Hor Namhong
Encyclopedia
Hor Namhong (born November 15, 1935) is a Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...

n diplomat who has served in the government of Cambodia as Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (Cambodia)
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is the government ministry responsible for representing Cambodia to the international community...

 since 1998. He previously held the same post from 1990 until 1993. He is a member of the Cambodian People's Party
Cambodian People's Party
The Cambodian People's Party is the current ruling party of Cambodia.This party was formerly known as Kampuchean People's Revolutionary Party...

.

Early life and education

Born at Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh is the capital and largest city of Cambodia. Located on the banks of the Mekong River, Phnom Penh has been the national capital since the French colonized Cambodia, and has grown to become the nation's center of economic and industrial activities, as well as the center of security,...

, Hor Namhong was educated at the Ecole Royale d'Administration (diplomatic section) in Cambodia. He also holds a Master of Law degree from the Faculty of Law in Paris and a diploma from the European Institute of High International Studies
European Institute of High International Studies
The European Institut of High International Studies is an international institution of graduate studies and research, based in Nice, France.- History :...

 in France.

Early career

Between 1967 and 1973 Hor Namhong served at the embassy of Cambodia in Paris, which became the mission of the exiled Royal Government of National Union of Kampuchea (GRUNK
GRUNK
The Royal Government of National Union of Kampuchea, usually known by the French acronym GRUNK, was a government-in-exile of Cambodia, based in Beijing, that was in existence between 1970 and 1976...

) in 1970. Between 1973 and 1975 he represented Cambodia as ambassador to Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...

.

Khmer Rouge imprisonment

Between 1975 and 1979 Hor Namhong was a prisoner of the Khmer Rouge
Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...

 at Boeng Trabek. There have been accusations that he collaborated with his captors but Hor Namhong denies the accusations and was successful in a defamation suit against his accusers. On April 27th, 2011, Hor Namhong lost a defamation suit in the French Supreme Court in which he claimed he was innocent of atrocities committed during the Khmer Rouge regime from 1975 through 1979.

Subsequent career

In 1980, following the fall of the Khmer Rouge, Hor Namhong joined the government as Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs. In 1982 he was appointed as ambassador to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

, a post which he held until 1989. In 1989 he returned to Cambodia as Minister of the Council of Ministers in charge of Foreign Affairs. In 1990 he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs and in 1991 became a member of the Supreme National Council of Cambodia.

Between 1987 and 1991 Hor Namhong was one of the key negotiators in the peace talks to end the "Cambodia Conflict". In October 1991 he was a signatory of the Paris Peace Agreement.

In 1993 he returned to the diplomatic corps as ambassador to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. In 1998 he returned to government as a Member of the National Assembly and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. In 2004, in addition to his position as foreign minister, he was appointed a deputy prime minister.

Personal life

Namhong is married, having five children. One of them is Hor Nambora, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Cambodia in the United Kingdom.

Awards

  • Cambodia
  • Grand Officer of Monisaraphon
  • Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Cambodia
    Royal Order of Cambodia
    The Royal Order of Cambodia was a French colonial chivalric order of knighthood in Colonial Cambodia, still in use in the kingdom of Cambodia.-Colonial:...


  • French
  • Grand Officer of the National Ordre du Mérite of France

  • Thailand
  • Grand Cross of the Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant
    Order of the White Elephant
    The Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant is the most awarded order of Thailand. It was established in 1861 by King Rama IV of the Kingdom of Siam.The Order consists of eight classes:...

    of Thailand
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