Sour Note

In his dealings with the big powers, Cambodia's saxophone-tootling Prince Norodom Sihanouk tries to play it real cool at both ends of the scale. The 36-year-old Prince (who resigned as King in 1955 because he likes being Premier better) has welcomed aid missions to Cambodia from the U.S., France, Russia and Communist China alike. After tours of Red China and the U.S., he proclaimed himself impressed by both. But Neutralist Sihanouk is sadly out of tune with his next-door neighbors on the Gulf of Siam.

Neighboring Thailand and South Viet Nam strongly disapprove of Sihanouk's diplomatic recognition of Peking last July, but their differences really date back to ancient tribal feuds and jungle rivalries. South Viet Nam declares that Cambodia allows Communist Viet Minh guerrillas to cross its territory to stage raids in South Viet Nam; in retaliation, South Vietnamese troops picked up a border marker, moved it 1 1/2 miles into Cambodia and threw a minefield around it. Thailand has given haven to opponents of Sihanouk. In a huff at these acts by his anti-Communist neighbors, Sihanouk accepted increased economic aid from Red China, broke diplomatic relations with Thailand. In recent months the volatile Prince has grown more nervous.

Something to Chew On. The most respected soldier in Cambodia was Dap Chhuon (pronounced Chew-on). As a reward for his brilliant rise from French army corporal--dap means corporal--to guerrilla leader, against first the French and then the Communist Viet Minh, Dap Chhuon had been named Royal Delegate and Governor of the Siemreap area, which includes the renowned ruins of the lost 12th century Khmer civilization of Angkor Wat. Slim, natty Dap Chhuon made Siemreap his personal fief with three battalions of Cambodia's 31,000-man army under his personal command.

Recently Communist informers reported to Sihanouk that Dap Chhuon planned, with help from Thailand, to assassinate the Premier, overthrow the monarchy and establish an anti-Communist republic. Sihanouk dispatched a battalion to Siemreap with orders to get Dap Chhuon, dead or alive.

Dap Chhuon fled in the night into the jungles in his under-sarong. Last week, acting on another tip, Sihanouk's forces captured him. Shortly afterward the government announced that Dap Chhuon had died "of injuries," but had made "important revelations" first to his captors.

Message to Ike. Pictures of Dap Chhuon's bleeding body were posted in triumph on the trees lining Pnompenh's avenues, and Sihanouk flew a delegation of foreign diplomats into Siemreap to show them the "proof" of a plot--two captured Vietnamese radio operators, $4,000,000 worth of gold, and a purported message to Cambodian exiles in Thailand asking the strength of their forces. Brushing aside the denials from Thailand and South Viet Nam, Sihanouk thanked the Communists for tipping him off, and then turned on a "certain leading power" that furnishes arms to both Thailand and South Viet Nam. Demanding to know why the U.S., if not involved, had not told him of the plot, Sihanouk fired off a message to President Eisenhower asking U.S. intervention to prevent "further subversion" of Cambodia with U.S. arms.

The U.S. had certainly not been in on any plot to get Sihanouk, for it regards the ex-King as a likable but volatile fellow whose popularity among his country's 5,000,000 people is undisputed. U.S. diplomats in the area fear that South Viet Nam and Thailand, by putting pressure on Sihanouk, may bring about the very tragedy they wish to prevent. Sihanouk, who has twice rejected Red China's offers of military aid, might in a moment of pique become neutralist on the Red side.

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