In the thirty years after the Second World War, Cambodia witnessed the reassertion of colonial power, the spread of nationalism, the birth and growth of a communist party, the achievement of independence, the stifling reform during the decade of peace, the rise of an armed domestic insurgency, the encroachment of an international war, massive bombardment and civilian casualties, pogroms and ethnic ‘cleansing’ of religious minorities. From 1975 to 1979, genocide took another 1.7 million lives. Then, after liberation from the Khmer Rouge regime, Cambodia survived a decade of foreign occupation, international isolation, and guerrilla terror and harassment. UN intervention and democratic transition were followed by Cambodia’s defeat of the Khmer Rouge in 1999 amid continuing internal tension and political confrontation.
Against this backdrop of more than thirty years of conflict in Cambodia, Conflict and Change in Cambodia brings together primary documents and secondary analyses that offer fresh and informed insights into Cambodia’s political and environmental history.
This book was previously published as a special issue of Critical Asian Studies.
Introduction. Conflict in Cambodia, 1945-2002 Ben Kiernan 1. The Collapse of the Pol Pot Regime, January-April 1979 Ben Kiernan 2. An Account of Chinese Diplomats Accompanying the Government of Democratic Kampuchea's Move to the Cardamom Mountains Yun Shui, Translated by Paul Marks 3. Democratization, Elite Transition, and Violence in Cambodia, 1991-1999 David Roberts 4. International Intervention and the People's Will: The Demoralization of Democracy in Cambodia Caroline Hughes 5. Logging in Muddy Waters; The Politics of Forest Exploitation in Cambodia Philippe le Billon 6. Contested Forests: An Analysis of the Highlander Response to Logging, Ratanakiri Province, Northeast Cambodia Ruth Bottomley. Documents. 7. Trials and Tribulations: The Latest Twists in the Long Quest for Justice for the Cambodian Genocide Helen Jarvis. Documents (introduced by Ben Kiernan): (1) Letter of Sok An, 23. Nov. 2001; (2) Cambodian Response, 22 Jan. 2002; (3) Press Conference Statement by Hnas Corell, 8 Feb. 2002; (4) Statement by Royal Government of Cambodia, 12 Feb. 2002
Biography
Ben Kiernan and Catherine Hughes
