As members of the Pagoda Boys' Association, we would like to denounce the person

named Ruom Ritt who has criticized Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen unjustly.

Some people have said that Ruom Ritt is the Cambodian King. To the Pagoda Boys' Association,

no matter who Ruom Ritt is, we have a strong stance to protect the dignity of Samdech

Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Even though Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen was not born in the Royal family, he leads

the country better than other kings. It can be said that in Khmer history, none of

the Cambodian kings has been able to do things like Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Were there any Khmer leaders including Cambodian kings in all generations, who have

built more schools than Samdech Hun Sen? Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen is the only

person who has built more than 2,000 schools.

Even the Ministry of Education alone cannot do that. The whole Ministry of Education

is a 'nobody', spending millions of dollars each month, but building nothing. How

many schools has the Ministry of Education built so far?

Without Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen, Cambodia would have no schools. The Ministry

of Water Resources is useless. Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen has built dams, water

dikes [for irrigation]. The Ministry of Public Works is also useless because it has

not built any roads or bridges, but Prime Minister Hun Sen has.

Preah Bat Jayavarman VII, who is considered a great king, built Angkor Wat temple

for his sake (not for the people). Ask how the Khmer people benefit from Angkor Wat

[and] whether children of the people go to school at Angkor Wat's temple or to schools

whose roofs were built by Samdech Hun Sen?

Has there been any economically [sound] government in Cambodian history? There is

the economically [sound] government only in Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen's time

when everything has been developed.

Was there a 'Kizona' bridge during Preah Bat Jayavarman VII? Did Jayavarman VII establish

any development regions for the people as Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen has done?

Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen has assisted the people quite a lot by donating rice,

sarongs, kramas, noodles, sodium glutamate, oil ... none of which any king can do.

By way of another example, without Prime Minister Hun Sen, we, the pagoda boys, have

no one on whom we can rely.

And referring to peace, only Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen has made peace. During

the Jayavarman period, the kings only indulged in making war with neighboring countries,

bringing misery to the people.

[On the contrary] Samdech Hun Sen has made friendship with the neighboring countries.

For instance, Vietnam has become a thousand-years friend with the Cambodian people

because of the wise strategy of Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen on the border settlement

with mutual understanding with the Vietnamese people.

So whoever this is must stop criticizing Samdech Hun Sen, who is a beloved and great

hero of Cambodia. We would like to warn Ruom Ritt to stop criticizing Samdech Prime

Minister Hun Sen. If Ruom Ritt is still stubborn, [he] will receive [bad] consequences.

- Ruom Rik - (sic) On behalf of the Pagoda Boys' Association Phnom Penh

(Translated from Khmer)