It’s time for us to say “good-bye” to Phnom Penh and Cambodia. We don’t want to leave, but time marches on, and I guess, so do we. Our boat has already left the waters of the Tonlé Sap river. Now we’re floating gently down the Mekong river, headed south toward the Cambodia/Vietnam border. It’s only seventy miles from Phnom Penh to the border, so we’ll be there all too soon.
But before we say “good-bye”, there’s one more thing that needs to be mentioned. It was in the Silver Pagoda, in a place of honor, resting under the watchful eyes of the Emerald Buddha. I’m referring to the ashes of Cambodia’s former king, Norodom Sihanouk.
(And while saying “good-bye,” we’ll look at some photos from recent Cambodia posts).
Cambodia’s King Norodom Sihanouk
If there was an American counterpart to Norodom Sihanouk, he would be something like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln rolled into one person. King Sihanouk had many claims to fame, but the biggest by far is that he’s the guy who, in 1953, wrestled the country away from France, resulting in an independent Cambodia.
The title, “king,” carried little political power, so Sihanouk abdicated so he could run for political office. In 1955, he became prime minister. Among the changes he made was giving Cambodian women the right to vote.
In the mid-1950’s the Far East was heating up. Actually, it was already hot. Sihanouk tried to keep Cambodia neutral, at times siding with the United States, and at other times, siding with China. Ultimately, though, he went with China and North Vietnam. He secretly allowed North Vietnamese forces into Cambodia.
The US carpet-bombed eastern Cambodia to drive Viet Cong back to Vietnam. Instead, they scattered more deeply into Cambodia. Relations with China started to deteriorate. Maybe it was time to talk to the U.S. again.
Sihanouk heard that then-US first lady Jacqueline Kennedy wanted to see Angkor Wat. He invited her to come to Cambodia. She did, and relations with the US thawed. But things in Cambodia were a mess, and Cambodians were not happy, to say the least.
Trouble in Every Direction
In 1970, while Sihanouk was in France getting medical treatment, a coup was held and he was thrown out of office. He formed a government-in-exile, while back in Cambodia, he was tried for treason and sentenced to death in absentia.
By this time, Cambodia was fully consumed by civil war – the government vs. the Khmer Rouges. Sihanouk supported the side that hadn’t sentenced him to death for treason — the Khmer Rouges. That move cost him more than a few supporters around the world. The Khmer Rouges won the war and gave Sihanouk the mostly symbolic title of Head of State.
Later, when Sihanouk saw what the Khmer Rouges were doing to Cambodia, he denounced them. He lived under house arrest in Phnom Penh until the Khmer Rouges were defeated by Vietnam.
The State of Cambodia
In 1991, the Paris Accords ended the Vietnamese occupation and established a new Cambodian government. Norodom Sihanouk was named Head of State, and later that year, he was reinstated as king.
Even though Cambodia was now an election-holding constitutional monarchy, fighting between different political factions was as nasty as ever. As king, Sihanouk was technically not in any political party. In 2004, he had had enough. He abdicated his position as king – for the second time. He lived the rest of his life as a private citizen.
Norodom Sihanouk died in 2012 at age 89. His body lay in state at the Royal Palace for three months, after which a massive funeral procession was held.
So, just to boil it down, Norodom Sihanouk was king, then not king. Prime minister, but then convicted of treason and sentenced to death. Head of State, but then put under house arrest. He was made king again, and he abdicated again. He was a controversial figure for sure, but his was truly an amazing life, no?
Time to Say “Good-Bye”
Norodom Sihanouk must have loved Cambodia deeply. In our own way, we’ve come to love Cambodia, too. But in truth, we were only just starting to get acquainted. I hope that someday we’ll be able to pick up where we have to leave off today.
To be continued…
Next stop: Tan Chau, Vietnam.
Photo Credit: The beautiful photo of the grounds of the Silver Pagoda is from Lor Teng Huy/Wikimedia Commons
