Prince locked out of palace
26/10/2004 12:40  - (SA) 

Phnom Penh - The Cambodian palace's security head has been sacked after guards closed the palace gates on the half-brother of the new king when he was at the tail-end of a royal motorcade, police said on Tuesday.

Prince Norodom Ranariddh, who is also the national assembly president, was left stranded outside while the new King Norodom Sihamoni and his father were whisked into the palace on their return home from Beijing last Wednesday.

"He was removed this morning following a decision from the ministry of interior," deputy national police chief General Sau Phan explained.

Dozens of princes

Ranariddh, who had been one of dozens of princes eligible to become the new king selected by a throne council on October 14, was clearly irked by the gaffe and said earlier that something should be done.

"It is an issue of principle, not a Ranariddh issue. The reputation of the national institutions and the king" is at stake, he told reporters, adding that he had talked with Prime Minister Hun Sen, who supported his complaint.

"I am the older brother of the king and also the president of the national assembly, and an individual with (a low) rank closes the door on my car's convoy running behind the king's motorcade!" he fumed.

Head of security Dem Saroeun had ordered the palace guards directly to close the large iron gates before Ranariddh's car slipped inside.

Witnesses said the 60-year-old prince leapt out of the car himself to ask the guards to reopen but they at first ignored him, leaving him waiting for more than 10 minutes to get in.

Former king Norodom Sihanouk announced his abdication on October 7, stunning his 13 million subjects and forcing the selection of the country's first new monarch in more than 60 years.

King Sihamoni's coronation will take place on Friday.