Cambodian Leader Hun Sen Scores Five Goals In Victory Over Red Shirts In Soccer Friendly

[Lite Beer]

Cambodian leader Hun Sen scores five goals in victory over red shirts in soccer friendly

By The Nation on Sunday

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and former Thai prime minister Somchai Wongsawat yesterday led their respective red and blue teams in a friendly football match aimed at boosting ties between Cambodia and Thailand.

More than 700 members of Thailand's red-shirt movement yesterday crossed the border through Sa Kaew's Aranyaprathet checkpoint to watch the match, which pitted their leaders against Cambodian officials in Phnom Penh.

Thailand and Cambodia have engaged in skirmishes over disputed border territory near the Preah Vihear Temple since Unesco listed it as a World Heritage site on July 7, 2008. Fierce clashes erupted in February and April this year as ties hit bottom under the government led by Abhisit Vejjajiva. The tension has eased since the Pheu Thai Party won July's election and the government of Yingluck Shinawatra took office.

Arisman Pongruangrong, a leader of the red-shirt United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship who is wanted by Thai police on terrorism charges, did not turn up at the event, to the disappointment of scores of reporters waiting to interview him. He was reported to have appeared at the Washington Hotel, 7km outside Phnom Penh, to showcase his singing talents. Daruni Kritbunyalai, one of the UDD leaders who fled the country following the violence of May 2010, was seen at the football match, however.

Pheu Thai Party list MP Jatuporn Prompan said the red-shirt football team will travel to Burma, Laos and Vietnam soon to play more friendly matches.

Weng Tochirakarn, another red-shirt leader, said that as it was a friendly match aimed at boosting ties, Hun Sen captained the red-garbed team, which comprised Cambodian officials and lawmakers, while Somchai captained the blue-shirted team. Cambodia's red team won 10-7. During the first half, the red team scored four goals, one of which was courtesy of Hun Sen, while the blue team netted one. During the second half, the red team scored six more goals - including four by Hun Sen, from whom members of the blue team dared not try to take the ball.

The atmosphere was lively and fun. Both teams left the field as soon as the game concluded to prepare for a dinner and night-time entertainment featuring performances of folk dances of both countries.

Somchai said the friendly match had strengthened bilateral ties between the two countries, and he believed problems at the government and local levels between the countries would be easily solved.

Some red shirts who did not produce passports were not granted permission to leave Thailand.

Sujitra Dong-ngarm, 59, a Maha Sarakham red-shirt leader, said she hoped good relations could be restored between the two countries and that no further border clashes would take place.

Noppadol Ruamkid, 44, a tour operator, said yesterday's friendly football match marked the first time Hun Sen had showcased his sporting abilities, and described the event as historic and impressive.

-- The Nation 2011-09-25

[thequietman]

none of the thai players had the balls to take the ball. they just roll over and take it up the A##, much like they do in thai politics everyday.

well played blue team.

[jonclark]

Irrespective of the politics it's a positive step forward especially for the people who live close to the border and rely on border trade and the like to make a living.

The skeptic in me though can't help but notice that now the Dems have been shoved out, the whole temple issue (from the Cambodian perspective) has become unimportant? Perhaps Hun Sen and Taksin colluded on the issue to divide the government, thus weakening it. Pure speculation, but it would be interesting to see if the issue flared up again if PTP was removed from power. I am fairly sure in my own mind that this is all to do with Taksin and Hun Sen dividing up the profits from the oil in the gulf of Thailand and nothing else. Remember Taksin has spent the last 3 years in Dubai - Oil central.

[rixalex]

Irrespective of the politics it's a positive step forward especially for the people who live close to the border and rely on border trade and the like to make a living.

The skeptic in me though can't help but notice that now the Dems have been shoved out, the whole temple issue (from the Cambodian perspective) has become unimportant? Perhaps Hun Sen and Taksin colluded on the issue to divide the government, thus weakening it. Pure speculation, but it would be interesting to see if the issue flared up again if PTP was removed from power. I am fairly sure in my own mind that this is all to do with Taksin and Hun Sen dividing up the profits from the oil in the gulf of Thailand and nothing else. Remember Taksin has spent the last 3 years in Dubai - Oil central.

I don't think there is any doubt that the entire business concerning the friction with Cambodia was contrived and orchestrated by Hun Sen on behalf of his good buddy Thaksin, to put pressure on the old government. The two men are a good match for each other.

[otherstuff1957]

Contrived by T & H? Yes, but the Democrats were silly enough to play right into their hands.

While the Democrats were much better at coming up with and implementing domestic policies that benefited people than the current crowd seems to be, they were an absolute mess when it came to foreign affairs. Particularly letting this Cambodian mess spiral out of control.

[Buchholz]

More than 700 members of Thailand's red-shirt movement yesterday crossed the border through Sa Kaew's Aranyaprathet checkpoint to watch the match

The consistent exaggerated lying by Red Shirt Leaders continues...

