The Maintenance of Samdech Preah Upayuvareach Norodom Sihanouk’s Political Power and the Building of Nationalist Sentiment from the Conflicts between Cambodia and Thailand, 1955-1970

Abstract

Objectives: This article studies the connection between the effort of Samdech Preah Upayuvareach Norodom Sihanouk in maintaining his political power during 1955–1970 and the use of a Cambodian–Thai problematic relationship to fuel Cambodian nationalist sentiment. Our main aim is to pinpoint the fact that conflicts in Cambodia–Thai relations provide another dimension upon which the maintenance of political power can be explained, thus adding to the existing state of knowledge wherein Samdech Preah Upayuvareach Norodom Sihanouk’s effort in maintaining his political power that has usually been explained in three ways: namely the use of state security measures to control political opponents, the establishment of Sangkum Reastr Niyum political organization, and the projection of himself as the people’s ally.

Methods: This qualitative research utilized a historical methodology approach, concentrating on primary sources gathered from the National Archives of Thailand (NAT), the National Archives of Cambodia (NAC), and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Moreover, original writings of Samdech Preah Upayuvareach Norodom Sihanouk were also extensively consulted. Primary and secondary data obtained were then subjected to critical analysis and the findings were presented in an analytical narrative form.

Results: This study confirms that the nationalist sentiment built upon the Cambodia–Thai conflicts did contribute to the maintenance of Samdech Preah Upayuvareach Norodom Sihanouk’s political power. Even though he was able to control political power from 1955 onward, he still had to face the continuous internal division within his political party, economic and financial instability and corruption, as well as the expansion of communism, which posed a threat to his power. In order to maintain his hold on political power and to divert public interests from those problems, he used  the Cambodia–Thai conflicts to generate nationalist sentiment. He purposely recounted both past and contemporary conflicts to the Cambodian public who had already mistrusted and might already have hated Thailand, further resulting in the creation of Thailand’s image as the “culprit” and “enemy” in the mind of the people. In this way, from time to time, he was able to divert the preoccupation of Cambodian public from internal problems and generate support and sympathy for himself. It is concluded that his exploitation of international conflicts contributed to his ability to maintain political power for as long as fifteen years.  

Application of this study: The results of this study demonstrate that the creation of Thailand as the “culprit” and “enemy” by Samdech Preah Upayuvareach Norodom Sihanouk was an important turning point that reinforced Cambodia–Thai conflicts, making Cambodia’s historically antagonistic attitude towards Thailand more deeply-rooted within the Cambodian society. In this sense, this article provides useful data and explanation for a broader Thai society, especially in the context of foreign relations, educational texts and the dissemination of knowledge through mass media.