On Monday October 15 the former King of Cambodia, Norodom Sihanouk, died of a heart attack in Beijing at the age of 89. His son, King Norodom Sihamoni, together with the Queen Mother and the Prime Minister travelled to Beijing to bring home Sihanouk‘s body for funeral preparations.
King Norodom Sihanouk (Source: Chhoy Pisei/AFP/Getty Images)
More than 100,000 people lined the streets of Phnom Penh from the airport to the Royal Palace to pay respect for their former King. Mourners wore white shirts and black ribbons, and flags flew at half mast throughout the country.
Mourners line the streets of Phnom Penh to receive the body of their former King (Source: Vibol Phan / CityLife Magazine)
On Wednesday, the Kingdom entered a week-long period of mourning, and abstinence from celebration of any kind.
Sihanouk was a presence in Cambodia throughout his life, despite abdicating the throne on two separate occasions. He was involved in politics, the arts, and later in life in peacemaking after an ill-fated choice to back the Khmer Rouge regime in its earlier years.
The Fish on Farms team send our sincere condolences to the people of Cambodia during this difficult time.