Cambodia says farewell to Cambodia's Late King Norodom Sihanouk ( full coverage in Khmer)
Cambodia (
King Sihanouk): A sea of mourners filled the streets of the Cambodian capital Friday for a lavish funeral for revered former king
Norodom Sihanouk, who towered over six tumultuous decades in his nation's history.
Hundreds of thousands of
Cambodians, dressed in black and white, began massing before dawn to pay their respects to the mercurial monarch, who died of a heart attack in
Beijing in October, aged 89.
The legions of mourners, many weeping and holding their hands together in a mark of respect, waited by the roadside as the procession inched through the city's avenues, flanked by courtiers in white traditional costume.
A father of 14 children over six marriages,
Sihanouk abdicated in 2004 after steering Cambodia through six decades marked by independence from
France, civil war, the murderous
Khmer Rouge regime, his own exile and finally
peace.
Many elderly Cambodians credit him with overseeing a rare period of political stability in the
1950s and
1960s, following independence, until the Khmer Rouge emerged in the
1970s.
Up to two million people died under their reign of terror, including five of Sihanouk's own children. But even though the ever-changeable monarch had allied himself with the
Maoist movement, he never lost his people's veneration.
"He did great things for the country. I love him very much. I'm really sad that we've lost him," 70-year-old Suon Toch told
AFP as he waited near the palace with his family, holding a portrait of the late royal.
Sihanouk's widow
Monique, dabbing her teary eyes, walked behind the golden casket earlier as it was brought out of the royal palace in
Phnom Penh, accompanied by their son,
King Norodom Sihamoni.
A 101-gun salute marked the start of the elaborate procession to honour the ex-king, who was placed on the throne by the
French at the age of just 18 but swiftly developed into a canny political survivor.
With two monks riding a float shaped as a mythological bird at the head of the procession, the body of the late monarch was paraded through the capital, before being taken to a specially built crematorium in a city park.
Giant screens were erected for people to watch the ceremony on the outskirts of the city.
Sihanouk -- a self-confessed "naughty boy" who loved to direct films, write poetry and compose songs -- remained hugely popular among Cambodians. But his record is not without controversy.
After being ousted by the US-backed
General Lon Nol in
1970, he aligned himself with the Khmer Rouge, only to be placed under house arrest as the communist regime terrorised the nation.
Before the
Vietnamese toppled the Khmer Rouge in
1979, Sihanouk took exile in
China. He regained his throne in
1993, although his influence was greatly diminished.
Observers say his passing is likely to further diminish the influence of the monarchy in a country that is now at peace but is dominated by strongman
Prime Minister Hun Sen, whose government is regularly accused of suppressing political freedoms.
In stark contrast to his father, the current
King Sihamoni has taken a quieter role in Cambodian life since ascending to the throne in 2004, preferring to carry out his ceremonial duties rather than engage in the political jousting that characterised Sihanouk's long reign.
"
Sihamoni is childless. The royalist party is in shreds," said historian and Cambodia expert
David Chandler.
Ordinary people "loved Sihanouk, to an extent, and I think elderly people like the idea of there being a king, but Hun Sen and the younger generations couldn't care less," he said.
Cambodian television showed images of 61-year-old Hun Sen -- who has ruled since
1985 and vowed to stay in power until he is 90 -- using his smartphone while sitting on one of the funeral floats.
For the past three months Sihanouk's body -- embalmed with the help of
Chinese experts -- has been lying in state in the royal palace, where foreign leaders and members of the public have paid their respects.
It will be kept at the cremation site until Monday when his wife and King Sihamoni are expected to light the pyre.
After the cremation Sihanouk's remains will be placed in a gold-coloured urn inside the royal palace, in line with his wishes
. (text by
Didier Lauras, AFP
News) v