Wednesday, October 07, 2009

Hun Sen, Cambodia's agent provocateur?

Hun Sen: ‘‘I am the leader of Cambodia who was elected by the will of the people, not by robbing power.’’

7/10/2009
Pavin Chachavalpongpun
Bangkok Post Opinion


I was caught in the abhorrent situation wherein some 1,000 protesters, mostly students, torched the Royal Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh on the night of January 29, 2003. Elsewhere in the capital, the protests grew more aggravated. So-called Cambodian patriots ransacked Thai-owned establishments, including the Royal Phnom Penh Hotel and the office of Thai Airways International.

A few days earlier, Thai actress Suvanand Kongying had been wrongly accused of claiming that Angkor Wat was Thailand's property.

That misquote immediately stirred up a sense of nationalism inside Cambodia. Prime Minister Hun Sen angrily responded: "Suvanand is not even worth a blade of grass at Angkor." Former premier Thaksin Shinawatra reportedly tried for two hours to reach Hun Sen by phone, and it was obvious the Cambodian leader was avoiding a conversation.

Was Hun Sen's anger really about protecting the dignity of the Cambodian nation? The circumstances surrounding the outburst was that a Cambodian general election was around the corner, so a conflict with Thailand could have been used to favour his political allies and undermine his opponents.

If the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) is a master manipulator of Thai nationalism, can Hun Sen be an "agent provocateur" who exploits nationalistic rhetoric to gain political points at home?

Since the flare-up in the Preah Vihear dispute, Hun Sen has never minced his words about the failure of Thai leadership. He has even provoked armed conflict with Thailand.

In referring to the Democrat government, Hun Sen once proudly declared: "I am the leader of Cambodia who was elected by the will of the people, not by robbing power." Recently, he intensified bilateral tensions by ordering his troops to shoot any Thai crossing the border illegally. His encouragement not only served to fulfil a nationalistic need in Cambodia, but also worked in turn to legitimise the PAD's activities.

Over the past years, Hun Sen has been able to strengthen his popularity thanks to the lingering dispute over the Preah Vihear temple. As Southeast Asia's longest serving leader apart from the Sultan of Brunei, Hun Sen has successfully ridden the wave of Cambodian nationalism to further solidify his rule.

At the height of Thailand's domestic crisis last year, Hun Sen suggested that Thailand give up its Asean chairmanship. In so doing, he seemed to declare himself the chief defender of Asean.

When Thailand planned to host the Asean meeting in Hua Hin in March this year, Hun Sen sarcastically said that it would be too costly and difficult for him to attend the gathering. Obviously, he later changed his mind.

Hun Sen has on numerous occasions warned Thai troops to stop trespassing on Cambodian land, calling the contested territory a "life-and-death battle zone".

The PAD has continued to play into Hun Sen's hands by inflating the incident and calling for the Thai military to push back Cambodian "intruders".

As much as the temple issue has been held hostage by Thai politics, it has also been used to preserve the legitimacy of the Cambodian leadership. The successful inscription of the temple on the list of Unesco's World Heritage sites was much publicised to voters as a result of Hun Sen's charismatic leadership. (Cambodia's general election was held on July 27, 2008).

Scenting an ideal electoral opportunity, Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party pushed the hot issues of corruption and inflation into the background while promoting a nationalistic election theme. The party announced that Hun Sen and his close allies were strong but peaceful leaders who were solely responsible for uniting Cambodians against Thai aggression.

After a series of armed clashes, Cambodia had no plans to make peace but demanded Thailand pay compensation for damages resulting from the confrontation on the border. In its diplomatic note, Cambodia stated: "The attack with heavy weapons by Thai troops on Cambodian territory caused much damage and set a Cambodian market ablaze. The material losses to 319 families, who had lost their livelihoods when the fire destroyed their market stalls, amounted to more than US$2.1 million."

The attempt here is not to paint a gloomy picture of the Cambodian leadership, but rather to highlight that the temple issue and the rise of nationalism have their roots deep in the power politics within Thailand and Cambodia. While it is convenient for Hun Sen to condemn the arbitrary use of Thai nationalism, he himself has taken advantage from Cambodian nationalism.

In an interview, Sam Rainsy, a French-educated former finance minister who leads Cambodia's prominent opposition party, described Hun Sen as a politician who succeeds very well in one thing: "Survival at the helm of the Cambodian state." His ability, Mr Rainsy said, is clinging on to power through political intrigues which he then resolves with an iron fist. This has lasted for almost 30 years now. "When you have only this ambition - clinging to power for the impunity it provides - it is catastrophic for the country," Mr Rainsy said.

