Thailand highly values Techo Sen
Thailand highly values Techo Sen
The opinion survey conducted by Thailand’s NIDA Institute to gauge public sentiment toward Cambodia’s strongman, Techo Sen, is a striking piece of evidence that clearly shows Thailand’s deep interest in and high regard for Cambodia’s influential leader. What is particularly noteworthy is that organizing a nationwide survey among the citizens of one country about the leader of another country is extremely rare, as there is generally no compelling reason to do so.
But ironically, Thailand had done such a thing. This event further confirms that the Thai leadership, politicians, and the public truly hold Cambodia’s strongman, Techo Hun Sen, in particularly high regard. Why?
1st: Cambodia’s history shows that Siam (Thailand) often manipulated Khmer politicians to make them fight among themselves, while Siam stood by to reap the benefits. However, in the era of Techo-Thipadei, Cambodia has entered a unique period in which Siam has to swallow its pride under the influence of Cambodia’s unmatched powerful leadership — a level of dominance unseen in over 500 years of modern history since the fall of the Angkor era.
2nd: Techo Sen, whom the Cambodian people regard as a Statesman in their hearts, has made immense sacrifices for the nation and people. Hun Sen is the leader who brought a complete end to the nearly 30 years of civil war and led Cambodia and its people out of death, transforming the country from ruins into one of the fastest-growing nations in the region in terms of development. Techo Sen is not only a competent leader for Cambodia, but also a highly experienced Statesman who is recognized, praised, and respected by countries across the region.
3rd: Whether on the battlefield, in domestic politics, or in diplomacy, Hun Sen has gone through every stage and challenge — and has consistently emanated victory, no matter how difficult, complex, or dangerous the situation. In the border disputes with Thailand, the Cambodian government — with Hun Manet as Prime Minister and Techo Sen as President of the Senate — has taken effective measures that have constantly stunned Thailand.
4th: Hun Sen is a Cambodian leader who knows Thailand and its politicians as clearly as the back of his hand. His words alone can send shockwaves through the ranks of Thailand’s top politicians — so much so that some have even accused him of interfering in Thailand’s internal affairs. Such accusations stem from their own acknowledgment of Techo Sen’s powerful influence. In reality, what the Cambodian leader has expressed is merely a strategic response to protect Cambodia from encroachment.
5th: Hun Sen even dared to predict a change of Thailand’s prime minister within the next 3 months and has revealed that he already knew who the new Prime Minister would be. These bold and accurate predictions have unsettled the entire Thai public, all because of the powerful and precise remarks made by the Cambodian leader. This has further deepened Thailand’s realization of the strong influence and sophisticated political insight of Cambodia’s Strongman. These are the very reasons why the Thai government decided to conduct a public opinion poll about Hun Sen among its own citizens.
This poll likely reflects Thailand’s attempt to neutralize Hun Sen’s influence in the minds of its people. However, quite the opposite, many analysts have observed that it actually signifies Thailand’s growing appreciation of Hun Sen because just a few remarks from Cambodia’s strongman are more than enough to cause confusion in Thailand to the point that they resorted to conducting a domestic opinion poll, something that under normal circumstances should never have been necessary.
The results of this poll demonstrate what the Cambodian leader has been doing to counter Thailand’s encroachment is indeed justified, causing dissatisfaction among some Thai citizens, but being overwhelmingly welcomed and supported by Cambodian citizens. Specifically, a recent survey conducted by the Asian Vision Institute (AVI) revealed that nearly 100% of Cambodian respondents support the Cambodian Government’s handling of border disputes with Thailand, especially the decision to bring the cases of Mom Bei area, Tamone Touch Temple, Tamone Thom Temple and Ta Krabey Temple to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
In summary, the poll results in both Cambodia and Thailand clearly indicate that Hun Sen is a highly competent Cambodian leader who enjoys landslide support from his own people, while Thai society is fragmented and confused to the point of daring to conduct a poll that should not have been done. This means that Thailand is so preoccupied with the influence of Techo Sen that it forgets to address its own domestic problems. Isn’t this the highest form of recognition from Thailand toward Techo Sen?
By Professor Vong Makara
