Thai authorities have issued an arrest warrant for a gunman suspected of assassinating Cambodian opposition politician Lim Kimya in a bold attack in central Bangkok on Tuesday.
Lim Kimya, who was traveling from Siem Reap, Cambodia, to Bangkok by bus with his French wife, was gunned down by a motorbike assailant shortly after his arrival in the Thai capital.
The suspect, reportedly a former Thai marine, remains at large.
“We are investigating the motives. At this point, we have limited information other than that the suspect works as a motorcycle taxi driver,” said area police chief Sanong Sangmanee.
The assassination has sent shockwaves through Cambodian opposition circles.
Many activists have sought refuge in Thailand in recent years to escape alleged repression in their home country, though some have faced arrest and deportation.
Sam Rainsy, a prominent exiled Cambodian opposition leader, accused Cambodia’s former Prime Minister Hun Sen of orchestrating the killing.
In a statement on social media, Rainsy alleged, “Hun Sen’s hand can be seen behind the assassination of Lim Kimya, just as it has been behind countless political crimes in Cambodia.”
Hun Sen, who ruled Cambodia for nearly four decades before stepping down in 2023 in favor of his son, Hun Manet, remains a dominant figure in the nation’s politics.
Rights groups have long accused him of using the judiciary to suppress dissent and opposition figures.
The Cambodian government has denied involvement. Spokesman Pen Bona said, “The killing happened in Thailand, so Thai authorities will handle the case.”
He dismissed Rainsy’s accusations as baseless, adding that opposition figures “always accuse the government of everything without evidence.”
Lim Kimya was a former member of Cambodia’s parliament representing the now-dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP).
The CNRP, founded in 2012 by Sam Rainsy and Kem Sokha, was once a formidable challenger to Hun Sen’s Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) but was dissolved by court order in 2017.
Following the dissolution, many of its members, including Lim Kimya, were banned from politics.
The CNRP released a statement condemning the killing as “heinous and inhumane” and warned that it poses a grave threat to political freedoms.
Human Rights Watch also called for a thorough investigation, with Bryony Lau, the group’s deputy Asia director, urging Thai authorities to “promptly and thoroughly investigate and prosecute those responsible.”
Lim Kimya, who also held French citizenship, has drawn international attention to the case, but the French embassies in Bangkok and Phnom Penh have yet to comment.
The incident underscores the dangers faced by exiled political activists and the challenges in ensuring their safety abroad.
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