PHNOM PENH:
Cambodia's strongman leader Hun Sen lashed out at Western governments for
pushing "democracy and human rights" on his country, capping off a
tumultuous political year with a fiery speech yesterday. The 66-year-old prime
minister has ruled Cambodia for over three decades, with the Southeast Asian
country tilting towards China in recent years thanks to loans for
infrastructure and few complaints on human rights issues.

His
administration was renewed for another five years in July following elections
critics condemned as a sham, inciting threats from the European Union to revoke
duty-free access to EU countries. But Hun Sen remained defiant yesterday as he
inaugurated a monument with carvings showcasing his government's achievements.
"Don't make war by using what is called democracy and human rights, in
which democratic countries used to make the mistake of supporting Lon Nol's
coup," he said in a speech to thousands of officials.

Lon Nol's
US-backed regime was ousted by the ultra-Maoist Khmer Rouge in 1975,
jumpstarting four years of horror as Cambodians were forced to live on farming
communes, endure hard labor, and were tortured and murdered if they were
suspected of plotting against leader Pol Pot. Hun Sen was a former Khmer Rouge
cadre who defected and had a role in toppling the genocidal regime in 1979,
although the US later sought to keep the ousted Khmer Rouge at the table in the
United Nations.

"You as a
democratic country ... supported Pol Pot, who used to kill people with no
regards for respecting human rights," Hun Sen said, without naming the US.
"You supported them to keep a seat at the UN." Cambodia's government
dissolved the main opposition party and jailed its leader ahead of July elections
in which it won every seat in parliament, transforming the nation into a
one-party state. - AFP