Opposition figure Sam Rainsy came to Malaysia for a planned day-long “private visit” which included a “greet and meet” with three legislators on Tuesday and then returned to Paris the next day, according to a Thursday afternoon statement from parliamentarian Wong Chen.
Chen’s statement made no mention of any disturbance or disruption to Rainsy’s itinerary to visit Malaysia, which included departing on a commercial flight to Paris at 10:05 a.m. Wednesday morning.
But Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen had claimed on Wednesday that Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim “expelled” Rainsy, the co-founder of the court-dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP).
“Thanks H.E. [His Excellency] Ibrahim, who had promised with me four times that he will not allow those groups [the CNRP] to enter Malaysia,” Hun Sen said in a video published on government-aligned media Fresh News.
“He [Ibrahim] doesn’t know those groups came,” Hun Sen added, referring to Rainsy. “Yesterday they prepared a meeting, but Malaysia did not allow it and today going to the airport, the [Malaysian] authorities dissolved the meeting.”
Malaysia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement late Wednesday saying the Prime Minister was “not informed” Rainsy had entered the country.
“No public programme was held during his stay here,” the Ministry stated.
Hun Sen said on Wednesday he had warned the Malaysian Prime Minister that if Rainsy were allowed to enter Malaysia “the governments of both countries cannot be face to face” and their diplomatic relations would be negatively impacted.
Rainsy did not respond to requests for comment. He posted photos of his visit on Facebook, including meeting with members of the Cambodian muslim community living in Malaysia.
CNRP Deputy Leader Mu Sochua, who said she had been directly involved in planning Rainsy’s trip to Malaysia, called Hun Sen’s allegations of Rainsy’s expulsion “totally fabricated.”
Sochua also shared a document with CamboJA, issued by the Malaysian Immigration Department, authorizing her to enter Malaysia from May 29 to June 27 this year.
Malaysian parliamentarian Syed Ibrahim, who was one of three Malaysian lawmakers who met with Rainsy, referred CamboJa to Wong Chen’s statement. Wong Chen’s office also declined to comment further to CamboJA.
Fresh News reported Wednesday that Malaysia’s Prime Minister had ordered police to expel Rainsy and his followers from Malaysia, alleging they were plotting to incite chaos ahead of Cambodia’s July elections.
In his statement, parliamentarian Wong Chen said Rainsy arrived on the evening of May 29 and was greeted at the airport by Chen’s family. Chen stated Rainsy was returning from Australia to France and had “planned a stopover in Malaysia for a day.”
“We have been close friends for almost six years,” Chen stated, while noting that prior to arriving in Malaysia Rainsy had visited Indonesia “without any fuss from the Cambodian government.”
“In the morning of May 30, I organized a greet and meet in Parliament with three non-executive MPs [members of parliament], interested in free and fair elections, human rights and ASEAN.”
Chen recounted that the visit was “relaxed and easy” and included snacking on a range of fruits and eating dinner at Chen’s home.
“The next day my driver drove him and Saumura [Rainsy’s wife] to the airport, where they boarded a commercial flight back to France at 10:15 a.m.,” he stated.
Ruling CPP spokesperson Sok Eysan told CamboJA that Rainsy had not been invited by Malaysia’s head of state and was only able to meet with “opposition parliament” in “other countries around Cambodia.”
“They have never been officially welcomed by the head of state or the prime minister, this rebel group secretly went to meet the opposition party of some countries,” he said.
Government spokesperson Phay Siphan said that Rainsy’s presence in Malaysia and his desire to come to Cambodia through Thailand was intended to destabilize the peace in Cambodia.
“He wants to destroy the political stability of Cambodia, destroy the well-being of Cambodia while he is a political rebel,” Siphan said. “He will be arrested by the authorities according to the court order whenever he comes to Cambodia.”
But Hun Sen went further in his threats against Rainsy in a speech to commemorate a newly built bridge on May 31.
“Wait and see, just cross the Thailand border and come here and I will shoot you [Rainsy] with a BM-21 grade rocket,” Hun Sen said. “Don’t be so messy.”
