Hun Manet

Manet was born on 20 October 1977 in Koh Thmar village, Memot District, Kampong Cham Province, in the Khmer Rouge-ruled Democratic Kampuchea as the second son of Hun Sen and Bun Rany.^[5] He is of Teochew Chinese heritage through his grandfather Hun Neang.^[6][7] According to Sen, on the night of Manet's birth, a bright light flew over the roof of the house leading Sen to believe that his son was born from a supernatural being worshipped in Koh Thmar village.^[8]

Manet grew up and received his general education in Phnom Penh and later joined the RCAF in 1995, the same year he entered the United States Military Academy. Having received his diploma in May 1999, he became the first Cambodian academy graduate and one of only seven foreign cadets to graduate that year.^[3] Upon graduation from West Point, he received his bachelor's degree in economics and a commission as a lieutenant in the Royal Cambodian Army. He also received a master's degree in economics from New York University in 2002 and a PhD in economics from the University of Bristol in 2009. His doctoral thesis was titled "What determines the firm size distribution and structural integration? A cross-county study".^[9]

Manet joined the RCAF in 1995, the same year he entered the United States Military Academy. He became a major general in January 2011, just months after being named deputy commander of the Royal Cambodian Army and deputy chief of the RCAF Joint Staff.^[10] Manet played a prominent role in negotiations during the 2008 Cambodian–Thai stand-off. He became a lieutenant general in June 2013^[11] and was later promoted to a four-star general in July 2018, coinciding with his new responsibilities as deputy commander-in-chief of the RCAF.^[12] His younger brother, Hun Manith, also serves in the RCAF, as a brigadier general. On 20 April 2023, Manet was officially promoted to four-star general. Minister of Defence Tea Banh described Manet's promotion as a reflection of his efforts to "serve the nation, military and Cambodian people".^[13]

On 30 June 2018, weeks before the parliamentary elections, Hun Sen appointed Manet to higher military positions in a bid to prepare his son for the premiership when he retired from politics or died, effectively solidifying the Hun political dynasty in Cambodia.^[14] Hun Sen had mentioned Manet as his potential successor.^[15]

In June 2020, Manet was promoted to head of the CPP's youth wing.^[16]

He had been mentioned by both media outlets and Hun Sen himself as a candidate for prime minister.^[17][18][19] On 4 December 2021, Manet was unanimously elected by the CPP Central Committee to be the party's future candidate for prime minister after Hun Sen, making him the prime minister-in-waiting.^[20]

On 7 August 2023, King Norodom Sihamoni issued a royal decree appointing Manet as Prime Minister of Cambodia and commissioning Manet to form a cabinet.^[21]

Shortly after his rise to the premiership, Manet hosted a Charles Yang from the Universal Peace Federation, a South Korean organization started by Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, at the Peace Palace.^[22]

Premiership

Hun Sen publicly announced his endorsement of Manet's candidacy for prime minister for the first time in December 2021.^[19] Although Manet never publicly expressed interest in the role, he received strong support from several government ministers and party members as well as the influential CPP Standing Committee.^[23] Hun Sen stressed, however, that succession would not take place until after the 2028 election.

Manet stood as a first-ranked candidate in Phnom Penh for the National Assembly in the 2023 general election, a requirement to be appointed prime minister.^[24] Three days after the election in which the CPP claimed a landslide victory, Hun Sen announced his resignation and confirmed that Manet would be the new prime minister. The new cabinet was sworn in on 22 August.^[1] The election was widely criticized by international observers as being held in a restrictive political environment and neither free nor fair; the main opposition party was disqualified two months before the election, and an opposition leader was imprisoned.^{[25][26][27][28]} On 7 August, King Norodom Sihamoni issued a royal decree officially nominating Manet as the new prime minister. He invited Manet to form a new government for the seventh mandate, subject to a vote of confidence from the National Assembly on 22 August.^[21][29] Manet's cabinet was confirmed unanimously by the National Assembly on 22 August.^[30] In February 2024, Manet promoted his younger brother Hun Many to deputy prime minister alongside his current role as civil service minister.^[31]

One of Manet's official acts as prime minister was to ban musical truck horns in March 2024, saying he was disturbed by “dancing on the street to the musical beats of big cars”.^[32] Manet also instructed authorities to upgrade rail transport across Cambodia.^[33] On 5 August 2024, his administration launched the controversial Funan Techo Canal Project which would link the Mekong River to Cambodia's coast, significantly reducing the country's reliance on Vietnamese ports.^[34] The Cambodia–Laos–Vietnam Development Triangle Area (CLV-DTA) has also come under public scrutiny over concerns that four of the country's provinces would be ceded to its neighbours.^[35] Cambodia eventually withdrew from CLV-DTA on 23 September.^[36]

Hun Manet is married to Pich Chanmony, the daughter of Pich Sophoan, a former secretary of state at the Ministry of Labour.^[37]