EXPLAINER
Authorities across Cambodia have been ordered to remove musical horns from vehicles and end road dancing.
After ruling with an iron fist for 45 years, Cambodia's ruling party leaders have a long list of practices that have been banned and political opponents jailed or forced to flee the country.
Now, the country's newly appointed Prime Minister, Hun Manet, son of Cambodia's former “strongman” ruler Hun Sen, has taken aim at a new source of social unrest: musical truck horns.
In a social media post, the 46-year-old prime minister said he was bothered by “dancing in the street to the musical beat of big cars,” according to an unofficial translation.
Recent videos on social media, Hun Manet said, had alerted him to youths agitating on the side of the road while passing trucks played musical tunes with their horns, and the practice must end.
Authorities in this country of some 17 million people have now been ordered to take action and immediately remove musical horns from the nation's vehicles.
This is what we know:
What is Hun Manet's problem with musical horns?
After seven months as prime minister, Hun Manet's ban on musical vehicle horns may constitute one of his most unusual policy initiatives after succeeding his father for 38 years as prime minister.
Although he received a Western education and is considered the vanguard of a new generation of young, reform-oriented Cambodian leaders, Hun Manet's first months in power have not seen him deviate much from the path set by his father.
The musical horns of vehicles and inspired spontaneous dancing among locals have now received the new prime minister's full attention, particularly because it “affects order on the road” and poses a danger to drivers and dancers, he said.
Cambodia's Ministry of Public Works and Transport, police at all levels, as well as local authorities have been ordered to carry out inspections and ensure that musical horns are removed from all vehicles and replaced with standard horns that they only sound.
On Wednesday, reports emerged that local authorities ordered a ban on the sale of these types of speakers in vehicle accessory stores.
The prime minister also ordered parents to ensure that their children “stop dancing in the street.”
The pro-government Cambodia Khmer Times newspaper said the prime minister was motivated to act because of the potential “harm to children” caused by dancing to the “honking sound” of trucks.
Although dancing on the side of a road can be risky, young Cambodians seem to find it a lot of fun.
A video shared on Facebook shows a young Cambodian woman waiting for the arrival of a large transport truck. As the truck approaches, the driver honks a techno dance rhythm to which the young woman laughs and dances on the side of the road.
Cambodian culture wars?
One commentator on political issues in Cambodia noted that the ban on horn music and street dancing appeared to be “more posturing than policy,” adding that the new prime minister's administration “has not been shy on 'culture war' issues.” '”.
Why the new prime minister bothered with such a “trivial” matter was a question posed by a Cambodian taxi driver who spoke to Al Jazeera.
“The job of the prime minister is to be prime minister. Why did he get involved in something as small as this? asked the driver, who requested anonymity due to security concerns about being seen as critical of the new prime minister.
However, in doing so, Hun Manet is only following in his father's footsteps.
What was Hun Sen's record on culture?
Harnessing cultural issues to promote a conservative view of Cambodian society was also a feature of Hun Sen's time as prime minister.
In 2020, Hun Sen ordered the Ministry of Interior to take legal action against female social media influencers who wore revealing outfits to advertise and sell products online.
The prosecution was necessary, Hun Sen said, as social media videos and images showing revealing clothing “negatively affect the honor of Cambodian women.”
Responding to criticism of his ban on Cambodian women wearing short skirts in his social media posts, Hun Sen said: “When I ask them not to wear sexy clothes online, they accuse me of violating human rights.”
In 2006, Hun Sen banned beauty pageants in Cambodia, saying the country would rather alleviate poverty than promote beauty.
“We cannot take a beautiful lady to participate in the pageant and claim that it is our national identity and then make her wear underpants,” Hun Sen said at the time, in an apparent reference to contestants who pose in swimsuits in the contests.
