Is the royalty dead in Cambodia?

Mourners have been keeping a vigil outside the Royal Palace since the death of King-Father Norodom Sihanouk. Monarchial power seems to be dwindling in Cambodia. (HENG SINITH / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)

With the death of King Norodom Sihanouk, the monarch in Cambodia is facing its greatest threat.

“He only thought about his country. We have lost a very good king.” - DOUNG SAMNEANG, CAMBODIAN MOURNER

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA—Loudspeakers blare choral hymns while plumes of incense smoke twist into the blinding afternoon sky. Under the ever-watchful eyes of the four-faced spire crowning the Royal Palace’s opulent throne hall, saffron-robed monks, white-clad nuns and mourners all pray for the soul of his late majesty, King-Father Norodom Sihanouk.

“He only thought about his country,” says Doung Samneang, 59, with tears in her eyes. Upon hearing of Sihanouk’s death on Oct. 15, Samneang travelled more than 300 kilometres to the capital, where she has been keeping a vigil in front of the palace.

“We have lost a very good king.”

On Monday, a cremation ceremony will be held for Sihanouk. More than 1.5 million mourners are expected to descend on the capital, along with Japan’s Prince Akishino and the prime ministers of France, Thailand and Vietnam.

Despite the outpouring of grief and extensive ceremony, the cremation may be a turning point for Cambodia. The monarchy, which stretches back 1,200 years, faces its greatest threat.

Sihanouk was crowned in 1941 and successfully negotiated independence from France in 1953. Two years later, Sihanouk abdicated in favour of his father. He became prime minister and ruled as a feudal lord, ushering in what some still wistfully refer to as Cambodia’s “Golden Era.”

A 1970 coup deposed Sihanouk, and for the next two decades, the country descended into turmoil under the U.S.-backed regime of Gen. Lon Nol, the murderous Khmer Rouge, an invading Vietnamese army, then the Vietnamese-installed forces of what would become the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), which controls Cambodia today. Throughout the tumult, Sihanouk headed various governments-in-exile.

In 2004, Sihanouk surprised Cambodians by abdicating in favour of his son, Norodom Sihamoni. The choice was endorsed by the government and Prime Minister Hun Sen.

“King Sihamoni was given the throne by his father, and it is his duty, his mission, to make sure the Cambodian monarchy survives. It is up to the royal family, therefore, to do what King Sihamoni can’t do: voice the concerns of the people.”

Monarchical power appears to be dwindling in favour of a new dynasty. Hun Sen, whose official honorific means “The Great Lord Protector,” has declared that his children will rule Cambodia in his wake.

“I think Hun Sen wants to appropriate the kind of political power that Sihanouk had and imitate some of his gestures, like being kind to people in the countryside,” says historian David Chandler. “But this isn’t done out of any benevolence — I think Sihanouk had a genuine benevolent quality — I think Hun Sen is just interested in the maintenance of power and the development of Cambodia.”

Sihamoni seems resigned to his ceremonial role. He appears at festivals and ceremonies and quietly engages in charitable work — but that is all.

“Sihamoni has decided that he’s not in a position to take any initiatives to break away from the tight controls that have been placed on him by the government,” Chandler says. “He’s got no independence of action at all that I can see, and that’s exactly the way Hun Sen would like it.”

Sok San, 84, is among those who have travelled to Phnom Penh for the ceremony.

“King Sihanouk used his intelligence and love to gain the respect of the people,” the elderly farmer says. He shows a collection of weather-stained photos: young Sihanouk, old Sihanouk — Sihanouk as king, prime minister, prince and rebel.

“No one will ever be able to replace him.”

Daniel Otis’s last story for World Weekly was about acid attacks.