Hun Xen offered alleged Thai spy to continue working at his former spying job: Hun Xen's kafkaesque moment?

Supposed spy treated very well at end of fiasco

December 15, 2009
The Nation

Just a few days ago, Sivarak Chutipong was a billed by Cambodian authorities as a spy for the Thai government and a threat to national security. He was charged and convicted for supplying the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh with Thaksin Shinawatra's flight schedule - a crime that is punishable by death in many countries.

However, all Sivarak was doing was just seeking the itinerary of Thaksin, a man who prides himself as a figure whose advice is often sought by countries like Cambodia, and a handful of African and Central American nations.

Cambodia never did say what it expected Sivarak to do with the information other then handing it to the Thai Embassy official, who was later expelled from the country. If indeed there had been a conspiracy to use that information for some wrongdoing then Cambodia needs to come clean. Yet, even though there were never any ill intentions, Phnom Penh maintains that this constituted a threat to national security, and thus the criminal charges.

So when Cambodian PM Hun Sen started treating Sivarak as if he had just won an Olympic gold medal for his country, a lot of eyebrows were raised.

"Sivarak has the freedom to do what he wants," Hun Sen announced at a ceremony that was attended by Sivarak's mother and the opposition Pheu Thai Party, which has had the audacity to cash in on this event. Perhaps all this red-carpet treatment was Hun Sen's way of saying, "no hard feelings, mate … this is just politics".

On the other hand it appears as if the Thai engineer is just happy to be free.

All those horror stories from Cambodian prisons would drive anybody crazy, even if one were just an innocent pawn in this political hypocrisy. And if freedom requires Sivarak to roll with the punches, so be it.

But no matter how one looked at this case, one couldn't dismiss the irony and the sheer hypocrisy.

First, Sivarak was accused of being part of a plan to hunt down Thaksin, yet on Sunday the fugitive former PM went to visit the prisoner. Interestingly, Thaksin and his associates chose to stay out of the glare of media cameras, though that does not mean they didn't milk the situation.

Representatives of the Pheu Thai Party were at the scene all the time. It was as if Sivarak and Pheu Thai Party spokesman Promphong Nopparit were Siamese twins.

Nevertheless, the statement was clear - it was Thaksin who obtained this man's freedom and everyone should be grateful, including the government.

A Cambodian special treatment

* Arrested two days after "stealing" flight information
* Allowed to meet Thai envoy five days after arrest
* After five days, allowed to speak on phone with mother
* Allowed to meet mother two weeks after arrest
* Thai opposition party allowed to become involved
* Mother permitted second visit five days after the first
* Lawyer could be changed easily
* Shortened trial process in the court
* Quick conviction within one day
* Quick decision for royal pardon
* VIP visit to prison by former Thai prime minister
* VIP greeting with Cambodian PM upon release
* No deportation
* Special offer to continue working in Cambodia