History has an uncanny way of repeating itself, often in unexpected and disquieting ways. One of the more controversial chapters in the annals of American foreign policy is the indirect support the U.S. provided to the Khmer Rouge during the Cambodian Civil War. This grim episode finds unsettling parallels in […]
Category: History
The Last Khmer Rouge State: A Journey Through History
When people think of the Khmer Rouge, images of Cambodia’s dark past and the infamous Killing Fields often come to mind. However, fewer are aware of the last Khmer Rouge state, a region where the remnants of this brutal regime held on long after their fall from power. Welcome to […]
Dark Tourism in Anlong Veng and beyond received boost
The nascent Cambodian dark tourism industry has received a boost after a road was paved between Anlong Veng to the last bunker of Pol Pot, as well as plans to renovate the grave of the former communist leader. Previously the bunker, which is in the last Khmer Rouge holdout of […]
Was the Khmer Rouge Maoist?
Was the Khmer Rouge Maoist is a question that has been asked by many scholars. Alas the answer is somewhat complex, as while the Pol Pot and the Communist Party of Kampuchea were not doubt influenced and financed by the Peoples Republic of China, their specific ideology can be seen […]
What is Buddhist Socialism and where has it existed?
What is Buddhist socialism, has it ever been attempted, where does it stand today and what impact of any did it have on Cambodia? Officially Buddhist Socialism was the guiding principle of Cambodia during the 1960’s under Sihanouk. Quite how left-wing it was is up for debate, but it did […]
The Khmer Rouge and North Korea
The Khmer Rouge and North Korea had a relationship that was extremely complex. Technically they were ideologically aligned, but as opposed to China friendships and personal relations took precedence over geopolitical issues. With that being said though the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) remained an ally of the Khmer […]
Dark Tourism – Kampong Chhnang Airport
Unbeknown to many there are actually Khmer Rouge and Killing Field sites located throughout Cambodia. Most of them are unknown though to all but relatives, and thankfully the Cambodian Documentation Centre. One of the most important of these is Kampong Chhnang Airport. Said airport was initially build in the early […]
Solidarity Front for Development of the Cambodian Motherland (2006–present)
The leading mass organization currently in Cambodia the Solidarity Front for Development of the Cambodian Motherland was founded in 2006. The front has two precursors, namely the Kampuchean United Front for National Salvation, the militant organization that led to liberation from the Khmer Rouge. This initial group contained not just […]
Who was Son Ngoc Minh?
Son Ngoc Minh was one of the first communist revolutionaries in Cambodia. As a founder of the Kampuchean Peoples Revolutionary Party, a forerunner to the Communist Party of Kampuchea he can be considered the father of the Khmer Rouge. Son was born in 1920 to a Khmer Krom father and […]
Who were the Khmer Rumbo?
The Khmer Rumbo were left-wing revolutionaries who were fighting against what they saw as the American puppet regime of Lon Nol and the Khmer Republic. They were differentiated from the Khmer Rouge in that while they were leftists they saw Sihanouk as a figure of national unity and they enjoyed […]