Ranariddh: Thank you brother Hun Sen, I listened carefully to your speech saying that I am a nobody

Monday, January 12, 2009

The brotherly twins?

Ranariddh replies to Hun Sen

11 Jan 2009
By Leang Delux Cambodge Soir Hebdo Translated from French by Tola Ek Click here to read the article in French

Hun Sen indicated that some people are looking to recruit advisors to assist Prince Ranariddh for his duty at the royal palace.
Prince Ranariddh will not benefit from his position at the royal palace by recruiting a parallel cabinet, the prince assured in a letter sent to Hun Sen on Friday 09 Jan.

“I thank Samdach Hun Sen, who always act as a brother to me,” Norodom Ranariddh wrote on his return from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. “I listened carefully to the speech that you gave on 06 January, in which you discussed about me.”

On 06 Jan, Hun Sen reminded that the “Prime Minister” title granted to Norodom Ranariddh was purely symbolic, and that it does not authorize him to recruit a cabinet, nor can he have a spokesperson within the royal palace. The prince was nominated as “Supreme Advisor to the king” by his own half-brother, Norodom Sihamoni.

“I only have a few assistants around me, and they are not involved in politics,” the prince assured. “Earlier, the “Moneaksekar Khmer” (Khmer Conscience) newspaper wrongly announced that I recruited 200 people to work around me at the palace. The newspaper had recognized that it was wrong and it apologized to me.”

Norodom Ranariddh asked Hun Sen to provide him with the name of the people seeking to recruit advisors in his name. He reserved the right to sue these people in order to “protect his honor” and “to avoid possible treacheries.”