In an impromptu statement to students, Prince Norodom Ranariddh said he had never thought of himself as a successor to King Norodom Sihanouk, and called on politicians not to discuss royal succession.
“I am the king’s son but I myself never think of the selection of his successor, I only worry about his health,” the prince said, according to Agence France-Presse. “We all wish our king to have longevity and to cast a shadow over us all, so nobody should talk about the King’s successor. To raise this issue is an insult to our parents,” the prince was quoted as saying.
After a speech given Saturday to the Institute of Psychology at the Royal Phnom Penh University, a student representative called out to the prince that he wished him well “to succeed his father,” according to Kol Pheng, a close aid to the prince.
After hearing the remark, Prince Ranariddh said that “as a grateful son of the parent, I have never thought even in my mind about the successor to the throne,” Kol Pheng said Sunday.
Prince Ranariddh’s remarks came three days after Prime Minister Hun Sen also scolded politicians for raising the sensitive issue. He said it was disrespectful to talk about the selection process of the successor to King Sihanouk, who is ailing and 77.
Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith (CPP) declined to comment Sunday on the prince’s statement. “To talk about this issue in public is very indecent.”
He would not confirm nor deny whether the prince’s statements were in support of Hun Sen’s earlier statements, only saying that discussion while the King is still alive is not proper.
A nine-member Throne Council is empowered by the Constitution to select the next monarch, but laws are not in place that specify how many council members must agree on a choice. Cambodian People’s Party loyalists control five of the council’s nine seats and could by themselves chose the next King if the decision is decided by simple majority.
National Assemblyman Son Chhay of the Sam Rainsy Party has introduced a bill that would clarify the role of the council. But the bill is “buried,” opposition party leader Sam Rainsy said, adding he would need the support of Funcinpec and the “true royalists” to resurrect it.
Sam Rainsy has called for frank and open discussions on the issue, fearing the King’s death without a successor could cause unrest in the country.
“It should not be a taboo topic,” he said Sunday by telephone. “We live in a democratic regime.”
Sam Rainsy also opposes anyone who “threatens people to be quiet,” he said, referring to Hun Sen’s statements last week calling for a censure on the subject. “[Hun Sen] wants to preserve his power as King-maker,” Sam Rainsy said.
However, now may not be the time, politically or culturally speaking, to debate the King’s succession, according to Kao Kim Hourn, the executive director for the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace.
“It is a very important topic for the country,” he said. “But the timing is a big question.”
Politically, he said, the government needs to focus on economic development. Culturally, it could be seen as disrespectful to talk about the King’s death before the King dies.
Meanwhile, the King is scheduled to leave Phnom Penh later this week to go to China for medical treatment. He would remain outside Cambodia for two months, and return in time for the mid-April Khmer New Year festivities, AFP reported.