Professor Chanvit Kasetsiri rightly noted that among the neighbouring countries of Southeast Asia, none seems more similar to Thailand than Cambodia. Both nations share similar customs, traditions, beliefs and ways of life. This is especially true of royal customs, language, writing systems, vocabulary, literature, and the dramatic arts. In light of these similarities, it seems surprising, therefore, that relations between Thailand and Cambodia should be characterised by deep-seated "ignorance, misunderstanding and prejudice". Indeed, the two countries have what can be termed a "love-hate relationship".

Today, this love-hate relationship is being firmly sustained by the incessant use of nationalism, which may offer some political benefits in the short-term but will surely create a long-lasting negative impact on the bilateral relationship.

Dr Pavin Chachavalpongpun is a Visiting Research Fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore.

43 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yep Hun Sen is a power grabber, and Abhisit and the Thai junta military also are the same. We nee the real elected leader to bash Hun Sen, not the similar gangster like Abhisit.

Anonymous said...

I said we need not we nee.

Anonymous said...

Dr.Chachalpongpun,
To be correct there was nothing for Cambodia to love about Siam aliased T'ai.

It's convenient for T'ai to justify its imperialistic nature as supposed Hun Sen was an opportunist.

If it wasn't a green light given from Hua Hin Palace,PAD had no way of exploiting T'ai politic to quarrel further on Preah Vihear which was already ruled enfavored of Cambodia by the ICJ in 1962.

It's a mistake to assume Cambodia has similar culture with T'ai. T'ai stole and bullyed Cambodia for the last 221 years.

Per UNHCR account, T'ai soldiers shot 856 refugees at Preah Vihear site in 1979. Who ordered the shooting Kriangsak or Hua Hin palace occupant?

There's got to be cause to have effect.

T'ai will not get away from own crimes that easy.

Anonymous said...

Well, Hun Xen deserves the name of " Cambodian Strongman".

Anonymous said...

This Thai writer tells half the truth. I believe that the Thai especillay the PAD has been using nationalism to illegally cling onto Preah Vihear and our lands. Not HunSen. The Thai are screwed up people. Their copy our tradition, culture, and 30% of its language is Khmer. Yet Thai thief never acckowleges these facts and gratitude.

Anonymous said...

Its funny about Thai & Cambodia which both side try to get an advantage from their own people about nationalism..........somehow PAD Especially the King of Thailand should well educate to thai nation and tell them who we are ? where we coming from ?? how old we are ? I am a thai nation but I am fully agreed that my culture, traditional,lectural, Langauage...... is 95% origionaly from Khmer.. We are thai we have to accept what we taken from Cambodia so far.. Please look at to border side how many Cambodian were killed by Thai troop ????? when they accrossing broder for find a job... and all the time we accuse them this and that..... Please our king , you should open your speed to the thai nation and tell them exactlly who we are ???? even your self also have khmer blood right ????? please check your DNA also your family...........

From Superchai, BKK.Thailand

Anonymous said...

In cambodia,thailand, and vietnam people with character and sense of justice need RAID roaches spray for those currupted official, And roaches bate too. Spray them and lid a fire on them.

Anonymous said...

that is true. khmer people voted him into office, he didn't steal power like some individuals intented to. isn't that is why they held national election in cambodia. it goes to show who is more popular as a leader more so than others. get over it. cambodia has no law to regulate as to how often a leader can run in the election. unlike the USA system, for example, a president can only hold office two terms or 8 years maximum. however, the system in cambodia, did not specifically say the same leader cannot run as often as he/she wants to run in the national election; so, if majority of khmer people or citizens voted for the same leader like mr. hun sen, for example, then it is the will of the people, and it goes to say that majority of khmer people prefer mr. hun sen over other candidates, really. this is real democracy, believe it or not! plus, if mr. hun sen continue to win the majority, then, the people have voiced their preference. plus, things and people aren't the same anymore. nowadays, people have to be careful who they voted for. it is no longer aristocratic style in cambodia; leaders have to earn their rights and privileges, not born with it, ok. one exception might be the monarchy which is right by birth. but that we all understand already. but prime minister and other leaders have no real term limit, really. get used to it and get over it alrelady. if there is no law to give limit to term power, then stop bitching and whining about it, ok! this is cambodia. please respect the local culture and system, as long as it doesn't become corrupt or illegal, etc... god bless cambodia.

