Cambodia's Prince NORODOM RANARIDDH TURNS 75

Last Wednesday, January 2, 2019, an important, but unnoticed 75th birthday was quitely reached. Norodom Ranariddh, a Cambodian senior Prince & King's half-brother, whose long political career led him to become the country's Prime Minister and President of National Assembly, has not been seen in public ever since he was involved in a serious car-crash last June, which killed his wife. Ranariddh, who was challenging his old rival and current Prime Minister Hun Sen in July's national elections, is still influential in the royalist party FUNCINPEC he has led for many years, although in August he appoint his son as its acting leader, amid his recovery after the accident.

Prince Ranariddh was born in 1944 in capital Phnom Penh (Cambodia), to King & statesman Norodom Sihanouk and his first wife Phat Kanhol, a ballet dancer. His early life was spanned between Cambodia and France, while he was separated from his mother at the age of three, after his parents divorced. He has a full sister, Buppha Devi (also a dancer), and twelve other half-siblings (through his father's marriages), four of whom are currently alive. After finishing school in the early 1960s he studied law in France and reached the title of University academic, specializing in constitutional law and political sociology, by 1979. In early 1970 he briefly worked in the Cambodian Interior Ministry, but was captured and detained for several months with the rest of royal family (deposed in 1970) during Cambodian civil war. He left in 1973 and returned after the overthrew of Khmer Rouge regime (1979).

Ranariddh's Royal Arms

In 1981, his father established the MOULINAKA (Movement for the national Liberation of Cambodia - later to become FUNCINPEC), which joined a Coalition against the ruling communist People's Republic of Kampuchea. Ranariddh joined the movement in 1983, and evolved quickly in its hierarchy, commanding the Armée nationale sihanoukiste in 1986, and becoming FUNCINPEC's Secretary General in 1989, and President in 1992. In 1993 monarchy in Cambodia was restored, with Sihanouk becoming King again for the first time since 1955 (and Head of state for another time, after 1970). That year, general elections were held (first time since 1981), where FUNCIPEC (National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful & Cooperative Cambodia) joined as a political party. It won the elections, and formed a Coalition with the ruling Cambodian People's Party, with Norodom Ranariddh becoming First Prime Minister, while the CPP's Hun Sen (governing since 1985), holding an equal rank, that of "Second Prime Minister". They shared power until 1997.

As First Prime Minister

During his tenure as Prime Minister, Prince Ranariddh made efforts to achieve economic growth, bysiness development, and Cambodia's gradual integration to the global community. Under his Premiership the Cambodian Development Council (CDC) was established, and the nation's participation in billateral organisations with regional countries (like the ASEAN) was promoted. However from 1996 his relations with Hun Sen deteriorated. Issues like construction projects' implementation, poverty, development contracts, and alliances with Khmer Rouge in the past, led both heads of government to serious contradistinction and public conflict. After the situation caused bloody clashed between troops supporting one or another side in July 1997, Norodom Ranariddh was forced to exile, being deposed the next month from the Prime Minister's position. It was considered by western media as a coup by 'strongman' Hun Sen, in order to regain his power of state leadership.

Hun Sen

National Assembly' emblem

In 1998 Ranariddh returned and led his party towards that year's general elections. He lost to Hun Sen's CPP, and while initially challenged the results, finally FUNCIPEC joined again the government as a junior coalition's party, with Ranariddh being appointed as President of the National Assembly. From 1993, the Prince was seen as a valid candidate to succeed his ageing father on Cambodia's throne. The King's role (from 1993) became mostly symbolic and ceremonial. Ranariddh rejected this notion more than once, citing his political career as the vast priority (even though he was seen more receptive to this idea in the late 1990s). Is September 2004, his father & stepmother (Queen Norodom Minineath) offered him the throne in future, but he declined, suggesting their son (& his half-brother), Prince Norodom Sihamoni, would be the most appropriate candidate. After King Norodom Sihanouk abdicated in October 2004, Ranariddh participated in the nine member throne council (for the choose of new monarch), which unanimously selected Sihamoni (a Czech-educated classical dance instructor & cultural ambassador in Europe,) as the next King (with 100% of vote in favour).

