Monarchy Politics of Cambodia

king norodom sihamoni

cambodia constitutional monarchy, i.e. king reigns not rule, in similar fashion queen elizabeth ii of united kingdom. king officially head of state , symbol of unity , perpetuity of nation, defined cambodia s constitution.

from september 24, 1993 through october 7, 2004, norodom sihanouk reigned king, after having served in number of offices (including king) since 1941. under constitution, king has no political power, norodom sihanouk revered in country, word carried influence in government. while such views not prevalent in cambodia, word respected subjects. king, irritated on conflicts in government, several times threatened abdicate unless political factions in government got along. put pressure on government solve differences. influence of king used mediate differences in government.

after abdication of king norodom sihanouk in 2004, succeeded son norodom sihamoni. while retired king highly revered in country dedicating lifetime cambodia, current king has spent of life abroad in france. thus, remains seen whether new king s views highly respected father s.

although in khmer language there many words meaning king , word officially used in khmer (as found in 1993 cambodian constitution) preahmâhaksat (khmer regular script:), literally means: preah- ( sacred , cognate of indian word brahmin) -mâha- (from sanskrit, meaning great , cognate maha- in maharaja) -ksat ( warrior, ruler , cognate of indian word kshatriya).

on occasion of hm king norodom sihanouk s retirement in september 2004, cambodian national assembly coined new word retired king: preahmâhaviraksat (khmer regular script:), vira comes sanskrit vīra, meaning brave or eminent man, hero, chief , cognate of latin vir, viris, english virile. preahmâhaviraksat translated in english king-father (french: roi-père), although word father not appear in khmer noun.

as preahmâhaviraksat, norodom sihanouk retained many of prerogatives formerly held preahmâhaksat , highly respected , listened-to figure. thus, in effect, cambodia described country 2 kings during sihanouk s lifetime: 1 head of state, preahmâhaksat norodom sihamoni, , 1 not head of state, preahmâhaviraksat norodom sihanouk.

sihanouk died of pulmonary infarction on october 15, 2012.

succession throne

unlike monarchies, cambodia s monarchy not hereditary , king not allowed select own heir. instead, new king chosen royal council of throne, consisting of president of national assembly, prime minister, president of senate, first , second vice presidents of senate, chiefs of orders of mohanikay , thammayut, , first , second vice-president of assembly. royal council meets within week of king s death or abdication , selects new king pool of candidates royal blood.

it has been suggested cambodia s ability peacefully appoint new king shows cambodia s government has stabilized incredibly situation country in during 1970s (see history of cambodia).