Brigade 70 is a special unit of 2,000 soldiers headquartered in Cham Chao on the outskirts of Phnom Penh. Its commander is Major General Mao Sophan. It acts as a reserve force for Hun Sen’s 4,000 strong Bodyguard Unit and Mao Sophan takes his orders from Bodyguard Unit chief Lieutenant General Hing Bun Heang. Hing Bun Heang’s commanding officer is General Kun Kim,294 one of four deputy commanders-in-chief of the RCAF and Hun Sen’s chief of cabinet.258 In January 2007 Hun Sen promoted Kun Kim to four star General, the most senior rank in the Cambodian armed forces.
In the words of a former member of United Nations Office of the High Commission for Human Rights (UNOHCHR) staff, “The term bodyguard is a misnomer ... the Prime Minister’s bodyguard unit is a substantial military elite unit equipped with modern weaponry and many of its members have received special training abroad.” The Bodyguard Unit and Brigade 70 are central to Hun Sen’s strategy of cultivating special units to protect his interests from potential challengers inside and outside the CPP. The latent threat of violence is integral to the prime minister’s hold over the population as a whole, moreover. Hun Sen responds even to muted criticism by declaring that attempts to remove him will cause the country to fall back into conflict and instability. Cambodians take these threats extremely seriously. The fact that the prime minister has developed what is essentially a private army is surely one of the reasons why.
Hun Sen’s military capability is rarely commented on by the international community, despite the evident danger that it poses to democracy in Cambodia. It perpetuates a situation in which military units are controlled by individual politicians rather than the state; the same conditions that enabled Hun Sen to unseat his co-prime minister Norodom Ranariddh in a violent coup d’etat in July 1997. Human rights organisations accuse Hun Sen’s Bodyguard Unit of playing a leading role in mounting this coup.
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen greets the honour guard as he arrives to attend the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Brigade 70 on the outskirts of Phnom Penh October 13, 2009. The brigade which cracks down on terrorism has more than 600 armed combatants including the prime minister's body guards, an emergency unit and a military unit to assist fighters when needed.
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen (L) poses with his son Hun Manet during the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Brigade 70 on the outskirts of Phnom Penh October 13, 2009. The brigade which cracks down on terrorism has more than 600 armed combatants including the prime minister's body guards, an emergency unit and a military unit to assist fighters when needed.
REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA POLITICS ANNIVERSARY MILITARY)
The Cambodian military take part in a parade to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Brigade 70, on the outskirts of Phnom Penh October 13, 2009. The brigade which cracks down on terrorism has more than 600 armed combatants including the prime minister's body guards, an emergency unit and a military unit to assist fighters when needed.
REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA MILITARY ANNIVERSARY)
A member of the Cambodian military salutes from a tank during a parade to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Brigade 70, on the outskirts of Phnom Penh October 13, 2009. The brigade which cracks down on terrorism has more than 600 armed combatants including the prime minister's body guards, an emergency unit and a military unit to assist fighters when needed.
REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA MILITARY ANNIVERSARY)
The Cambodian military take part in a parade to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Brigade 70, on the outskirts of Phnom Penh October 13, 2009. The brigade which cracks down on terrorism has more than 600 armed combatants including the prime minister's body guards, an emergency unit and a military unit to assist fighters when needed.
REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA MILITARY ANNIVERSARY)
The Cambodian military take part in a parade to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Brigade 70, on the outskirts of Phnom Penh October 13, 2009. The brigade which cracks down on terrorism has more than 600 armed combatants including the prime minister's body guards, an emergency unit and a military unit to assist fighters when needed.
REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA MILITARY ANNIVERSARY)
The Cambodian military take part in a parade to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Brigade 70, on the outskirts of Phnom Penh October 13, 2009. The brigade which cracks down on terrorism has more than 600 armed combatants including the prime minister's body guards, an emergency unit and a military unit to assist fighters when needed.
REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA MILITARY ANNIVERSARY)
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