Ten thousand reds to cheer football match in Phnom Penh

Pheu Thai MP Weng Tojirakan on Thursday said more than 10,000 red shirts would next week attend the friendly football match in Phnom Penh.

[whybother]

Did Peau Thai where "Democrat Blue" shirts?

I wonder how many Cambodians turned out to watch?

edit: answered my own question ... http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Asia/Story/A1Story20110924-301309.html

Hun Sen, clad in a red number nine shirt, smiled broadly as he scored his fourth goal in the final minutes to loud cheers from the 50,000-strong crowd at the Olympic Stadium in the capital Phnom Penh. Hundreds of Thai "Red Shirts", who are loyal to Thailand's ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, travelled to Cambodia to cheer on the teams, made up of a mix of Thai Red politicians and Cambodian government figures.

They contributed to the party atmosphere by chanting "I love Thaksin" and "I love Hun Sen".

Edited September 25, 2011 by whybother

[ratcatcher]

I imagine Sir Alex Ferguson has already planned a meeting with this Hun Sen laddie. 5 goals eh, watch out Wayne & Berbie.

[Buchholz]

I imagine Sir Alex Ferguson has already planned a meeting with this Hun Sen laddie. 5 goals eh, watch out Wayne & Berbie.

He looks very light on his feet...

Link to Photo

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen runs after a ball during a football match at the Olympic stadium in Phnom Penh September 24, 2011.

REUTERS

Interesting that Hun Sen played on the Red Team... which also had the Red Shirt Leaders like Natthawut and Jatuporn while the Blue Team had Somchai et al.

Also interesting were the Thai Red Shirts who went to the match and held up "We Love Hun Sen" posters.

.

Edited September 25, 2011 by Buchholz

[lannarebirth]

I imagine Sir Alex Ferguson has already planned a meeting with this Hun Sen laddie. 5 goals eh, watch out Wayne & Berbie.

He looks very light on his feet...

Link to Photo

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen runs after a ball during a football match at the Olympic stadium in Phnom Penh September 24, 2011.

REUTERS

Interesting that Hun Sen played on the Red Team... which also had the Red Shirt Leaders like Natthawut and Jatuporn while the Blue Team had Somchai et al.

Also interesting were the Thai Red Shirts who went to the match and held up "We Love Hun Sen" posters.

.

It's pretty clear what with all the ASEAN walls about to come down in a few years, Thaksin is making a regional play. I don't think his interests will be limited to Cambodia either.

[Buchholz]

I imagine Sir Alex Ferguson has already planned a meeting with this Hun Sen laddie. 5 goals eh, watch out Wayne & Berbie.

He looks very light on his feet...

Link to Photo

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen runs after a ball during a football match at the Olympic stadium in Phnom Penh September 24, 2011.

REUTERS

Interesting that Hun Sen played on the Red Team... which also had the Red Shirt Leaders like Natthawut and Jatuporn while the Blue Team had Somchai et al.

Also interesting were the Thai Red Shirts who went to the match and held up "We Love Hun Sen" posters.

It's pretty clear what with all the ASEAN walls about to come down in a few years, Thaksin is making a regional play. I don't think his interests will be limited to Cambodia either.

As mentioned by the indicted Red Shirt Leader Out On Bail in the OP:

Pheu Thai Party list MP Jatuporn Prompan said the red-shirt football team will travel to Burma, Laos and Vietnam soon to play more friendly matches.

Curious if the Red Shirt Football Team will take team captain Hun Sen on their Southeast Asia Tour 2011.

.

[DP25]

Also interesting were the Thai Red Shirts who went to the match and held up "We Love Hun Sen" posters.

.

They couldn't have won the election without his help, of course they love him

[cardholder]

More than 700 members of Thailand's red-shirt movement yesterday crossed the border through Sa Kaew's Aranyaprathet checkpoint to watch the match

The consistent exaggerated lying by Red Shirt Leaders continues...

Ten thousand reds to cheer football match in Phnom Penh

Pheu Thai MP Weng Tojirakan on Thursday said more than 10,000 red shirts would next week attend the friendly football match in Phnom Penh.

I would love to seen Poipet immigration handle 700 Thais - did they all have to fill arrival/departure forms and, like my group, did they pay 1 100 Baht 'admin fee' ?

[phiphidon]

More than 700 members of Thailand's red-shirt movement yesterday crossed the border through Sa Kaew's Aranyaprathet checkpoint to watch the match

The consistent exaggerated lying by Red Shirt Leaders continues...

Ten thousand reds to cheer football match in Phnom Penh

Pheu Thai MP Weng Tojirakan on Thursday said more than 10,000 red shirts would next week attend the friendly football match in Phnom Penh.

