Photo Depicting Hun Sen Riding Cyclo with Ho Chi Minh Altered

Major national elections in Cambodia are approaching soon. Criticism and political verbal attacks have soon become a topic of debate among social media users. Meanwhile, a photo showing Cambodian PM, Hun Sen riding a cyclo with a former leader of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh was posted on Facebook recently. This photo was reacted with mixed comments and reshared by Facebook users who are speaking Khmer. However, after running a Google Reverse Image search, it proves that the photo above was altered.

This is about our investigation of this photo.

Social Media Claim

On January 12, 2022, one of the Facebook users posted a photo depicting Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and a former Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh traveling on cyclo together. Ho Chi Minh has been known as an outstanding leader of the Vietnamese revolutionary movement, holding the post of director minister from 1945-1955 and President from 1955-1969 of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. The photo above may be believed by some Facebook users to be a real photo, with mixed reactions and a number of shares from Facebook users who are speaking Khmer.

The following screenshot was captured from the Facebook user’s post which translates in English as “From one day to one day, from one year to one year, January 7th is less valuable for Cambodians because the Khmer people of this generation, they do understand a lot, no longer allow the Vietnamese to cheat anymore”.

Facebook Post | Archived Link

Fact Check

Fact Crescendo Cambodia had started to check and verify this photo directly by running a Google Reverse Image search, which brought us to the sources containing the following photos.

A photo of the same format and shape was found on the Press OCM published on January 13, 2018, about the activities of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen during the meeting and having a solidarity meal with cyclo riders in Phnom Penh. The following is an image from the above page that reads in Khmer and translates in English as “Prime Minister Hun Sen met and had a solidarity meal with cyclo riders in Phnom Penh”.

Press OCM Link | Archived Link

Similarly, according to the VOD news media website published in Khmer on January 13, 2018, it also revealed an exact photo with the same format and shape, however the same website does not display the scene of Cambodian Prime Minister riding a cycle with a former leader of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh at all.

The following screenshot was the headline captured from the newspaper above that translates in English as “Hun Sen calls his critics on helping cyclo riders as animals”.

VOD News Report | Archived Link

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You may find the details of this fact-check in Khmer language here as well.

Conclusion

Fact Crescendo Cambodia has found that the photo posted and claimed by the above Facebook user was altered. It had been edited before it was posted on social media. This photo was taken when Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen met and had a solidarity meal with Cyclo riders in Phnom Penh on January 13, 2018. This does not show a view of PM Hun Sen with a former leader of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh, at all.