Cambodia’s PM plans to be a lawyer when he retires

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen. Photo by Reuters/Damir Sagolj. Sketched by the Pan Pacific Agency.

PHNOM PENH, Nov 26, 2020, Khmer Times. The current and longest-serving prime minister of the world’s sovereign states Prime Minister Hun Sen said he is interested in becoming a lawyer when he retires, Khmer Times reported.

“If I retire, I want to be a lawyer to further help vulnerable people,” said Mr Hun Sen at a meeting with 153 lawyers at the Peace Palace yesterday.

Mr Hun Sen also took this opportunity to announce his status as an official Cambodian lawyer because he is member of the Bar Association of the Kingdom of Cambodia (BAKC) but he hasn’t applied for his lawyer’s licence yet.

In February, Mr Hun Sen formed a team of lawyers called ‘Samdech Techo Sen Legal Aid Team’ to assist all vulnerable people, especially women who face legal challenges across the Kingdom, led by the Lawyer’s Council President, Ky Tech.

“When I retire, I may apply for my lawyer licence and run this legal team to further help all people who need legal assistance if some of you (lawyers who are the members of the legal team) continue to support and work with me for the poor,” he said.

According to the BAKC, there are total of 2,151 lawyers, including 114 who haven’t yet applied for their lawyer licence.

In September 2004, Mr Hun Sen and three other senior ruling Cambodian People’s Party government officials, Minister of Interior Sar Kheng, late Cabinet Minister Sok An and Minister of Civil Service Prum Sokha, swore the oath in unison inside a packed Appeals Court, to be lawyers of Cambodia. All of them are current members of the BAKC, except Sok An who passed away in 2017.

Mr Hun Sen has had several achievements during his tenure as Prime Minister, such as laying the basis for the implementation of peace, national reconciliation and the development of Cambodia.

He helped draft the Paris Peace Agreements on Cambodia. From 1993 to 1998, he served Cambodia as the Co-Premier and then the second Prime Minister of the first coalition government. From 1998-present, he has held the post of Prime Minister after leading the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) to victory in the general elections.

Share it


Exclusive: Beyond the Covid-19 world's coverage