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| Cambodians pay last respects to King Sihanouk | Cambodians pay last respects to King Sihanouk |
| (about 1 month later) | |
| Hundreds of thousands of mourners have gathered in Cambodia's capital awaiting the cremation of King Norodom Sihanouk, the revered "King-Father" who survived wars and the Khmer Rouge regime to hold centre stage in the south-east Asian nation for more than half a century. | Hundreds of thousands of mourners have gathered in Cambodia's capital awaiting the cremation of King Norodom Sihanouk, the revered "King-Father" who survived wars and the Khmer Rouge regime to hold centre stage in the south-east Asian nation for more than half a century. |
| Cambodians from across the country flocked to Phnom Penh to pay their last respects as Sihanouk was given elaborate funeral rites – mingling Hindu, Buddhist and animist traditions – last seen 53 years ago with the death of his father, King Norodom Suramarit. | Cambodians from across the country flocked to Phnom Penh to pay their last respects as Sihanouk was given elaborate funeral rites – mingling Hindu, Buddhist and animist traditions – last seen 53 years ago with the death of his father, King Norodom Suramarit. |
| "I don't have any words to express the sorrow and suffering I feel when knowing his body will soon disappear," said a weeping 79-year-old woman, Hin Mal, from the southern province of Takeo. "I love and respect King Sihanouk like my own father." | "I don't have any words to express the sorrow and suffering I feel when knowing his body will soon disappear," said a weeping 79-year-old woman, Hin Mal, from the southern province of Takeo. "I love and respect King Sihanouk like my own father." |
| His body had been lying in state since he died of a heart attack in Beijing on 15 October at the age of 89. | His body had been lying in state since he died of a heart attack in Beijing on 15 October at the age of 89. |
| Following a procession through the streets of Phnom Penh on Friday, his body was placed inside a temple-like, 15-storey crematorium where his son King Norodom Sihamoni and Queen Mother Norodom Monineath will light the funeral pyre. | Following a procession through the streets of Phnom Penh on Friday, his body was placed inside a temple-like, 15-storey crematorium where his son King Norodom Sihamoni and Queen Mother Norodom Monineath will light the funeral pyre. |
| The evening cremation will be the climax of seven days of official mourning for Sihanouk, who was placed on the throne by the French as a teenager. Instead of proving the puppet the colonials had hoped for, Sihanouk went on to win independence, then rule the country both as monarch and head of state until he was ousted in a 1970 coup. | The evening cremation will be the climax of seven days of official mourning for Sihanouk, who was placed on the throne by the French as a teenager. Instead of proving the puppet the colonials had hoped for, Sihanouk went on to win independence, then rule the country both as monarch and head of state until he was ousted in a 1970 coup. |
| A charismatic figure regarded as a "God-King" by many of his subjects, Sihanouk sided with the Khmer Rouge against the US-backed government, but after the victory of the ultra-communists in 1975 he and his wife were held prisoners in the palace. Five of his children died during the reign of terror. | A charismatic figure regarded as a "God-King" by many of his subjects, Sihanouk sided with the Khmer Rouge against the US-backed government, but after the victory of the ultra-communists in 1975 he and his wife were held prisoners in the palace. Five of his children died during the reign of terror. |
| Sihanouk emerged as a leader of an insurgency fighting a Phnom Penh government installed by the Vietnamese and went on to broker a peace accord that enabled his return to the throne in 1993. He abdicated 11 years later in favour of Sihamoni, a former ballet dancer who had spent most of his life in European artistic circles and has proved a low-key constitutional monarch overshadowed by a strongman prime minister, Hun Sen, who remains in power. | Sihanouk emerged as a leader of an insurgency fighting a Phnom Penh government installed by the Vietnamese and went on to broker a peace accord that enabled his return to the throne in 1993. He abdicated 11 years later in favour of Sihamoni, a former ballet dancer who had spent most of his life in European artistic circles and has proved a low-key constitutional monarch overshadowed by a strongman prime minister, Hun Sen, who remains in power. |
| In the coming days, some of Sihanouk's ashes will be scattered near the confluence of the four rivers in Phnom Penh, while others will be put in an urn, which, according to his wishes, will be placed on the grounds of the royal palace near those of his daughter, Kunthea Buppha, who died at the age of three. | In the coming days, some of Sihanouk's ashes will be scattered near the confluence of the four rivers in Phnom Penh, while others will be put in an urn, which, according to his wishes, will be placed on the grounds of the royal palace near those of his daughter, Kunthea Buppha, who died at the age of three. |
| The funeral is being attended by the French prime minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, Prince Akishino of Japan, leaders of neighbouring countries and China's Jia Qinglin, a senior government adviser and former high-ranking politburo member. | The funeral is being attended by the French prime minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, Prince Akishino of Japan, leaders of neighbouring countries and China's Jia Qinglin, a senior government adviser and former high-ranking politburo member. |
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