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Khmer Times/Pech Sotheary
Thursday, 10 November 2016
Defense Minister Tea Banh took time during the celebrations marking 63 years of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces to criticize the recent procession and cremation of the country’s first post-Khmer Rouge prime minister, Pen Sovann.
After his death last week at the age of 80, Mr. Sovann was hailed by opposition leaders as a hero and leading figure in the removal of the Khmer Rouge from Cambodia in 1979.
Government officials, however, kept almost universally silent.
On Tuesday, Mr. Banh did not hold back his criticism of the funeral arrangements.
“I am very disappointed about [the transport of] Mr. Pen Sovann’s body. Mr. Pen Sovann died in Takeo province, but his body was transferred for the funeral in Phnom Penh, but people don’t know why they took him,” he said.
“People thought that he was taken for honor, but they did not know that [the opposition] took him for [political] business. People valued him so much, so I am disappointed.
“I would like to apologize if I had the jurisdiction to solve this problem. I decided to keep him in Takeo province as there are so many pagodas in Takeo province and they can prepare for the funeral there.
“Why did they need to carry his body to Phnom Penh?” he asked.
Mr. Banh did not offer any further explanation of his comments and could not be reached yesterday.
Mr. Sovann was part of the initial leadership of the political party that would become today’s ruling Cambodian People’s Party, alongside Prime Minister Hun Sen and National Assembly President Heng Samrin, and briefly served as Cambodia’s prime minister in 1981 before being removed to Hanoi where he spent 10 years in jail.
In 2013 he was elected as a member of parliament for the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) for Kampong Speu province, but had struggled to recover from a stroke last year.
Hundreds of people, family members and CNRP officials escorted his body into Phnom Penh on November 2 and attended his cremation last Sunday.
CNRP spokesperson Yim Sovann yesterday rejected Mr. Banh’s claims, stressing that any actions had wide ranging public support.
“Politics is not about taking a body for doing business. We are not the politicians who have no morality and virtue when people have died,” he said, noting that the procession had been organized due to Mr. Sovann’s role as former prime minister and sitting lawmaker.
“He died so we wanted to transport his body to be cremated in Phnom Penh, to give the last honor for the former prime minister who had patriotic ideals and was loyal to the nation,” he said.
Clik here to view.
Khmer Times/Pech Sotheary
Thursday, 10 November 2016
Defense Minister Tea Banh took time during the celebrations marking 63 years of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces to criticize the recent procession and cremation of the country’s first post-Khmer Rouge prime minister, Pen Sovann.
After his death last week at the age of 80, Mr. Sovann was hailed by opposition leaders as a hero and leading figure in the removal of the Khmer Rouge from Cambodia in 1979.
Government officials, however, kept almost universally silent.
On Tuesday, Mr. Banh did not hold back his criticism of the funeral arrangements.
“I am very disappointed about [the transport of] Mr. Pen Sovann’s body. Mr. Pen Sovann died in Takeo province, but his body was transferred for the funeral in Phnom Penh, but people don’t know why they took him,” he said.
“People thought that he was taken for honor, but they did not know that [the opposition] took him for [political] business. People valued him so much, so I am disappointed.
“I would like to apologize if I had the jurisdiction to solve this problem. I decided to keep him in Takeo province as there are so many pagodas in Takeo province and they can prepare for the funeral there.
“Why did they need to carry his body to Phnom Penh?” he asked.
Mr. Banh did not offer any further explanation of his comments and could not be reached yesterday.
Mr. Sovann was part of the initial leadership of the political party that would become today’s ruling Cambodian People’s Party, alongside Prime Minister Hun Sen and National Assembly President Heng Samrin, and briefly served as Cambodia’s prime minister in 1981 before being removed to Hanoi where he spent 10 years in jail.
In 2013 he was elected as a member of parliament for the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) for Kampong Speu province, but had struggled to recover from a stroke last year.
Hundreds of people, family members and CNRP officials escorted his body into Phnom Penh on November 2 and attended his cremation last Sunday.
CNRP spokesperson Yim Sovann yesterday rejected Mr. Banh’s claims, stressing that any actions had wide ranging public support.
“Politics is not about taking a body for doing business. We are not the politicians who have no morality and virtue when people have died,” he said, noting that the procession had been organized due to Mr. Sovann’s role as former prime minister and sitting lawmaker.
“He died so we wanted to transport his body to be cremated in Phnom Penh, to give the last honor for the former prime minister who had patriotic ideals and was loyal to the nation,” he said.
