Samdech Techo Hun Sen mocks Thai university’s degree revocation: ‘I flushed it away in 2008’
Samdech Techo Hun Sen mocks Thai university’s degree revocation: ‘I flushed it away in 2008’
Senate President Hun Sen this evening scoffed at a decision by Thailand’s Ramkhamhaeng University to revoke his honorary doctorate degree in political science, saying the award has been meaningless to him for nearly two decades.
In a strongly worded social media post, Mr Hun Sen said he only learnt today that a Thai university — “whose name I can’t even recall” — had voted to strip him of the title.
“Let me clarify: there is no need to revoke it. I already discarded that degree in the toilet back in 2008, when Thailand deployed its military to invade Cambodia’s Preah Vihear Temple,” he wrote. “Your degree has no value for me to keep.”
He went on to say he had never taken pride in “a piece of paper” from the institution.
“Hun Sen’s intellect was not born from your institution. Hun Sen’s intellect comes from the teachings of the Cambodian people and the schools of Cambodia,” the former prime minister added.
His remarks came after Ramkhamhaeng University issued a statement on Thursday announcing the revocation of the honorary degree, citing what it described as Mr Hun Sen’s “hostile behaviour” toward Thailand and support for armed violence that caused Thai military and civilian casualties.
“Since the behaviour of the honorary doctorate recipient has changed, the honorary declaration should rightfully be revoked,” the university said.
“For these reasons, the Ramkhamhaeng University Council unanimously voted to revoke Hun Sen’s honorary Doctor of Philosophy degree in Political Science, effective from the date of the resolution, August 8, 2025.”
Samdech Techo Hun Sen was awarded the degree in 1991 for what the university described at the time as his role in promoting peace and stability in the region.