NRP's Seal

In March 2006 Ranariddh resigned from the National Assembly's headship, amid new ongoing tensions with Hun Sen and a controversial extramarital affair with Apsala (traditional Buddhist & Hindu) dancer, Ouk Phalla (later to become his wife). After new anti-adultery laws were passed later that year, Norodom Ranariddh was dismissed from FUNCINPEC's presidency in October, retaining only the honorary title of "Historic President". He then founded the centre-right Norodom Ranariddh Party (NRP), that participated in 2008 elections, but won only two seats in the National Assembly. Leading up to this, in the meantime, new accusations of embezzlement and adultery, made against him, forced Ranariddh into another exile. Then in 2007, he was officially convinced in absentia of embezzlement, and sentenced to 1 1/2 years of imprisonment. The prince though decided to spend this time abroad, and finally returned in September 2008, after receiving a royal pardon, and soon afterwards, announced his retirement from politics.

At his father, King Norodom Sihanouk's state funeral (2013)

Nevertheless, Prince Norodom Ranariddh did not disappear from the political scene in the last ten years. He made some notable comebacks. In December 2010 he joined again his NRP party and regained its leadership. He tried to unite it with FUNCINPEC, but failed and retired again. In March 2014 Ranariddh launched the Community of Royalist People's Party (CRPP), a royalist party with more liberal signs and inspiration from the leadership's legacy of his father (deceased in 2012). In January 2015, however, he dissolved CRPP and returned to FUNCINPEC, being reappointed its president (after eight years). He remained actively engaged in his party's campaign against the ruling Cambodian People's Party, until he was seriously injured in a car accident on 17 June 2018, en route to Sihanoukville province. His second wife, Ouk Phalla, died from her injuries (with members of FUNCINPEC accusing Hun Sen's government having caused this accident to take Ranariddh "out of the picture"). Norodom Ranariddh himself  was transported to hospitals in capital Phnom Penh and in Thailand, where he is said to have been recovering ever since. Although he was not yet seen in public after this, he issued a statement in August, appointing his elder son, Norodom Chakravuth, as the Acting President of FUNCINPEC (which not unexpectably gained low results in 2018's elections), and another member as its Secretary General, showing a gradual pass over of his positions to the younger generation.

CRPP's Seal

Norodom Chakravuth

Norodom Eng Marie

Ranariddh met and married his first wife, Eng Marie (b. 1947), in 1968. She comes from a Cambodian family, that held some official & ministerial posts in the past. Together they had three children: Prince Chakravuth (b. 1970), Prince Sihariddh (b. 1972), and Princess Rattana Devi (b. 1974). Marie became the First Lady of Cambodia during her husband's Premiership (1993-1997), and has been the President of Cambodia's Red Cross (1994-98). Ranariddh met the Cambodian classical dancer, Ouk Phalla (b.1979, d.2018) in early 2000s, when he was producing and directing a 90-minute film (about Cambodia's tradition), titled Raja Bori, in which she participated. Their affair became gradually known after she gave birth to their first son, and led to rumours that Phalla was lobbying the Prince, so to appoint her family members into high political positions. That may have paved the way to Hun Sen's government for further accusations, that finally led Ranariddh to resignation from the National Assembly' Presidency & deposition from FUNCINPEC's leadership in 2006. The same year Princess Eng Marie filled for divorce, which was finalised in 2010. Thence he married Ouk Phalla and made her a Princess. Together they had two sons (Sothearidh, b. 2003 & Ranavong, b. 2011,) before her tragic death last year.

Norodom Ranariddh with Princess Norodom Ouk Phalla Ranariddh

With his father (in front)

Prince Norodom Ranariddh has been known for his physical resemblance to his father, King Nodorom Sihanouk, which he may have used to gain support in his political career, though as he has stated himself, feels it "rather (like) a burden", comprising responsibility not to fail in keeping the former's legacy high. He holds a dual (Cambodian & French) citizenship, and speaks fluently Khmer, English & Cambodian languages. He enjoys music & films, though believes that he lacks the artistic talent of his late father. A major Royal, politician & law academic, he is surely a remarkable person of his time, with his legacy being already "engraved" in Cambodian modern history... at least!!.

Video from his 1998 return to Cambodia:

Further links of information:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norodom_Ranariddh
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FUNCINPEC
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_history_of_Cambodia#Arm%C3%A9e_nationale_sihanoukiste
https://asean.org/?static_post=statement-by-his-royal-highness-samdech-krom-preah-norodom-ranariddh-the-first-prime-minister-of-kingdom-of-cambodia
https://www.webcitation.org/6aqGE14Wm?url=https://www.cambodiadaily.com/stories-of-the-month/throne-council-selects-sihamoni-to-be-the-next-king-393/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norodom_Ranariddh_Party
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_of_Royalist_People%27s_Party
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-44511982
https://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/ranariddh-appoints-his-son-leader-funcinpec-amid-medical-treatment
https://pro.magnumphotos.com/C.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&ALID=2K1HRGKYC8DT.