The Ministry of Tourism has issued a statement rejecting allegations made by The Nation Thailand on Monday, October 7. 

The controversy centres around claims that the ministry failed to properly welcome participants of the Miss Grand International (MGI) 2024 competition, leading to the abrupt cancellation of Cambodia’s role as the host country for the event.

According to The Nation Thailand’s Facebook post, one of the reasons cited for the cancellation was the absence of the tourism minister at a promised press conference, as well as an alleged failure by Cambodian officials to greet contestants upon their arrival. 

These accusations were linked to the MGI organising committee’s decision to move the event from Cambodia to Thailand.

“The tourism ministry firmly rejects and denies the above allegation, which is entirely false and has severely damaged the reputation of the [ministry],” said the statement.  

The ministry clarified that tourism minister Huot Hak did in fact meet with the event’s organisers and contestants on October 6 at the ministry. 

“During this meeting, the minister extended a warm welcome to the participants and discussed the event's positive impact on promoting Cambodia’s culture and tourism,” according to the statement. 

Additionally, the ministry emphasised that the minister never committed to attending any press conference or any other event beyond the official meeting held at the ministry. 

It added that it facilitated seamless cooperation with various institutions to assist with the entry, exit and sightseeing arrangements for the contestants.

“The [ministry] requests that The Nation Thailand correct the false information mentioned above and cease its dissemination, while properly adhering to the ethical standards of journalism,” the statement said.

The Miss Grand Cambodia Facebook page posted several photos highlighting the warm meeting with Hak, alongside the MGI and Miss Grand Cambodia teams on the morning of October 6.

“On behalf of national and international institutions, we would like to express our deepest gratitude to Cambodia’s tourism ministry for its cooperation and support in organising this historic pageant,” said Miss Grand Cambodia. “We received a warm welcome from [the minister] and all members of the tourism ministry.”

“We hope that this event will contribute to the promotion of tourism in Cambodia and enhance the country's reputation worldwide,” it added.

Im Sokunthea, a well-known former actress and owner of the beauty care company HK7, was appointed as the new manager of Miss Grand Cambodia and spoke at a press conference on October 9.

She stated that the decision to co-host with Thailand was made with technical assistance from MGI president Nawat Itsaragrisil, but at the expense of the Cambodian side.

"I love this programme and deeply wish to promote Cambodia to the world; it is something I truly cherish," she said. "From October 1-3, we welcomed the MGI contestants arriving from different countries."

However, Sokunthea mentioned that issues arose on the fourth day when she went to pick up Nawat at Phnom Penh International Airport (PNH) at 11:30am, but the guests abruptly left the reception area, got into a car and departed without notice.

On October 5 at the Sokha Phnom Penh Hotel, Sokunthea described the situation as particularly challenging, involving last-minute changes to the programme, including adjustments to both the schedule and equipment, despite prior arrangements with Cambodian officials.

During the press conference, she explained that she had invited the tourism minister for 5pm, with the live broadcast scheduled to begin at 6pm. However, she said Nawat insisted that the hotel hall be closed at 4pm for an earlier live broadcast.

"He went live at 4pm," she said. “My hands and feet are shaking because I was the one who had invited the minister, a high-ranking government official. If something went wrong, who would be responsible? I would, since I invited the minister."

She added that the minister accepted the change in schedule but was unable to attend at the earlier time. However, Nawat claimed that the official neither attended the event nor honoured the committment.

"Who is truly dishonouring Cambodia?" she asked.

Recently, the MGI organising committee drew attention when it announced that Cambodia would no longer host MGI 2024, as the necessary services and standards could not be met by the local organisers.

Following the cancellation, Nawat expressed his frustration on social media.

“Unprofessional. We have left. I have never met this type of person! See you in Thailand,” he posted.

Miss Grand Cambodia, through a public statement, announced its decision to cut ties with the MGI organisation, accusing the latter of not respecting Cambodia as the host country. 

“We regret to announce that Miss Grand Cambodia will no longer continue the copyright with MGI because this organisation does not respect Cambodia as the host country and does not cooperate with the Cambodian side,” read the statement.

Sokunthea also addressed the controversy surrounding the “boat incident”, explaining that the dinner on the vessel was never part of the official schedule. She said it was a personal request by Nawat, despite her attempts to suggest a more suitable venue.

"At 5pm, it was raining, and the table decorations had to be removed due to the weather. There were concerns about reorganising the event to 7pm, which could have put the pageant at risk," she explained.

Miss Grand Cambodia 2024 Bee Sotheary confirmed that the decision to change the boat was made when the original vessel was unready to dock. She said Nawat then selected another boat and bought refeshments for the event.

"I want to clarify that the boat shown in the photos was the one Nawat chose, not the one I had prepared. As for the quail eggs and peanuts, he purchased and prepared them himself, but I was the one who covered the expenses,” Sokunthea said.

According to Thai sources, the Miss Grand Thailand contestant was quoted as tearfully complaining that she had been served embryo and quail eggs with worms.

As of now, MGI 2024 contestants have resumed their schedule in Thailand, while the controversy surrounding Cambodia’s brief role as host continues to make headlines. 

The ministry remains adamant that the allegations made by The Nation Thailand are baseless and called for a public retraction to restore the country’s image on the global stage.