Pen Sovan

Pen Sovan
ប៉ែន សុវណ្ណ
Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Kampuchea
In office
27 June 1981 – 5 December 1981
PresidentHeng Samrin
Preceded byPol Pot (1979)
Succeeded byChan Sy (acting)
Member of Parliament
for Kampong Speu
In office
5 August 2014 – 29 October 2016
Preceded bySay Chhum
Succeeded bySuon Rida
Minister of Defense
In office
10 January 1979 – 5 December 1981
Prime MinisterHimself
Preceded bySon Sen
Succeeded byBou Thang
General Secretary of the Kampuchean People's Revolutionary Party
In office
5 January 1979 – 4 December 1981
Preceded byTou Samouth
Succeeded byHeng Samrin
Personal details
Born(1936-04-15)15 April 1936
Tram Kak District, Takéo Province, Cambodia, French Indochina
Died29 October 2016(2016-10-29) (aged 80)
Doun Kaev, Takéo Province, Cambodia
Political party
Military service
AllegianceCambodia
People's Republic of Kampuchea
Branch/serviceKhmer Issarak
Kampuchean United Front for National Salvation
Years of service1949–1981
Battles/warsFirst Indochina War
Cambodian Civil War
Cambodian–Vietnamese War

Pen Sovan (Khmer: ប៉ែន សុវណ្ណ; 15 April 1936 – 29 October 2016) was a Cambodian politician and revolutionary who served as the Prime Minister of the Hanoi-backed People's Republic of Kampuchea from 27 June to 5 December 1981. He also served as General Secretary of the Kampuchean People's Revolutionary Party (KPRP) from 1979 to 1981. He was arrested and removed from office in December 1981 by the Vietnamese for irritating Lê Đức Thọ, the chief adviser to the PRK government. He was imprisoned in Vietnam until January 1992.

Sovan founded the Cambodian National Sustaining Party, which contested in the 1998 election but did not win a seat in parliament. He later joined the Human Rights Party founded in 2007 and served as its vice president. In 2012, he became a member of the newly founded Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) and stood as an MP candidate for Kampong Speu. He was elected and was sworn in on 5 August 2014, serving until his death in October 2016.

Biography

Pen Sovan was born in Chan Teab Village, Samraong Commune, Tram Kak District, Takéo province. He first joined the Khmer Issarak at the age of 13 in 1950 and fought against the French. Two years later, Sovan joined the Indochinese Communist Party where he first met Ta Mok. Sovan supported the Khmer Rouge during the 1970-1973 civil war against the Khmer Republic and he worked along with Chan Sy under Khieu Thirith, in charge of the Voice of the United National Front of Kampuchea. From 1973 to 1979, Sovan lived in exile in Hanoi.

Sovan was a founding leader of Kampuchean United Front for National Salvation (KUFNS or FUNSK) on 25 November 1978. He served as Secretary-General of the Kampuchean People's Revolutionary Party from 5 January 1979 to 1 December 1981, when he was replaced by Heng Samrin following his removal from office by the Vietnamese.

Sovan was arrested on 2 December 1981 for irritating Lê Đức Thọ, chief Vietnamese advisor to the Kampuchean United Front for National Salvation (FUNSK) and the People's Republic of Kampuchea (PRK). He was released from Vietnam's prison on 25 January 1992, after he served over 10 years. Sovan explained his long ordeal in prison: "When I wanted to create our own army of five regiments, the Vietnamese didn't agree and Lê Đức Thọ went to the USSR to complain." Sovan died in Doun Kaev, Takéo Province on 29 October 2016. He was cremated in Phnom Penh on 6 November 2016. On 10 November, Suon Rida was appointed to fill Sovan's vacant seat.

See also


This page was last updated at 2024-02-26 17:57 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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