Thiounn Prasith (; 3 February 1930 – 2 June 2023) was a Cambodian politician and diplomat who worked for the Khmer Rouge regime. Born in

Phnom Penh Phnom Penh is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Cambodia, most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since 1865 and has grown to become the nation's primate city and its political, economic, industr ...

, he had two famous elder brothers: , Minister of Health; and Thiounn Mumm, Ministry of Industry. He was also a grandson of Thiounn. In September 1949, Thiounn Prasith went to study in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. He joined ''Cercle Marxiste'' ("Marxist Circle"), a Marxist–Leninist organisation which was created by

Pol Pot Pol Pot (born Saloth Sâr; 19 May 1925 – 15 April 1998) was a Cambodian politician, revolutionary, and dictator who ruled the communist state of Democratic Kampuchea from 1976 until Cambodian–Vietnamese War, his overthrow in 1979. During ...

and other two comrades. In late December 1955, he returned to Cambodia, and was appointed deputy manager of "operations" of the royal railways. In June 1963 he left for France for health reasons. After the 1970 coup, Thiounn Prasith joined

GRUNK The Royal Government of National Union of Kampuchea (, GRUNK; ) was a government-in-exile of Cambodia, based in Beijing and Hong Kong, that was in existence between 1970 and 1976, and was briefly in control of the country starting from 1975. Th ...

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

. He was appointed the Minister of Coordination by

Norodom Sihanouk Norodom Sihanouk (; 31 October 192215 October 2012) was a member of the House of Norodom, Cambodian royal house who led the country as Monarchy of Cambodia, King, List of heads of state of Cambodia, Chief of State and Prime Minister of Cambodi ...

. During the

Khmer Rouge The Khmer Rouge is the name that was popularly given to members of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK), and by extension to Democratic Kampuchea, which ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979. The name was coined in the 1960s by Norodom Sihano ...

's regime, Thiounn Prasith worked as an interpreter in

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

. He was also a close adviser to

Ieng Sary Ieng Sary (; born Kim Trang; 24 October 1925 – 14 March 2013) was the co-founder and senior member of the Khmer Rouge and one of the main architects of the Cambodian genocide. He was a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Par ...

. After the Pol Pot regime fell in the course of the Vietnamese invasion of 1979, he went to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

together with Sihanouk and Keat Chhon. From 1979 to 1991 was appointed the permanent UN ambassador. He defended Khmer Rouge's regime before the United Nations. Later, he was appointed the deputy ambassador. He retired in 1993. After retirement, he was reported to be living in the New York suburb of

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is the former residence and plantation of George Washington, a Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha. An American landmar ...

. As a former Khmer Rouge officer, he was not welcomed in the United States. In 1995,

State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...

vowed to deport him. Later, he moved to France in 2001. On 8 June 2009, he was interviewed in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He died in

Le Kremlin-Bicêtre Le Kremlin-Bicêtre () is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is from the center of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe. Le Kremlin-Bicêtre is most famous as the location of the Bicêtre ...

on 2 June 2023, at the age of 93.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thiounn, Prasith 1930 births 2023 deaths Communist Party of Kampuchea politicians Khmer Rouge party members Cambodian diplomats Permanent representatives of Cambodia to the United Nations People from Phnom Penh