website: CONSLAO@state.gov https://la.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (double width), and blue with a white, three-towered temple, representing Angkor Wat, outlined in black in the center of the red band; red and blue are traditional Cambodian colors note: only national flag to prominently incorporate an actual identifiable building into its design (a few other national flags - those of Afghanistan, San Marino, Portugal, and Spain - show small generic buildings as part of their coats of arms on the flag) | three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band; the red bands recall the blood shed for liberation; the blue band represents the Mekong River and prosperity; the white disk symbolizes the full moon against the Mekong River, but also signifies the unity of the people under the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, as well as the country's bright future |
| National anthem | name: "Nokoreach" (Royal Kingdom) lyrics/music: CHUON NAT/F. PERRUCHOT and J. JEKYLL note: adopted 1941, restored 1993; the anthem, based on a Cambodian folk tune, was restored after the defeat of the Communist regime | name: "Pheng Xat Lao" (Hymn of the Lao People) lyrics/music: SISANA Sisane/THONGDY Sounthonevichit note: music adopted 1945, lyrics adopted 1975; the anthem's lyrics were changed following the 1975 Communist revolution that overthrew the monarchy |
| International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt |
| National symbol(s) | Angkor Wat temple, kouprey (wild ox); national colors: red, blue | elephant; national colors: red, white, blue |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Cambodia dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Laos dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years |
Source: CIA Factbook
