Hun Manet (C), commander of the Royal Cambodian Army and eldest son of Prime Minister Hun Sen, gestures after he casts his vote at a polling station in Phnom Penh on July 23, 2023.
-STR / AFP
Hun Manet was appointed Cambodia’s new leader by the king on Monday, after having effectively been given the post from his father who ruled for nearly four decades.
Days after a landslide victory in July’s election, Hun Sen — one of the world’s longest-serving leaders — announced he was stepping down as prime minister and handing power to his eldest son.
The polls were widely decried as a sham after the main opposition challenger, the Candlelight Party, was barred from running over a technicality, with the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) winning all but five seats in the 125-member lower house.
On Monday, following a request from Hun Sen, King Norodom Sihamoni issued a…