Anonymous said...

Here comes another Thai spin doctor. Whatever the outcome from his researches and studies, half had been hidden, the other half had been spun around, turned upside down and presented the way he wishes.

Please check out your works and use correct materials in your studies, not those twisted and spun that your learned in your elementary school otherwise your PhD. is not any better then Hun Sen's. Stop embarrassing yourself or stop wasting your time researching these nonesenses.

How about your terrorism state of Thailand that have been going on for centuries?

khmer boy said...

oh ki-media news !
you are so famous of khmer news, many visitors come to your site
I read it everyday !
could you put link here?
here is my site: http://thmarpuok.blogspot.com/
I hope you are kind to do that
kindest
khmer boy

Anonymous said...

was this article missed dating?

New Phally

Anonymous said...

Dear Dr Pavin Chachavalpongpun,
You should not be qualified to studying in Singapore. Your writing is simply a "Professional lie" trying to falsify the fact. It will only lead to missunderstanding in the future generation between Khmer and former Khmer living in what you now call "Thai land".
You should have spent more time in your research and stand on the righteousness when writing.
It would be more useful and even more important for your own sake if you focus your research on "Who is Thai"? especially ask yourself "Who Am I?". It is for sure that you would realized that your ancestor worshiped "Khmer".

Anonymous said...

10:21 AM,
For 23 years as Cambodia PM, Hun Sen lead the country to nowhere. For 23 years we still rely on foreign aids to survive. Yet, the number of beggars in Cambodia keep increasing at an alarming rate. Consider the country in disarray right now, I doubt the people would vote for him. Who don't know the National Election Committee (NEC) members, who are charged to oversee election, were hand picked by Hun Sen. NEC manipulate the ballots in a way to make Hun Sen win every time there is an election. And this is why Hun dares to declare he will run for election until he reaches 90 years old. Hun Sen is not alone in designing a system to cheat his people. Sihanouk and Lon Nol played the same trick when they were Khmer Leaders.

Anonymous said...

Come on New Phally! You are working there and you don't know the format? It's dd/mm/yy not mm/dd/yy.

Anonymous said...

The US government admitted to have its secret torturing prison in Thailand.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/12668/us-admits-to-torture-at-secret-jail-inside-thailand

But the unelected PM of Thailand (Abhisit)denied.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews/149652/pm-no-secret-prison-in-thailand

PM: No secret prison in Thailand
Published: 21/07/2009 at 09:46 AM
Online news: Politics

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva insisted on Tuesday that there was no secret prison for torturing terrorists in Thailand as reported by the Washington Post newspaper.

Mr Abhisit said there was no cooperation between the Thai government and the US in setting up a secret prison as alleged.

“It’s an old story and it is totally groundless as this government has never resorted to the use of violent means,” Mr Abhisit said. The report would not affect the summit between Asean and its dialog partners being held in Phuket.

Mr Abhisit said he will meet US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at Government House about 5pm today.

Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban took the same tone. He stressed that the report of a secret prison in Thailand by the US newspaper was groundless.

Mr Suthep said it was suspicious that the report surfaced during the Asean meeting in Phuket.

Anonymous said...

we must build a memeorial at the preah vihear site to honor those that persish on the dangrek mountain tha was force on by thai guns. this would be a huge tourists attractions like toul sleng.

Anonymous said...

i think khemrs need to be smarter than this. they talk shit of thailand while they keeping buying their products, using thai fashion, watching thai soap opera on dvd, if not on tv now cos those tv are afraid to show it.

Khmer leaders talk shit of thailand cos of Vietnam backing them.

VN encraoching on their land and maritime borders, Khmer leaders mouths are full of shit, and cant bark to VN, but licking VN ass !

A Thai

Anonymous said...

only the thia dick head would believe this crap!! the whole thing have been spin around!!! why hun sen need to push nationalism when he already won 90 seat out of 120 seat in the palimen? this clown wrote this may be one thia democrate party themself who wanna push nationalism in thialand AHPISHITYOU ONLY CAN FOOL YOUR THIA PEOPLE US KHMER ARE MORE BRAVE THEN YOU THINK.

Anonymous said...

To Dr. Pavin,

you are right some parts but maybe wrong many parts.