Oh, Come on Buchholz, stop being so bitter! The reason there wasn't so many red shirt supporters going is because Thaksin wasn't going to be there. Even Tulsathit made light of the game and he's normally as obsessed with Thaksin as you are.

The social media have called it a "dream match", although "surreal" may sound a bit more accurate to describe the upcoming soccer game between Thailand and Cambodia.

Don't get me wrong, India and Pakistan have been engaged in many sports showdowns, and the Falklands War could not stop Diego Maradona from using his "hand of God" to rub it in the face of the English. I'm all for any kind of diplomacy that may end villagers' suffering and trauma on both sides of our eastern border. In fact, so much so that I'm going to suggest to our VIP players (who may include Thaksin Shinawatra) that they should throw the match for an ultimate diplomatic outcome............................

http://www.nationmul...d-30165199.html

[Buchholz]

More than 700 members of Thailand's red-shirt movement yesterday crossed the border through Sa Kaew's Aranyaprathet checkpoint to watch the match

The consistent exaggerated lying by Red Shirt Leaders continues...

Ten thousand reds to cheer football match in Phnom Penh

Pheu Thai MP Weng Tojirakan on Thursday said more than 10,000 red shirts would next week attend the friendly football match in Phnom Penh.

Oh, Come on Buchholz, stop being so bitter! The reason there wasn't so many red shirt supporters going is because Thaksin wasn't going to be there.

* Inflammatory, overly-personal, name-calling snipped *

Bitter? Bitter about what? Missing out on the game?

Sorry if highlighting Reds Lies is disconcerting enough to you that you resort to name-calling.

[phiphidon]

Bitter? Bitter about what? Missing out on the game?

Sorry if highlighting Reds Lies is disconcerting enough to you that you resort to name-calling.

Thankyou for highlighting the Red Leaders lies with regard to the number of people "said" to have been going to the Cambodia Thailand Friendly Football Match. You're performing a valuable public service. You could probably do the Arsenal supporters a favour and call out the commentator at the Emirates, who regularly "lies" about the attendance at each home game.

I wasn't aware that obsessive was "inflammatory, overly personal, name calling" but having this as a "signature" on each of your post tends to make one think you have an unhealty focus on the man........

Thaksin Shinawatra is generating 4 to 5 Billion Baht in profits a year, and has in total 400 Billion Baht worth of total wealth.

UPDATE: Might have to subtract 3.6 Billion Baht after Thaksin claims it was stolen from him by a Dubai lawyer.

[Buchholz]

Thankyou for highlighting the Red Leaders lies

You're welcome.

Thaksin Shinawatra is generating 4 to 5 Billion Baht in profits a year, and has in total 400 Billion Baht worth of total wealth.

UPDATE: Might have to subtract 3.6 Billion Baht after Thaksin claims it was stolen from him by a Dubai lawyer.

Good of you to repeat.

Edited September 25, 2011 by Buchholz

[rixalex]

Contrived by T & H? Yes, but the Democrats were silly enough to play right into their hands.

While the Democrats were much better at coming up with and implementing domestic policies that benefited people than the current crowd seems to be, they were an absolute mess when it came to foreign affairs. Particularly letting this Cambodian mess spiral out of control.

I agree. Of course the appointment of Kasit to FM was no help at all. Much like i fear the new FM will be, although luckily for him, he won't have contrived orchestrated border conflicts to worry about - well at least not with Cambodia.

[TAWP]

During the second half, the red team scored six more goals - including four by Hun Sen, from whom members of the blue team dared not try to take the ball.

Bowing to their other master.

[phiphidon]

Thankyou for highlighting the Red Leaders lies

You're welcome.

Thaksin Shinawatra is generating 4 to 5 Billion Baht in profits a year, and has in total 400 Billion Baht worth of total wealth.

UPDATE: Might have to subtract 3.6 Billion Baht after Thaksin claims it was stolen from him by a Dubai lawyer.

Good of you to repeat.

Not quite the done thing is it Buchholz, cutting out my comments and then reposting the remnants to imply I agree with the above (it also misses the ironic tone when taken out of context e.g the comparison to the Emirates attendance claims).

To restate:

1.Buchholz was making a mountain out of a molehill with regard to the number of people supposedly going to a friendly football match. Despite the fact that it had been reported in the papers that thousands of people wouldn't be going to the match because Thaksin said he would not be attending, somehow this is spun by Buchholz into another example of the Red Leader lies (I can only presume about numbers, of which only one instance I can recall, the alleged 1 million men march onto Bangkok. In Buchholzs world an overly optimistic forecast when made by the Red Shirts, is in fact a downright lie)

2. There really is something a bit obssessive with a person who posts Thaksins alleged wealth at the bottom of each post. I say alleged as he must be worth far more than that now, surely. Is it jealousy, who knows?

