September-October: Following a request from Hun Sen and Ranariddh, Ieng Sary is granted a controversial amnesty by the King which leaves open the possibility of future prosecution for crimes against humanity.
November: ASIAN announces Cambodia will be granted full membership in July 1997. Political tensions spark a military stand-off in Battambang between forces loyal to the two Prime Ministers.

1997
January-February: The National United Front (NUF) is established by FUNCINPEC, Sam Rainsy's KNP, Son Sann's BLDP and the Khmer Neutral Party. The CPP denounces its coalition partner's alliance with 'opposition' parties. Fighting breaks out in Battambang between rival factions of the national army loyal to the two Prime Ministers. Frustrated with the political problems, the King threatens to abdicate.
March-April: Hun Sen suggests royal should be banned from politics. Hun Sen and Ranariddh try to make up in public, pledging to cooperate. Grenades are thrown at a public demonstration led by Sam Rainsy in front of the National Assembly, killing 16 people. Hun Sen denies orchestrating the attack. Two senior FUNCINPEC officials announce a split with Ranariddh, and form a second FUNCINPEC party.
May-June: Hun Sen accuses Ranariddh of warmongering after an arms cache is discovered. Ranariddh representatives negotiate with Khieu Samphan in a bid to win his defection and divide the Khmer Rouge. Ranariddh is denounced by Hun Sen and tensions between the two mount. Elite bodyguards of the two Prime Ministers clash violently in Phnom Penh. As splits widen within the Khmer Rouge, Son Sen, another key leader, is killed by Pol Pot.
July: Ranariddh flees to Bangkok as heavy fighting breaks out in Phnom Penh. Hun Sen says his military action against Ranariddh was to prevent a coup. Several hundred casualties are reported as forces loyal to the Prince are routed. Party members flee the country or go into hiding and some 40 military advisers to Ranariddh are executed. The international community denounces the coup mutely and a few countries suspend aid. ASIAN postpones Cambodia's membership and sees its offer to mediate in the crisis rebuffed by Hun Sen. In western Cambodia, Pol Pot is denounced by his associates at a 'people's tribunal' and placed under house arrest. Ta Mok assumes control of the Khmer Rouge.
Managing the crisis (1997-98)

August-September: Ranariddh is stripped of parliamentary immunity. Hun Sen appoints Ung Huot, the FUNCINPEC Foreign Minister as 'first' Prime Minister claiming the coalition government is still intact. Cambodia's UN seat is left vacant. A thousand-strong peace march is led through Phnom Penh by monks to calm the people. Forces loyal to Ranariddh regroup around O'Smach on the Thai border where fighting has forced some 50,000 civilians across the border.
October-December: Self-exiled FUNCINPEC parliamentarians begin to return home. Hun Sen claims that Ranariddh can return, but must stand trial for 'colluding with the Khmer Rouge' and 'illegally importing arms'. Sihanouk leaves for China when his mediation efforts are rebuffed. Sam Rainsy meets with Hun Sen in a bid to broker Ranariddh's return. The Law on Political Parties is adopted on 28 October and the National Assembly sets 26 July as the date for the 1998 elections. The Law on the Election of National Assembly Members is not passed until 19 December.
January-March: The international community backs a Japanese peace proposal linking Ranariddh's return with the holding of elections. The EU and Japan announce funding for the elections. Efforts to arrange a cease-fire between troops loyal to the two Prime Ministers fail. In line with the peace plan, Ranariddh is found guilty in two show trials before a military tribunal, is pardoned by his father, and returns to Phnom Penh. The Law on the Organization and Functioning of the Constitutional Council is approved on 19 March.
April: The opposition parties, now in disarray, prepare for elections. The US announces US $7 million in electoral assistance to be provided through local NGOs for voter education campaigns. The UN human rights office denounces some 100 politically-motivated killings since the July coup. Pol Pot dies in captivity from natural causes.
May: Foreign governments, NGOs, and the opposition parties express real concern that the elections will not be 'free and fair' given Hun Sen's complete dominance of the state and the electoral machinery. As thousands more Khmer Rouge defect, the movement is on the verge of collapse. The long-awaited Supreme Council of Magistracy is established on 21 May.
June: The election campaign begins, marked by the political intimidation of opposition parties and openly anti-Vietnamese remarks by some politicians. Hun Sen keeps a low profile, portraying himself as the 'guardian of democracy'. Some of the opposition parties threaten to boycott the elections unless a more neutral environment is created.
July: The voting goes smoothly on 26 and 27 July, though the opposition parties quickly allege electoral fraud. International observers, led by the UN and the EU, tentatively declare the polls 'free and fair' some days following the vote. A range of independent observer groups disagree with this initial positive assessment.
August: Official electoral results give the CPP 41.4% of the vote, FUNCINPEC 31.7% and the KNP 14.3%. A controversial formula used to allocate seats gives Hun Sen a parliamentary majority. The Constitutional Council throws out most official complaints of fraud without addressing them. International pressure is placed on the opposition leaders to form a coalition government with Hun Sen. They resist.
September: Popular demonstrations at Phnom Penh's 'Democracy Square' calling for fraud allegations to be addressed are violently repressed. The King attempts and fails to broker a solution to the crisis. The new National Assembly is convened the same day as an alleged assassination attempt on Hun Sen. Prince Ranariddh, Sam Rainsy and other opposition politicians leave Cambodia fearing for their safety.
October: With many of the opposition deputies, and both Prince Ranariddh and Sam Rainsy still outside the country, Hun Sen is unable to achieve a quorum to convene the new National Assembly. Meanwhile, negotiations over the formation of a new government remain deadlocked.

Accord and Conciliation Resources Issue 5