Prime Minister Hun Sen on Tuesday defended the nation’s drinking culture, arguing that consuming alcohol was not unique to the current generation or the country, while also advising citizens not to drink and drive.
“Some mocked me by saying it’s a drinking society.
But Germany, Italy and France are also drinking societies because they export a lot of alcohol,” Mr. Hun Sen said at the opening of Cambodia Brewery’s $100 million factory expansion in Phnom Penh’s Chbar Ampov district.
The brewer, which produces Tiger, ABC, Anchor and Crown beers, would add Heineken to its brands following the expansion, he said.
“Previously, they criticized us that all [alcohol] was imported.
Now, when we can produce in Cambodia, they still criticize that we have produced a lot,” Mr. Hun Sen said.
Still, he warned drinkers to be mindful of their alcohol consumption in order to avoid traffic accidents.
Among those at fault for speeding-related road crashes in the country, 13 percent were driving under the influence of alcohol, according to the National Road Safety Committee’s 2013 report.
