Les Kosem | |
|---|---|
កូសេម ឡេស | |
 | |
| Ambassador ofKhmer Republic at large | |
| In office 1974–1975 | |
| Prime Minister | Long Boret |
| Preceded by | Lon Non |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1927 (1927) |
| Died | 1976 (aged 48–49) |
| Political party | Front for the Liberation of Champa |
| Nickname | Po Nagar |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Cambodia |
| Branch/service | Royal Khmer Armed Forces (until 1970) Khmer National Armed Forces (from 1970) SDECE |
| Rank | Brigadier general |
| Commands | 5th Special Brigade |
| Battles/wars | |
Les Kosem (Khmer:កូសេម ឡេសpronounced[kɔoseːmleːh]), also known by thenom de guerre "Po Nagar", was aCambodian-Cham military officer and a prominent figure in theSecond Indochina War and theCambodian Civil War.
Kosem, an airborne colonel, was the most senior Cham officer in the Royal Cambodian Army (ARK). During the later 1950s, he had been responsible for setting up the FLC (Front de Libération du Champa) which is an organisation seeking greater autonomy for theChams.[1] In 1964, acting on the advice of a French 'handler', Kosem made overtures to the leadership of BAJARAKA, a group seeking independence for theDegar people of the Vietnamese Central Highlands. Kosem was thought to have been acting as adouble agent, working for both the Cambodian secret service and the FrenchSDECE.[1][2] The link between the FLC, BAJARAKA, and theKhmer Krom "White Scarves" separatist movement was to result in the creation of the guerrilla movementFULRO.
In 1968, after internal disagreements within FULRO, Kosem was to surround the movement's headquarters with several battalions of the Royal Cambodian Army, and arrested its presidentY Bham Enuol.
Kosem was also heavily involved in directing clandestine shipments of weapons from the port ofSihanoukville in Cambodia to theViet Cong, in accordance with a secret arrangement between the Cambodian Head of State,Norodom Sihanouk, and the North Vietnamese.[3]
Following theCambodian coup of 1970, Kosem became a prominent supporter of theKhmer Republic regime ofLon Nol, and rose to the rank ofBrigadier general within theKhmer National Armed Forces (FANK); he was part of the influential circle of officers around Nol's brother,Lon Non. In the first years of the civil war fought by Lon Nol's forces against theKhmer Rouge communists, Kosem's troops of the 5th Special Brigade were repeatedly engaged in the most active areas of insurgency, and gained a reputation for allegedly systematically slaughtering the inhabitants of pro-Khmer Rouge villages; the counterproductive results of this reputation led to the unit eventually being disbanded, according to some sources.[4] Kosem became well known for his ferocity and for corruption, although was also known for his generosity.[5] After 1974 he was appointed as a roving ambassador for the Khmer Republic.
Upon the Khmer Rouge victory in 17 April 1975, Kosem escaped fromPhnom Penh and fled to exile inMalaysia. He died of natural causes a year later.[5]
.