Photo By SAMRANG PRING/REUTERS Fri, Feb 1, 2013
The coffin with remains of
Cambodia's late former King Norodom Sihanouk is transported by chariots
as his funeral procession through Phnom Penh begins February 1, 2013.
Sihanouk died at age 89 of heart failure on October 15, 2012 and his
body will be cremated on February 4, 2013. REUTERS/Samrang Pring
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THE DAY)
Updated February 3, 2013
The Philippines Star
PHNOM PENH (Xinhua) - Since early morning until late
at night, throngs of people have lined up over the weekend to bid their
final farewell to the late Cambodian former King Norodom Sihanouk at an
ornate, custom-built funeral site next to the Royal Palace in capital
Phnom Penh.
The body of the late monarch was taken from the Royal Palace to the
crematorium at the Veal Preah Meru Square on Friday and it will be
cremated in an elaborate Buddhist ceremony on Monday.
People through out the country and foreign visitors are allowed to
pay tribute to the former King Father at the cremation site. Besides,
tears and sorrows are observed in the eyes of nearly all sympathizers.
One of the mourners said that it is a great loss for Cambodia as the
King Father was a great Khmer hero and had left numerous achievements
for the nation.
"I come to pay last respect to the King Father; I expressed my deep
sympathy to him," a Phnom Penh native Nem Saran, 50, told Xinhua. "The
King Father was the one who behaved as simple as common citizens, and he
equally treated the poor and the rich."
She noted that one of the great achievements of the King Father was freeing Cambodia from France's colonization in 1953.
The most revered King Father died naturally and peacefully at the
age of 90 in China's capital of Beijing on October 15, last year.
Cambodia, on February 1, officially started the second round of
week-long mourning through out the nation for the late monarch. During
the period, all radios, TV channels and entertainment places are not
allowed to broadcast entertaining programs, while national flags are
instructed to fly at half-mast.
People are asked to wear white shirts with black ribbons pinned to
them in a sign of mourning, which symbolizes the typical funeral dress
in this Southeastern Asian nation.
"The King Father was a good person; he had defended Cambodian
territory from the invasions of foreign countries," another mourner Van
Sivorn, 62, said. "He was the monarch who always showed kindness to all
people."
All mourners said that the greatest achievements the King Father
achieved were the gaining of independence from France, the development
of the nation during his rule from the 1950s to the 1960s, and the
defense of territorial integrity from the invasions of foreign
countries.
"We are in deep sorrow because we will no longer see the face of His
Majesty the King Father from Monday," said a Takeo province native Sin
San, 67.
"He was the one who brought freedom to Cambodia from France in 1953
and defended our territory from the invasions of other countries," he
said.
"I was born in 1946. I witnessed the rapid social development under
the leadership of late King Father during the Sangkum Reastr Niyum
regime in the 1950s. No other regimes were more developed than the
Sangkum Reastr Niyum regime," he added.
A Kampong Speu province resident Suong Pov, 50, said tearfully, "I
am very sad and feel pitiful to the late King Father, he left us. The
King Father was a good leader who brought Cambodia prosperity and
happiness in next generations."
Sihanouk ruled Cambodia from 1941 to 1955 and again from 1993 until
his voluntary abdication on October 7, 2004 in favor of his son, the
current King Norodom Sihamoni.
He was a presence through decades of political and social turmoil in Cambodia, despite long periods of exile overseas.
Prince Norodom Ranariddh, the eldest son of Sihanouk and former
Prime Minister of Cambodia, told Xinhua Saturday that "the death of the
King Father is not only the great loss for the royal families, but also
the loss for all Cambodian people because he was the father of
independence, territorial integrity, and national unification." "It was
also a loss for the Southeast Asian nations and the world because the
King Father was the founder of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries,"
the Prince added.
Asking about Sihanouk's contribution to establishing and maintaining
bilateral ties between Cambodia and China, the Prince said the King
Father was the founder of Sino-Cambodian diplomatic relations.
"He was the King who urged the United Nations to accept the membership of China in the United Nations," he stressed.
Prince Sisowath Thomico, the spokesman for the Royal Cabinet and
former aide to the late King Father Norodom Sihanouk, said His Majesty
the King Father was not only a revered leader of Cambodia, but a
respected leader recognized by some nations in Southeast Asia and in the
world.
He recalled that in 1956, Cambodia was a member and a founding
member of the Non-Aligned Movement, and Sihanouk was recognized as a
very active leader for the decolonization.
"He helped every country in the world and he supported the
independence of every country in the world. There were African
countries, there were North African countries such as Algeria, Tunisia,
Morocco, Senegal as well in western Africa," he said. " He was the first
leader in the world who recognized the Republic of Singapore when
Singapore became independence."
He was a very big figure in this Southeast Asia politics and the regional politics, he said.
The country sets to cremate the late King Father on Monday at 6: 00
p.m. local time. Sihanouk's wife Queen Mother Norodom Monineath and his
son King Norodom Sihamoni will light the funeral flame.
It is expected that some 1.5 million people will attend the
cremation ceremony, which will be safeguarded by some 11,000 security
forces.
A number of foreign leaders will also participate in the ceremony.
Among them are Jia Qinglin, chairman of the National Committee of the
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, French Prime
Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung,
Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, Laos Prime Minister Thongsing
Thammavong, Vice President of the Philippines Jejomar C. Binay, and
Japan's Prince Akishino.
"The presence of foreign leaders in the ceremony truly showed that
the King Father is not only the hero of Cambodia, but also one of the
world's most important figures. Their participation is the greatest
honor for Cambodia and its people," Prince Sisowath Thomico said.
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