Sisowath Sirik Matak
| Sisowath Sirik Matak | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 25th Prime Minister of Cambodia | |
|
In office March 11, 1971 – March 18, 1972 |
|
| President |
Cheng Heng Lon Nol |
| Preceded by | Lon Nol |
| Succeeded by | Son Ngoc Thanh |
| Deputy Prime Minister of Cambodia | |
|
In office August 14, 1969 – March 11, 1971 |
|
| Prime Minister | Lon Nol |
| Ambassador of Cambodia to China | |
|
In office 1962–1970 |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born |
January 22, 1914 Phnom Penh, Cambodia |
| Died | April 21, 1975 (aged 61) Phnom Penh, Cambodia |
| Political party | Republican Party |
| Spouse(s) | Norodom Kethneari |
| Children | Sisowath Chariya Sisowath Lichavi Sisowath Sirirath Sisowath Santa Sisowath Olary Sisowath Kanika |
| Profession | Politician, soldier |
| House | House of Sisowath |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 Kingdom of Cambodia Khmer Republic
|
| Service/branch | Royal Cambodian Army |
| Years of service | 1949–1975 |
| Rank | Lieutenant general |
| Commands | Chief of Staff of the Khmer National Armed Forces |
Sisowath Sirik Matak (Khmer: ស៊ីសុវត្ថិ សិរិមតះ; January 22, 1914 – April 21, 1975) was a member of the Cambodian royal family, the Varman dynasty, under the House of Sisowath.
Sirik Matak was mainly notable for his involvement in Cambodian politics, particularly for his involvement in the 1970 right-wing coup against his cousin, Prince Norodom Sihanouk, and for his subsequent establishment, along with Lon Nol, of the Khmer Republic.
Sirik Matak was born in Phnom Penh, and was a member of the Sisowath branch of the Varman Dynasty, being the great-grandson of Sisowath of Cambodia. He was recruited into the colonial civil service in 1930.
Under the colonial French-imposed constitution, any member of the Norodom or Sisowath branches of the family could be selected as king, and Sirik Matak was therefore one of the possible contenders to the Cambodian throne. In 1941, after the death of King Sisowath Monivong, the French authorities selected Sirik Matak's cousin Norodom Sihanouk to be King, believing him to be relatively pliant. Sihanouk later accused Sirik Matak of harbouring a deep resentment against him, stating that he "hated me from childhood days because he thought his uncle, Prince Sisowath Monireth, should have been placed on the throne instead of myself. He even had a notion that he himself should have been chosen".
After the Second World War, Sirik Matak became increasingly involved in Cambodian politics. As a part of the right-wing Khmer Renovation party headed by Lon Nol, he took part in the National Assembly elections in 1947, though the party failed to win any seats. Sihanouk, then acting as Prime Minister, placed him in charge of defence in 1952, formally appointing him Minister of Defence in the interim government set up after independence in 1954; Sihanouk's Sangkum movement absorbed the Khmer Renovation Party prior to the Sangkum victory in the 1955 elections.
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