Cambodia mourns beloved ex-king Sihanouk

Mourners pray in front of the Royal Palace.

 

By Suy Se | AFP News 

Grieving Cambodians wore black ribbons and flags flew at half-mast Tuesday as the nation mourned the death of revered ex-king Norodom Sihanouk and prepared for the return of his body from China.

Sihanouk, who steered his country through turbulent decades of war, genocide and finally peace, died of a heart attack in Beijing on Monday. He was 89.

His body is set to be brought back to his homeland on Wednesday and will lie in state at the royal palace in Phnom Penh for three months before an elaborate funeral, according to government officials.

"His body is currently on display at Beijing Hospital," Sihanouk's long-time personal assistant Prince Sisowath Thomico told AFP. "They will take him straight from the hospital to the airport tomorrow."

Sihanouk had been staying in the Chinese capital since January for medical treatment.

Cambodia's strongman Prime Minister Hun Sen praised the "remarkable and incomparable" former monarch in a condolence letter to Sihanouk's widow Queen Monique and his son, current King Norodom Sihamoni. He said the late king would be remembered by his compatriots "for eternity".

The government ordered radio and television stations not to broadcast joyful programmes during the upcoming official mourning period, while entertainment venues have been asked to suspend concerts and performances.

Sihanouk remained popular despite his abrupt abdication in 2004 on the grounds of old age and poor health, and his reputation for erratic political manoeuvres -- including his ill-fated backing of the Khmer Rouge before he himself was locked up by the murderous communist movement.

In the Cambodian capital, mourners young and old flocked to the park outside the palace to pay their respects, many of them wearing black ribbons pinned to their clothes in a traditional sign of mourning.

"I miss him. I came here to cry and release my sorrow. Under his reign we lived happily, he never hurt anyone," said mother-of-six Sam Sivorn, 58.

The comments reflect many Cambodians' impression of the king as a benevolent leader, despite controversies including Sihanouk's harsh crackdowns on critics.

Dozens of university students sang a patriotic song before placing a wreath of yellow and white flowers in front of the palace.

In the absence of an official place where grieving people can pay their respects -- the government's week-long mourning starts on Wednesday -- the wreath became an instant shrine, with other mourners kneeling in front of it to pray and lay down white and pink lotus flowers.

"I would like to exchange my life for his. I need my king to come back," cried 32-year-old Choun Chana.

Many elderly Cambodians fondly recall the 1950s and 1960s as a golden era, when Sihanouk -- who ascended the throne in 1941 aged just 18 -- led the country to independence from France and a rare period of political stability.

But the self-confessed "naughty boy" and prolific amateur filmmaker, who was placed on the throne two times, abdicated twice and also served variously as premier and head of state, was also a shrewd political survivor renowned for switching allegiances.

In his most controversial decision, the ever-mercurial royal aligned himself with the communist Khmer Rouge after being ousted by US-backed general Lon Nol in 1970.

The Khmer Rouge merely used him as a figurehead as they seized power before putting him under house arrest in the royal palace. Their 1975-79 reign of terror killed up to two million people, including five of Sihanouk's 14 children.

Just before the Vietnamese invaded and toppled the Khmer Rouge, Sihanouk fled to China, which he saw as a second home.

But he never stopped pushing for peace, which eventually came in the 1990s, and Sihanouk triumphantly regained the throne in 1993.

Later in life, he was to spend increasing amounts of time in China as his health failed and he battled illnesses including cancer, diabetes and heart problems.

Condolence messages for Sihanouk poured in from around the world including from China, the US, former colonial power France and North Korea, whose leader Kim Jong-Un praised Sihanouk's "unprecedented" friendship with his country.