Thai opposition MP urges quick action to arrest killer of Cambodian ex-MP

People’s Party MP Piyarat Chongthep on Wednesday called on the government to speed up investigation and arrest the gunman who killed a former Cambodian opposition MP in Bangkok.

Piyarat said the killing of Lim Kimya, 74, who held dual Cambodian and French citizenships, could severely affect Thailand’s reputation in the international community and it was necessary to quickly arrest the gunman and find out the motivation.

Kim, a former opposition MP from the Cambodia National Rescue Party, was shot dead near Wat Bowonniwet Vihara in Bangkok’s Phra Nakhon district at 6pm on Tuesday. He had travelled to Thailand from Siem Reap, Cambodia, by bus with his French wife.

Piyarat said the investigation should be speeded up as it was suspected that Kim’s assassination was linked to his relentless campaigns against the government of Prime Minister Hun Manet, son of Cambodia’s strongman former prime minister Hun Sen.

Piyarat noted that Kim remained an activist against the Cambodian government even after his party was dissolved in 2017.

Even worse, he said, the family of Thailand’s Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was known to be close to the Hun Sen family.

Piyrarat said the Thai government must clarify doubts in the minds of the public so that the issue did not escalate into an international issue.

He cautioned that the international community would closely monitor how  Thailand was handling the issue.

“I really hope that it would not turn out that Thailand was chosen as the place to carry out the assassination,” Piyarat added.

He noted that Thailand, now a member of the UN Security Council, must restore the international community’s confidence in Thailand’s ability to uphold safety and security. Delayed action could result in Thailand being viewed as a hub for international crimes, he added.

Meanwhile, Fair Party MP Kannavee Suebsang alleged that the killing of the anti-government activist was an attempt at suppressing opposition by the Cambodian government.

Kannavee alleged that it was not the first time that the Cambodian government had tracked down and eliminated its opponents across the border.

He also alleged that both the Thai and Cambodian governments had secretly cooperated to suppress each other’s opponents.

For example, Kannavee alleged, a Thai activist named Wanchalerm Satsaksit, had recently disappeared in Cambodia and the Thai government last month deported an activist to Cambodia.

Kannavee noted Thailand had adhered to an international protocol for a long time that the government would not deport political asylum seekers back to face persecution, but the Thai government had now allowed a foreign opposition activist to be killed in the country.

He also alleged that the killings of political asylum seekers from neighbouring countries had taken place in Thailand for a long time and all cases faded from public attention.

“This time, we must not let this case fade away,” Kannavee said.