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Sunday, January 01, 2006

Quest for Truth I

December 21, 2005
Quest for Truth I
By Kok Sap
Victim of April 17,1975


Who's Khim Tit? This question was in my mind for sometimes. This man was a former province of Battambang governor who rose through ministerial ranks in Sihanouk regimes pre and post-colonial reign. But for some reasons people had not stressed enough of this man notoriety in meddling Cambodia independence endeavor. He eventually remains a questionable trigger who had a lot to do with Cambodia past and present instability.

To the Cambodia fragile Independence plan, this man might not seem to be that of significance at the time. But he certainly had played a key role in sabotaging Cambodia self-rule and determination from the get going. Mentality wise, he seemed to fit well with Hun Sen own colonial collaboration. Overwhelmingly many seemed disagreed over his government and practices throughout years. This question has been floating until this date and yet escaped Sihanouk memories entirely when come to truth.

Undeniably, to many sensible and conscionable later generations, this still seemed to be an unsolved mystery. Those who had stained hands then seemed to withdraw and hide them in French pantalon pockets. Some still arrogantly refuted and disrespected truth. Some questioned own nationality validity and integrity? Out of the two best known historians of post colonial Cambodia seemed to lend supports in truth searching for our readers. In this case let re-examine one of the detractors motif and sense of nationalism at the time.

According to a journalist Milton Osborne account in his book titled Sihanouk Prince of Light Prince of Darkness, on p 38, Charles Myer argued that some years were to pass before Sihanouk seriously engaged himself in affairs of state rather than making the pursuit of pleasure his dominant concern. Certainly, the evidence is overwhelming that after the Japanese coup de force Sihanouk was content to rely on the largely conservative advice of men such as his uncle Prince Monireth or Khim Tit, a provincial governor who was to join the cast of politicians whose names repeatedly featured in the revolving door cabinets of the 1940s and 50s.

Then on p.46, in 1945s, Khim Tit, was Son Ngoc Thanh's minister for defense and an unquestioned Francophile became increasingly concerned as Thanh sought to establish links with the emerging communist-dominated regime in Viet Nam.

On p.47, asserted that the removal of Thanh from office was engineered by Khim Tit as Khim Tit's own version of the events surrounding Thanh's removal from office is self serving and unsatisfactory. While Son Ngoc Thanh seemed prepared to risk armed conflict with the French, Sihanouk heeded to advice of his conservative advisers, responding in cautious and polite terms to a call from Admiral Argenlieu, whom De Gaulle had sent to Indo China as high commissioner, to dispatch representatives to the planned meeting in India that would discuss the Cambodia's future relations with France.

Son Ngoc Thanh's own assessment seemed to risk over Cambodia independence as opposed to Sihanouk own monkey trick reservation. On October 8, Khim Tit suddenly left for Saigon with Charles de Gaulle government military officer Major Gallois. The author conveyed with credible proof that Khim Tit trip was to cook up plots and appeared personal with De Gaulle government official General Jacques Philippe Leclerc to ousting Son Ngoc Thanh from office. To his disappointment Prince Monireth was assuming Thanh job on October 17, rather than Khim Tit himself. But Sihanouk never admitted that he was behind the plot but never denied that he was aware of Khim Tit trip to Saigon to meet Gen. Leclerc. Then in 1973 when he was representing the Cambodia delegation at UN, the same devious veteran conservative, Khim Tit, had claimed to have seen a police report that Khieu Samphan had been burnt to death with acid, while Hou Youn and Hu Nim,who had gone to the marquis in 1967,had been crushed beneath bulldozer tracks. This was insanely ludicrous and irresponsible.

Concurrently David Chandler accounts in his book titled The Tragedy of Cambodian History on p.24 asserted that the provisional government of Charles De Gaulle sent military officers back to Indo China whom later aided the self-serving Khim Tit, a new minister of defense, in arrest his superior Prime Minister Son Ngoc Thanh.This account clearly supported by the British Officer Lt.Colonel E.D Murray in 1982 interview stated on October 8 1945 he was there and had worked closely with Khim Tit, who had, after trip from Saigon, published a disingenuous report denying that he had been collaborated with French Gen.Leclerc in arresting Son Ngoc Thanh then.

Double Jeopardizes on Khim Tit was in fact a bolded face liar. Then Chandler went on p.37 to state that Khim Tit went on to be the head of National Union Party of Sisowath Lycee clique in divergent task in addition to Khmer Renovation Party led by the clique from Colonial Chasseloup Laubat Lycee to drown out Democrats Party progressive campaign for election in the absence of its founding leader Yuthevong death in 1947.

This enough to say that Son Ngoc Thanh was in fact a dreamer of Cambodia Independence. Yet his legacy had been distorted by a handful of Sihanouk loyal cronies untruthfulness and disingenuous accounts. Let it be known that the truth remain untold to the Cambodia generations that who is the real Sihanouk and are his co-conspirators in term of history.

SUBMITTED BY: kok sap, Email: koks....@yahoo.com
Sun, 25 Dec 2005

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