Hun Sen calling Global Witness report “crazy”

When everybody around you is "crazy," except yourself, isn't this a symptom of "dementia"?

16 Feb 2009
By Huy Vannak
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy
Click here to read the article in Khmer

On Monday, Hun Sen publicly reacted for the first time to the Global Witness report titled “Country for Sale,” calling it “crazy.”

From Siem Reap, Hun Sen added that the Global Witness report was published with the intention of attacking the royal government of Cambodia.

Hun Sen said: “Before, I called them (using the derogative “vea” to designate Global Witness) stupid, it was too light, I have to call them (using derogative “Ah Neung”) “crazy,” that would be more befitting. First, I want to reply to them with some rude words, it’s when a group of “crazy” people talked about corruption from oil, when all the oil money is still at the bottom of the sea. Can you all believe that the royal government can be corrupt when there is no money yet? What do you think this is? Is it a political destruction activity or is it an expression of opinion? At the end, they lose their own credibility through this nonsense and crazy report. So I am justified to say that they are “crazy” now.”

In its report, “Country for Sale,” Global Witness, a UK- and Washington-based human rights and environment protection NGO, commented that, currently, Cambodia has been carved up for sale to foreign countries by powerful people in Cambodia so that they can amass a large amount of wealth for themselves, just like what was done in the case of Cambodia’s deforestation and the appropriation of other natural resources, including fish, islands, beaches for tourist resorts, minerals, oil and gas, etc…

Global Witness added that, in the past 15 years, 45% of the total area of Cambodia was carved out for sale to investors with the collusion of Cambodian rulers.

On 12 Feb, opposition leader Sam Rainsy sent a letter to Hun Sen, asking the latter to conduct an investigation into the allegations raised by Global Witness and to report the findings back to the National Assembly as soon as possible.

However, Hun Sen rejected the above Global Witness report saying: “The [Cambodian] ambassador in the UK [Hor Nambora] lives there [in England], and Global Witness is from the UK, it (using derogatory “Ah Neung”) put curses on Cambodia nonstop. So much so that a number of “crazy” politicians in Cambodia are also using this issue to oppose the royal government as well.”

Hun Sen added: “How can there be any corruption when the oil is still under the sea, even the actual amount, we don’t know yet. Who receive corruption money? The bauxite ore is underground, the iron ore is all underground, who can be corrupt on these issues? This is not the time to talk about spending money, it is the time to look for money. I asked both the IMF and the ADB, and foreign experts who expressed their concerns, I asked them to help me find a way to make a lot of money, to help me so that the oil contracts with various foreign companies will bring the maximum revenues to Cambodia, can they help?”