It is not what our Samdech Hun Sen tried to gain the popularity from the Preah Vihear issue but your PAD side and even Abphisit still can not manage well the situation.

We Khmer believe and trust our PM now and future cause only him that can stand with a very tricky nation like yours. We never claim anything from you even we used to be the owner i think you read well the history of Khmer Empire and do you hear any word from our leaders and our people to claim those things back, we cambodian are poor and less educated but we value the law and international right by not saying without evidents and proof such as the case of Preah Vihear.

Best Regards,
Samnang

Anonymous said...

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh FUCK THAILAND................AH AUT ABSHIT YOU PIECE OF FUCKING SHIT












KADUEY MAY AH SIEM

Anonymous said...

Ah khmer opposition party it will be done on the next term.

Anonymous said...

Interesting article altho again not all correct. There are more differences btw Khmer and thai than similiarities but still some similitaries. HS is not a democratic leader and he is not voted in democratically. He uses Preah vihear as a distraction like you say to cheat khmers and make them think about nationalism rather than out of control evictions, inflation and corruption. when will we ever learn

Anonymous said...

I wish many times a day to kick khmer opposion party aways from Cambodia if they still live in Cambodia they will hit by khmer people.

Anonymous said...

2:57 PM
Kind of comment did not help our love country Cambodia.
We Khmer don't need to be rude, because we have a great civilization and good educational background.

Anonymous said...

3:57 PM
You may study better about the Cambodian constitution.
Mr. Hun Sen the PM of Cambodia will not kick the Khmer away from Cambodia, because he is still civilized as Siems. Mr Hun Sen has the responsible and duty to protect the Khmer citizen.

Anonymous said...

These link are the evidences of how Vite. Cong has taught Ah Hun Sen how to treats Khmers.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWREcgjCCIc&feature=related


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xA6s5r-W8U&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yo2q1J0MYYI&feature=related

Anonymous said...

Who said Hun Sen is elected by Khmer people to be PM? He rose to be PM through coup in 1997, and subsequently through fraud with help from the Viets. Without the Viets he is nothing.

Anonymous said...

Thai people like Pavin Chachavalpongpun still confused.
Whatever Hun Sen is, he never goes claiming and causing trouble in Thailand but every Thai PM goes claiming and causing trouble in Cambodia.

Anonymous said...

You khmers are stupid! you keep fighting each for centuries, your leaders are corrupted to the bone! and never care about your own people. you decide now, either to have thai or vietnamese passport soon ? Your khmer passport is shitty cheap!
Bravo Viet and Thai !

A Thai

Anonymous said...

It is not because of you(Thai) or me(Khmer), but it due to the another intelligent nations can judge who is who.

Anonymous said...

Don't care about me and I don't care about you(Thai). What shoudl we(Thai @ Khmer) take care is our win is in a bottle that we are drinking.

Anonymous said...

10:17,

the whole world knows how your own leaders treat your own people! Ha ...talking about another intelligent nations ? Thai and VN are smart and more intelligent! who else ? US ? France ? think they care about you Khmers ? wake up!!!! What an inferior mentality!

A Thai

Anonymous said...

Folks,
College degree does not assure intelligence or Intelligence does not require degrees.
I am not a fan of neither Hun Sen nor Abhisit; but Hun Sen has many experiences, plenty of of tactics, and he is wiser than Abhisit with respect to geopolitics.
Some of you said "Hun Sen without Vietnamese he is nothing. This goes to Abhisit; without the royal stooges, PAD and the military juntas, Abhisit is nothing."

Anonymous said...

Hey Siam idiot stupid dog!
Ai heer Siam maah baah!
Bok hah Siam mah bah!

You don't have to say.
Muung mai thonk pun dee gau veul.
Mung yah vow di gon munk.

I don't like you.
Guu mai chaarm muung.
Gu bah mak mung.

I like girl.
Guu chaarm puua chao.
Gu mak pua sao.

Hey stupid.
Ai baah.
Bak bah.

Khmer562 (gu, mung) rude to friend

Anonymous said...

To A Saimese (Tai),

DO NOT put the USA down 'cause all of the Siamese military equipments/weaponry are from the States. The Siamese aren't that smart to build anything, and that Why you Siamese go claiming Khmer Ancient Building of your own.

What has the Siamese build to represent your own culture besides stealing from Khmer. Please your facts.

Be an Ignorant Siamese, NOT a Stupid Siamese.



