Hun Sen strews political banana skins before him

via CAAI News Media

By The Nation

Published on February 10, 2010

Bizarre actions of the Cambodian leader must be designed to distract his public from other issues

One does not need to consult Wikipedia to understand Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen's ulterior motive in his latest foray to the Thai-Cambodian border. It was a trip full of symbolism and can-do spirit. Clad in military fatigues, along with his wife, Hun Sen wanted to portray himself as his country's commander-in-chief, or, to be more specific, the guardian of Cambodia's territorial integrity on its western border, like the Cambodian kings before him.

But once he arrived back in Phnom Penh, he suddenly changed back into a fouled-mouth rabble-rouser. He was very rude in his broadside routine, this time using curses - unprecedented in the annals of Asean history - against Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who was not at all perturbed.

Hun Sen's diatribes are getting meaner and weirder by the day. It is possible that if Abhisit remains as the Thai leader in the foreseeable future - which is very likely - Hun Sen could suffer from a haemorrhage, because his vitriol reveals an extreme dislike for the Thai leader. Indeed, the Cambodian prime minister may have to be accountable for his "hate" speeches if they lead to violence. There are such precedents in Burundi and Sierra Leone.

Hun Sen must be happy with his latest political manipulation because he continues to score high points on the domestic front. Never mind Cambodia's ongoing border problem with Vietnam, it is the Thais that Hun Sen has tried to portray as invaders, and his own countrymen as "victims."

Without such convenient nationalistic side-issues, the Cambodian public's attention might instead focus on his performance and governance. After three decades in politics, he has total control of Cambodia, and there is no real opposition. Literally everybody, including the opposition leader, Sam Rainsy, has been silenced. The feisty Cambodian press behaves differently when it comes to issues related to Hun Sen and his coterie of supporters.

During his visit to the border, he wanted to gauge Thai sentiments toward Cambodia. Absent this time were the usual protests by various Thai civil society groups. Provocative reaction from the Thai side would only help Hun Sen's position. Somehow, the Thai side managed the controversial visit very well. The Foreign Ministry and the Second Army did an excellent job in handling the situation by following strict protocol. The Cambodian representatives wanted to visit the disputed areas, and they were welcome to do so if they asked permission from the Thai side. In the end, they did not, and returned to Phnom Penh.

Cambodia is a country that enjoys playing global politics, something that Thailand is not so adept at. Hun Sen's trip was also aimed at an international audience, especially those who are following the ongoing dispute over the disputed Preah Vihear Temple complex.

During the reign of King Sihanouk, the former monarch won international prominence for his country. And he did it with style. His talents and versatility are well known, including music, film-making and writing. Under Hun Sen, Cambodia has retained its prominence, but as a fragile democracy within Asean. In the past few months, the Cambodian premier has acted ever more irrationally, collaborating with the fugitive Thaksin Shinawatra in an effort to topple the Abhisit government. Certainly, it will take a long time before normalcy is restored in Thai-Cambodian relations.

But when the dust settles, the region and the world will know full well who were the good guys, the bad guys, and the stooges in between.