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Prime Minister Hun Manet has signed a sub-decree setting out procedures for the country’s military conscription law, a year after he ordered the long-dormant 2006 statute enforced following deadly border clashes with Thailand.
The revised law extends compulsory service to two years for men aged 18 to 25, with registration required from age 17. Military service for women remains voluntary.
Civil society groups have urged the government to keep the process transparent and apply it fairly across social classes, warning that unclear provisions could invite corruption or favoritism.
The sub-decree which Hun Manet posted on Facebook Thursday, consists of 41 articles. It sets an annual registration window from October to December, and selects conscripts through a mix of voluntary enlistment and lottery. Those called up must report within 30 days, though students, migrant workers and civil servants posted abroad can defer for one year at a time, up to four times.
Conscripts will receive a monthly allowance of 400,000 riel, about $100, along with food, housing and family benefits comparable to professional soldiers, and are guaranteed their jobs or school places back when their service ends.
But private and public institutions whose employees are conscripted can decline to reinstate them by providing termination benefits and severance pay in accordance with Cambodia’s Labor Law, the decree said.
Specialists in fields such as engineering, mine clearance, healthcare and information technology may apply for exemption if they enter public-interest work agreements with the armed forces for a period equivalent to the service term.
Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Maly Socheata did not respond to a request for comment.
Mar Sophal, program manager for policy and legal influence at NGO Forum on Cambodia, said the new provisions offered some clarity to the revised law.
The family and housing benefits are a positive step, he said, but called on the government to ensure defense budget allocations are used with a high degree of transparency and accountability.
Sophal also urged relevant institutions to establish a clear complaint resolution mechanism. “This point is crucial to prevent corruption or bribery in exchanging service shifts,” he said.
Moeun Tola, executive director of labor rights group Central, said he is concerned about potential discrimination after conscripts finish their duty, since previous employers are not required to reinstate them as long as they receive severance packages.
“It is risky because when some employers refuse to receive them back, they can terminate [the contract] according to the Law on Labor,” he said.
Sophal said implementing the conscription law should be done cautiously to avoid disrupting the skilled labor force in the private sector, which he described as a pillar of the national economy.