Ignorant = one who able to learn
Stupid = one who can't be taught to learn.

homesickkhmer said...

The khmer goverment is so disillusional. The alliance between Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam is a joke. Vietnam wants to destroy Cambodia as much as Thailand does maybe even more. Vietnam's goal was to annex both Cambodia and Laos. It's still their mission today. They won't take over by means of war, but economically. While our khmer people slowly die due to starvation and infighting, more and more illegal youns arrive in Cambodia. Just like old nations in the past that disappeared over time. Cambodia could be the first country to be erase in modern times, but I'll never let that happen as long as I'm still breathing. Khmer need to stop buying Vietnamese goods. There are more frequent Vietnamese trade fairs going on in Cambodia. I'll will not be surprise if the free samples they give out contains ingredients leading to cancer.
Hun Sen will never commit an all out war with Thailand. Firstly, it will deplete his wealth. Everyone knows there is no profit in war. The only people who profits from other peoples war are the US and China. They are the largest manufacturers of weapons. Secondly, I heard Hun Sen main bank account is located in Thailand. Not sure if it's true or not. Vietnam will probably be happy if Cambodia did go to war with Thailand. Once both side weakens, Vietnam will occupy Cambodia claiming they have come to our aid, but that is just a pretense. Then they will negotiate a cease fire with Thailand and purge Cambodia of all the ethnic khmers. This will not be a problem because of the millions of Vietnamese already living in Cambodia. Those Vietnamese already in Cambodia can be recruited to be secret police by the occupying Vietnamese forces.
Unrelated, but I heard Thailand's capital is slowly losing land due to rising sea level and could be under water in 20 years.

Anonymous said...

to thieft thai,

no wonder why ah samies hate khmer because ah samies was a thieft, they stole everythings from khmer, culture, land and history. thieft thai should go back to live on the mountain in china like Hmong people live in Loa. ah thai thieft have no culturale, nomorale, no everything like Hmong people. now it time to ga back to your ancient people live on the mountain in china thieft go back to you land on the mountain in china, and way of your living like Hmong people.

Anonymous said...

to ah thai in this common, do you think we don't know that you goverment also corrupted too, look at your king familly, put all you stupid head and bow for his pennis and her pussy, so you not better than us, we khmer still much better, because we do not to put our head to bow Hun sen penis, and me kachrok Hun pussy, like you people in your country.

Anonymous said...

3:02 AM See real Khmer stand up!

Anonymous said...

You Khmers need to know the history to argue the points in a rational way ! you only capable of cursing ! look, you cant even work with each other ?
What has your Hun sen done with your Khamen Krom ? Make no mistake, we thai and Veits wont fight, we only take a share out of your currupt stupid leaders who are taking hundreds of mistress each!

Your king is such a gay! no wonder, you are not going anywhere far ! you cant even produce toothpick ! oh come on ...

A Thai

Anonymous said...

to A Thai, you are not better than us 100 year without war and i do not see you country developing eneought, if we combodai 100 year without war we might be 100 time better than your stupid country thief. how do you know that we can't produce toothpick? we can produce Angko so we can produce anything because war we little slow than you. see you country start to scar us then you find a way to fight with us to put our country to war, that mean you try to slow us down again, this 21 century don't try we won't let you

Anonymous said...

The righteous will live forever and the wicked will pay the price, so don't play game with Gods'love and justice, for he who loves everyone equally. "you are belong to the earth and the earth is not belong to you", in other words, you only have a limited live cycle, so do the right thing ok! try to save your soul before your body, for your body will be rotten anyway in the end. So, "love others like you love yourself and treat others like you want to be treated". After all, we all are being tested about how good or bad are we for this short time being. We are the same human being the only different is language, but by blood we are brothers and sisters, we eat the same thing from planet earth! be smarter people don't let evil win no more, we must meet up with a win/win situation. we must respect each other bounday and share our love, compassion, respect and find justice for everyone as everyone is equally important since we are existed for the same purpose as to live, learn, love for happpy life. OK, everyone, Aust

Anonymous said...

Calling yourself a Thai, but you are Cambodian.

Productive criticism if you may want to receive the real output, then send your post to Phnom Penh Post, not in KI.

A few people not even more than 10 will do you no good, and your message won't be heard by Hun Sen governmnet.

Real deals don't waste time in KI, they are busy working and enjoying their lives somewhere else.

You only make a fool of your self.