[TAWP]

It is however a well-known fact that any number ever given by Red Shirt leaders is drastically over-optimistic, some times in the ratio of 10 times the true number.

Spin it as you want.

[phiphidon]

It is however a well-known fact that any number ever given by Red Shirt leaders is drastically over-optimistic, some times in the ratio of 10 times the true number.

Spin it as you want.

Any examples other than the one I have already given, once you've defined "drastically over optimistic" in terms of multipliers that is?

[Buchholz]

Interesting that Hun Sen played on the Red Team... which also had the Red Shirt Leaders like Natthawut and Jatuporn while the Blue Team had Somchai et al.

Also interesting were the Thai Red Shirts who went to the match and held up "We Love Hun Sen" posters.

Red Shirt beats Cambodia in the friendship football match

PHNOM PENH, 25 September 2011 (NNT)- Red Shirt football players have beaten Cambodian players 10-7 in the Saturday friendship match in Phnom Penh.

The Red Shirt team, which is named Team A, featured Cambodian Minister Hun Sen, Red Shirt core member and Pheu Thai MP’s Nattawut Saikua, and Jatuporn Prompan.

The Cambodian team featured former PM Somchai Wongsawat, who was also the Captain.

The Red Shirt team secured the first goal in ten minutes and easily took a 4-1 lead in the first half.

A few minutes after the second half, forward player Hun Sen added another goal to his team. Both sides took turn scoring until the referee blew his whistle in the last minute.

The friendly match ended with the Red Shirt team’s 10-7 win.

-- NNT 2011-09-25

[Buchholz]

Interesting that Hun Sen played on the Red Team... which also had the Red Shirt Leaders like Natthawut and Jatuporn while the Blue Team had Somchai et al.

Also interesting were the Thai Red Shirts who went to the match and held up "We Love Hun Sen" posters.

Red Shirt beats Cambodia in the friendship football match

PHNOM PENH, 25 September 2011 (NNT)- Red Shirt football players have beaten Cambodian players 10-7 in the Saturday friendship match in Phnom Penh.

The Red Shirt team, which is named Team A, featured Cambodian Minister Hun Sen, Red Shirt core member and Pheu Thai MP’s Nattawut Saikua, and Jatuporn Prompan.

The Cambodian team featured former PM Somchai Wongsawat, who was also the Captain.

The Red Shirt team secured the first goal in ten minutes and easily took a 4-1 lead in the first half.

A few minutes after the second half, forward player Hun Sen added another goal to his team. Both sides took turn scoring until the referee blew his whistle in the last minute.

The friendly match ended with the Red Shirt team’s 10-7 win.

-- NNT 2011-09-25

[Buchholz]

The Red Shirt team, which is named Team A, featured Cambodian Minister Hun Sen, Red Shirt core member and Pheu Thai MP’s Nattawut Saikua, and Jatuporn Prompan.

The Cambodian team featured former PM Somchai Wongsawat, who was also the Captain.

Captain of the Cambodian team....

It makes the thread title and OP and the OP photo misleading.

Most would read it as Cambodia beat the Thai Red Shirts, when actually,

it was the Thai Red Shirts (and the Cambodian PM) that beat the Cambodians (and an old Thai PM).

which is reflected in the last headline.

.

Edited September 25, 2011 by Buchholz

[lannarebirth]

The Red Shirt team, which is named Team A, featured Cambodian Minister Hun Sen, Red Shirt core member and Pheu Thai MP’s Nattawut Saikua, and Jatuporn Prompan.

The Cambodian team featured former PM Somchai Wongsawat, who was also the Captain.

Captain of the Cambodian team....

It makes the thread title and OP and the OP photo misleading.

Most would read it as Cambodia beat the Thai Red Shirts, when actually,

it was the Thai Red Shirts (and the Cambodian PM) that beat the Cambodians (and an old Thai PM).

which is reflected in the last headline.

.

It's not just bad reporting, it's all about blurring lines. Think ASEAN 2015.

[whybother]

It is however a well-known fact that any number ever given by Red Shirt leaders is drastically over-optimistic, some times in the ratio of 10 times the true number.

Spin it as you want.

Any examples other than the one I have already given, once you've defined "drastically over optimistic" in terms of multipliers that is?

Their "million man march" was just a touch over optimistic in March last year.

[hammered]

I notice that the FM has just met the UN sec-gen and discussed improving Thai-Cambodian relations. It doesnt seem to be getting much english language press coverage (yet?).

[whybother]

I notice that the FM has just met the UN sec-gen and discussed improving Thai-Cambodian relations. It doesnt seem to be getting much english language press coverage (yet?).

Don't know what this is then.

[hammered]

I notice that the FM has just met the UN sec-gen and discussed improving Thai-Cambodian relations. It doesnt seem to be getting much english language press coverage (yet?).

Don't know what this is then.

cheers for that. must have missed it