751G.00/6–1752: Telegram
The Chargé at Phnom Penh (Corcoran) to the Department of State
[Received 3:01 a.m.]
56. Rptd info Saigon 207. King1 summoned Thai Chargé and me at noon to explain ouster Huy Kan Thoul govt.2 Said he acted for following reasons:
- (1)
- Democrats adopted spoils system and refused to make use of talented men in minority parties;
- (2)
- Democrats had failed to take forthright stand against Son Ngoc Thanh, and therefore unable solve insecurity problem;
- (3)
- Democrats had been dictatorial in actions toward minority party leaders last week and King cld not tolerate such action.
Said that dismissal was not work of French and that although he knew people were calling him a traitor he had not sold his sovereignty to French. He asked us to explain to our govts that he felt that the welfare of his country required him to take this action. This did not, he said, mean the end of democracy in Cambodia because the National Assembly had not yet been dissolved and anyway there were many people in the country who had not voted for the Democrats but who were nevertheless entitled to be represented even though they had no representation in Assembly.
He asked the Thai Chargé to assure Marshal Pibul3 that the King had taken firm charge of situation. He regretted that there was no Cambodian Pibul to do the job for him and that he had to take the post of Premier himself.
He said that he had asked the Democrats to change their policy but they had refused to do so. He therefore acted within his rights in dismissing the Cabinet (the constitution gives no such right to King).
I asked him if he expected cooperation from Democrats in National Assembly. He said those who remained posts wld cooperate and those who did not want to cooperate were free to go.
I pointed out that extraordinary military precautions had been taken including parading of a tank column through center of town and posting of French North African troops with machine guns on street corners including fifteen placed at my residence. I asked King if he feared violence. He said there was danger of demonstrations and he had ordered military measures to intimidate possible student demonstrators.
[Page 197]I asked him if he intended to arrest any Democrats. He said he wld not unless forced to do so.
He said he had asked the National Assembly to give him a mandate for his govt for three years for the restoration of security and said that at end of that time he wld demand complete independence. I asked him if Assembly had granted his demand. He replied that they said they had no authority give such mandate but that since all authority emanated from King anyway he shld take the power himself if he wanted it.
The Thai Chargé remarked that he thought King had displayed much patience in dealing with Democrats during last ten months and that Marshal Pibul wld be pleased to hear that King had taken charge of situation. The King said he hoped the US wld be pleased to know that all American economic and military aid given Cambodia wld be efficiently employed under a firm vigorous administration.
Legation comment: King’s excessive protests that French were not involved and extensive deployment French troops indicate French sponsorship or at least complicity with King in ouster of Democrat govt.
Regardless King’s motives fact remains that Democratic govt responsible to an elected legislature has been replaced by a govt responsible only to the monarch. King has by-passed democratic constitution with aid of French military force and has probably thereby alienated active public opinion represented by students and civil servants.