- Prime Minister Hun Sen to Resign, Power to be Passed to Son in August.
- Dynastic Succession: Hun Manet Designated as Next Prime Minister.
- International Concerns: US and EU Denounce Cambodia’s Controversial Election and Hun Sen’s Authoritarian Rule.
Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia, one of the world’s longest-serving leaders, has announced he will resign in early August and pass over power to his son.
The much-anticipated announcement was made three days after his party once again won all seats in an uncontested election.
After nearly four decades as Cambodia’s leader, Hun Sen, 70, has become increasingly authoritarian.
He first mentioned a transition in 2021, but no one knew the precise date as of yet.
His eldest son, Hun Manet, who was until recently the commander of the Royal Cambodian Army, has been groomed for the position for quite some time.
Hun Sen stated in his announcement that his son would be designated prime minister on August 10th.
“I would like to ask the people for their understanding as I announce my resignation as prime minister,” he said in a special television broadcast.
He stated that he would resign because remaining in office could cause instability. However, he will continue to lead the ruling Cambodian People’s Party, a position that, according to political analysts, grants him ultimate control.
State media depicted Hun Sen visiting the palace of the Cambodian monarch to announce the dynastic succession earlier on Wednesday.
Hun Manet, 45, played a prominent role in campaigning for the 23 July election this year and was frequently observed leading rallies alongside his father, who has ruled the 16 million-person Southeast Asian nation since 1985.
Since the only credible opposition party had been disqualified from the vote, Sunday’s election was viewed as a foregone conclusion.
The seventeen other parties were too small, new, or associated with the CPP to provide credible choices for voters.
Both the United States and the European Union issued statements denouncing the referendum as neither free nor fair.
In recent years, Hun Sen has eliminated political opponents as part of a broader crackdown on civil space in Cambodia.
In 2017, he used the courts to dissolve the CNRP and arrest or expatriate its leaders.
He has also increasingly suppressed dissent and free expression, shutting down the majority of the country’s independent media. NGOs, trade unions, and rights organizations also report facing closure threats.
Analysts had hypothesized that this year’s enforcement was motivated by the need for a seamless transition. It will be the first power transition in Cambodia in forty years.
Compared to his father, whose iron-fisted rule was forged during and after the Khmer Rouge regime, there is some speculation that Hun Manet, who attended West Point and the University of Bristol, could lead a less repressive regime and be more receptive to Western calls for human rights.
According to analysts, he has not demonstrated any indication that he may be more accessible. Hun Sen has shown that he will continue to dominate the government.
