The Cambodia Youth Party (CYP), a new coalition targeting the vote of Cambodia’s burgeoning under-30 population, became official this week after receiving its licence from the Ministry of Interior.

Party president Pich Sros said yesterday that the party has already signed up about 20,000 members since it first launched in December.

Sros said his new party will offer Cambodian voters a point of view different than that provided by the country’s two major parties – a platform of human rights he says will “unify the Khmer nation”.

“The ruling party leads the country aggressively and that just makes people suffer from land disputes, giving away land concessions and the use of violent crackdowns on protesters,” he said.

As for the opposition, he said, they were unable to articulate a clear policy platform.

“The CNRP has a loud voice, but it does not know how to use this voice in the proper way to develop the country.”

According to Sros, CYP representatives in Kampot, Kampong Cham, Tbong Khmum, Banteay Meanchaey and Battambang provinces are already building grassroots support by letting voters “know more about . . . what the party stands for”.