Hun Sen wants driving ban for repeat traffic offenders in Cambodia
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen wants to crack down on motorists who repeatedly break traffic rules. Speaking at yesterday's closing ceremony of the Interior Ministry's annual conference, Hun Sen suggested that persistent traffic offenders should have their driver's licenses taken away and be banned from driving for years to keep them off the roads.
Hun Sen: “I want the law to be changed so that offenders are punished strictly. My idea is that if a motorist breaks the rules for the second time, the fine should be doubled. If the offense is repeated for the third time, the fine must be tripled. It is therefore time to withdraw the driver's license and prohibit the offender from driving for one or two years.”
According to Hun Sen, there are drivers who do not respect traffic laws because they are rich and can pay fines. The prime minister also demands that the traffic police ensure that people who ride motorcycles without a helmet are ticketed.
Cambodia also suffers from many road casualties. The National Road Safety Committee reported 4.171 traffic accidents last year, killing 1.981 people and injuring 6.141. Compared to 2018, the figures show an increase in the number of road accidents of 26 percent. The death toll increased by 12%, while the number of injured increased by 29%. An average of 5,4 people die on Cambodian roads every day.
Most road accidents occurred in the capital, with 348 deaths, followed by Preah Sihanouk province with 149 and Kandal province with 143. The causes of the accidents include speeding, overtaking, drunk driving and breaking traffic rules . According to the Department of Transportation, traffic accidents cost the government nearly US$350 million a year.
Source: Bangkok Post
A very good measure, there are crazy people driving around everywhere.
Instead of taking your driver's license, better confiscate the car….
No, because then they just borrow a car from someone else.
Very good measure. Should they also be imported quickly in Thailand.
Bit early to call it a 'measure'. Hun Sen has expressed the wish, nothing more. In Thailand, politicians also regularly make far-reaching statements, for example, it was not so long ago that Prayut stated that all drivers of vehicles emitting black smoke should be arrested………
There you write something and it is like the proverb, promising much and giving little makes the madman live in joy. Elite balloons that turn out to be unmarketable.
Tackling 'hard'?
Taking away a driver's license or denying a driver's license is very common in the Netherlands and not hard….
Repression is one side of the matter, prevention is where it all has to start. A sense of responsibility must be instilled at a young age. That is lacking in many people, including many educators and people in politics. You know the people who make the laws and those who have to obey them. But yes, how do you bring traffic standards and values that matter to the people who lack them. Enforcement is only partial. Enforcement of measures regarding youth is a requirement. By age (awareness of standards) and by education (quality). Weak surgeons make stinking wounds, so indeed driving, confiscating vehicles and imposing hefty fines when found. Clearly warn in advance that this is about to happen, because a warned person counts for 2 and one cannot invoke the mea maxima culpa story. No one can be against notorious drink drivers. They may be locked up in my opinion with ample time for reflection and education required during the detention. It's not that difficult, but the will or if you like the interest to do something about it that matters, is missing so far. So every little bit helps in Cambodia too.
Getting a driver's license is of no use here in Thailand. I wouldn't want to feed the number of drivers driving without a license. Plentiful.