Career
He is the Chairman of The Royal Group which counts among its many holdings 45% of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Royal Bank, the mobile phone operator Mobitel and 45% of Toll Royal Railways. Meng also owns a majority stake in Cambodia"s leading television and telecommunications networks, Cambodian Broadcasting Corporation and CamGSM. Meng is known for his preferences for entering Cambodian companies into joint ventures including international companies. Kith Meng is the youngest of three sons of Chinese Cambodian businessman Kith Peng Ike.
Kith Meng led a comfortable life in his hometown in Kandal Province until 1975 when the advent of the Khmer Rouge regime caused major social upheaval.
Kith"s family were among those targeted by the Khmer Rouge because of their wealth, ethnicity and socio-economic status. In 2008, Meng unseated Sok Kong as President of Cambodia"s Chamber Of Commerce.
He was elected by his fellow Chamber members unopposed for another three-year term in 2011 and again in 2014. Commentators have compared Meng to other well-known Asian tycoons including Singapore"s Lee Kuan Yew and Thailand"s Thaksin Shinawatra.
However, Meng has downplayed suggestions he may one day stand for the Prime Ministership, saying, "leave politics to the politicians".
Still, Meng often accompanies Cambodia"s Prime Minister Hun Senator abroad to help promote Cambodia"s economic interests and is a strong supporter of Hun Senator. Meng carries the honorary title of "Neak Oknha", a title bestowed by the Royal Family on those who make contributions of $100,000 or more. Meng"s business practices and close ties to a government widely seen as authoritarian and corrupt have led to controversy.
In June 2011, WikiLeaks exposed an American diplomatic cable calling Meng a “relatively young and ruthless gangster”.
Meng has received particular criticism regarding his land deals and land rights, being accused of using his political connections to forcefully clear questionably acquired real estate of residents and national monuments in order to proceed with development. Meng and his companies have also been the center of controversies regarding environmental issues in Cambodia, most prominently illegal logging in protected areas of the northeast (including Virachey National Park) displacing indigenous villages and destroying rural villages and fishing grounds for hydroelectric projects without compensation or proper environmental assessment reports.
