Opinion - Why the SEA Games must remain untouched by politics
PHNOM PENH: A Thai proposal to exclude Cambodia is not just misguided, it's a warning sign for Asean's moral compass.
In times of tension, our region does not need louder threats, it needs clearer principles. That is why recent comments from Thailand's Minister of Tourism and Sports, suggesting that Cambodia could be excluded from the upcoming SEA Games, demand more than quiet dismissal. They demand correction.
Let us start with the facts.
Cambodia is a full and cooperative member of the SEA Games Federation Council. We are under no sanctions. We have not violated a single rule, nor have we used sport to provoke, retaliate or disrupt. Our athletes are training. Our coaches are preparing. Our participation in the December 2025 Games is rooted in merit, not politics.
So when a host minister publicly floats the idea of barring our delegation not due to misconduct, but due to 'public sentiment' and 'safety concerns' the question must be asked: what is the real motive behind the suggestion?
Because this is not about sport. It is about narrative control.
What we are witnessing is a familiar tactic. When internal pressure builds, when truth becomes inconvenient, governments look outward. They create symbols. They look for something to reject. And in this case, Cambodian athletes are being used as that symbol.
The problem with this strategy is not only that it's unjust, but also dangerous. If a host country is allowed to politicise who can or cannot attend the SEA Games, we no longer have sport. We have spectacle. We no longer have neutral ground. We have leveraged terrain.
To his credit, the president of the SEA Games Council, Chaiyaphak Siriwat, responded swiftly and clearly. He reminded all parties that the SEA Games are governed by the Olympic Charter, a document built on non-discrimination, neutrality and inclusion. No host nation has the authority to exclude another. Not now. Not ever.
Yet the damage from the minister's remarks is already visible. Even without formal enforcement, the idea was seeded. Doubt was created. And that, too, is a form of soft warfare not between armies, but between truths.
For Cambodia, we do not respond with outrage. We respond with clarity. We will not step aside. We will not play into the hands of provocation. Our flag will fly in Bangkok. Our athletes will show up. Not because we were permitted, but because we belong.
And this is no longer just about Cambodia. This is about Asean.
If the region stands by while exclusion is entertained under the language of 'safety' or 'healing', then we endorse a precedent where every future host can wield emotion as a weapon. Tomorrow it may not be Cambodia. It may be another country, another delegation, another excuse.
This is not the SEA Games we were told to believe in. This is not the Asean we swore to protect.
Sport must remain a space for merit, not manipulation. For unity, not leverage. For healing, not distraction. Cambodia understands this. Our conduct in the 2023 SEA Games proved it when we hosted every nation with dignity, respect and neutrality.
The coming months will test not just the border, but the moral border of our region. The line between disagreement and disqualification. Between politics and principle.
I ask my readers, fellow Southeast Asians, and institutional leaders to hold that line with us.
Because if we surrender it now, there will be no game worth playing. - The Phnom Penh Post/ANN
[Ponley Reth is a Cambodian writer and commentator based in Phnom Penh. The views and opinions expressed are his own.]
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