General Peter Khoy Saukam | |
---|---|
សូកាំ ខូយ | |
President of the Khmer Republic | |
Acting | |
In office 1 April 1975 – 12 April 1975 | |
Preceded by | Lon Nol |
Succeeded by |
Sak Sutsakhan as Chairman of the Supreme Committee |
President of the Senate | |
In office 1972–1975 | |
Preceded by | Position established |
Succeeded by | Chea Sim (1999) |
Personal details | |
Born | Saukam Khoy 2 February 1915 Cambodia, French Indochina |
Died | 14 November 2008 Stockton, California, U.S. | (aged 93)
Political party | Social Republican Party |
Spouse | Vom Tep Saukam |
Children | 7 |
Military service | |
Allegiance |
First Kingdom of Cambodia Khmer Republic |
Branch/service |
Royal Cambodian Army Khmer National Army |
Years of service | 1940–1975 |
Rank | Lieutenant general |
Peter Khoy Saukam (born Saukam Khoy Khmer: សូកាំ ខូយ; 2 February 1915 – 14 November 2008) was a Cambodian politician who served as Acting President of the Khmer Republic for 12 days in April 1975. He was President of the Senate from 1972 to 1975.
Born on 2 February 1915, Saukam Khoy enlisted into the Khmer Royal Army in 1940, when he was 25. He achieved the rank of lieutenant-colonel in 1953 and subsequently, lieutenant-general. He became President of the Senate of the Khmer Republic in 1972. [1]
He took office on 1 April 1975, when a tearful Lon Nol left 'temporarily' with his entire family for Bali in Indonesia after an invitation from his friend, Indonesian President Suharto. [2]
Khoy's time in office was short. He left Phnom Penh together with American Ambassador John Gunther Dean aboard a CH-53 helicopter during the evacuation of American embassy staff and civilians, dubbed Operation Eagle Pull on 12 April, just five days before Phnom Penh fell to the Khmer Rouge. [3]
Khoy died at the age of 93 in Stockton, California, United States, on 14 November 2008. [4]