How Lucky Hun Sen Has Been

The rise and rise of Hun Sen have been largely by default. Pol Pot, Pen Sovann, and Chan Sy fail their Vietnamese benefactor who has installed them as their consecutive power proxies in Cambodia. They insist on protecting the Cambodian territorial integrity, which Vietnam detests. Hun Sen is their fourth choice that turns out to be far more accommodating.

Hun Sen’s lucky star dips momentarily after an unexpected loss in the 1993 UN organised elections, but begins its rise unabated. Greed for government positions and wealth cripples and decimates election winner FUNCINPEC.

Hun Sen is a direct beneficiary of the Pol Pol’s brutality that smashes Cambodian revolting spirit into pieces, allowing Hun Sen to keep it flattened with minimal effort. There is no need for him to have so many killed, tortured, and jailed to have a joy ride with his “thank you peace” slogan.

He is lucky his opponents for decades have had no killer instinct. They have delivered political punches that are of nuisance value; they merely pretend to want his job. The latest flop is a much-publicised Sam Rainsy’s return to Cambodia last November. It becomes hot air when he claims a success as a few of his democratic acquaintances in Indonesia and Malaysia allow his visit there. Kem Sokha says the return plan is illegal, in which he wants no part. He says he is happy to respect and comply with Hun Sen laws and court that have jailed him and others at will.

The opponents have a simple mind, incapable of strategic thinking and planning; they would make a poor chess player. Ingrained in the opposition psyche is a hope that Hun Sen will allow them to come in to destroy his loots. A popular explanation for the November no-show peddled within the CNRP is that it is because Hun Sen prevents their president from entering Cambodia. It is so naïve to expect that Hun Sen is stupid enough to give his nemesis a chance to grab power from him. If their rolls were reverse, would Sam Rainsy – with a risk of losing all – welcome into the country his enemy who calls on his army to revolt?

The mind-boggling naivety is infectious among CNRP prominent members and supporters. Their recent plan is to create a united front to restore democracy in Cambodia. Their claimed “dream”, with Sam Rainsy’s explicit backing, is to unite all political thinkers, factions, parties, unions, etc… before approaching Hun Sen – not to displace him – but to only reform his democracy of which the man has been so proud. The astonishing gullibility of the dream is their confidence that Hun Sen would bow to western pressures and talk and agree to their democratic reform agenda. They expect Hun Sen to then wake up and walk away from all his power, wealth, and security, which would be outcomes of their dreamed reform.

No wonder Hun Sen is lucky. He must think a formidable challenger to his absolute authority has yet to be born.

Ung Bun Ang

30v20

Fake News You Can Use

Is Hun Sen kidding when he dismisses motordop operators’ cry for relief after they lose incomes due to economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic? He tells them to sell their motorcycle for food; that his government is broke.

His minions say it is just a joke as if he is funny guy. They lock up TVFB news director Sovann Rithy, who does not laugh and quote Hun Sen’s outburst verbatim in his news service. As they accuse him of inciting the public to disrupt social order and peace with the joke, they must think some take it seriously.

Hun Sen may be one of them. He has announced a raft of measures meant to cushion the impacts, though specifics and simple processes are rare. Still, public complaints on the ground are now growing louder as the reliefs are not forthcoming.

Perhaps Hun Sen is not joking after all that the State is broke after showing off his big heart showering some 2,500 Westerdam cruise passengers with five-star hotel accommodations, local tourist attractions, and entertainments. While he helps those middle-class foreigners to go home when the coronavirus interrupts their holidays and fun, his heart shrinks ignoring his own citizens stranded overseas where they have slaved away for a subsistence livelihood.

«​ក្មួយ​ដែល​សួរ​មក​ពូ​ថា អ្នក​រត់ម៉ូតូឌុប​គាត់​ត្អូញត្អែរ​ តើ​មាន​រដ្ឋ​ប៉ះប៉ូវ​ទេ​? លក់​ម៉ូតូ​ចាយ​សិន​ទៅ ទិញ​អង្ករ​ស៊ី​សិន ព្រោះ​បើ​ឱ្យ​រដ្ឋ​ប៉ះប៉ូវ​ទាំងអស់​ ងាប់​បាត់ រដ្ឋ​ឯណា​មាន​លុយ​?»

នាយក​រដ្ឋមន្ត្រី ហ៊ុន សែន សន្និសីទ​សារព័ត៌មាន​ស្ដីពី​ជំងឺ​កូវីដ១៩ កាលពី​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​៧ មេសា នៅ​ក្នុង​វិមាន​សន្តិភាព

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