Cambodia

ØHuge quantities of Cambodian rice smuggled to Vietnam

ØDestabilised Sihanouk’s finances, as exports were main source of revenue

Ø1000s of ethnic Khmers fled the Mekong Delta to avoid the hostility of Siagon, and into Cambodia

ØUS ‘search and destroy’ tactics resulted in NV communists fleeing to Cambodia.

ØUS Followed… bombing et al

ØIncreased use of Ho Chi Minh trail resulted in US strafe bombings killing hundreds of Cambodians

ØCoinciding with NV interventions into Cambodia, was the growing insurgency of the Cambodian Communists, led by Pol Pot.

ØSih referred to them as the Khmer Rouge, although after 1966 they called themselves the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK).

ØTheir policies shifted pro-Vietnam and Cold War neutrality, to Anti-Vietnamese and Pro-Chinese.

ØReasons were... ØIncreased Gov Repression of the left wing

ØPrime Minister (and General) Lon Nol’s troops took peasant land, and also killed some peasants to pass off their heads as rebels…

ØIncreasing influence of Pol Pot

ØEncouragement from China

ØUS increasingly unwelcome involvement in Cambodia

ØStill pro-Vietnamese in the CPK

ØVillagers still held Sihanouk in very high regard, given his prestige and nationalist agenda

ØSih response was brutal… rebels were beheaded or disembowelled.  40 teachers suspected of subversion were thrown off of a cliff

ØRebels were not a very large force

ØSih saw the communists as a growing threat, and so started to reach out to the USA

ØJohnson was reluctant at first, but following JCS advice he did order more bombing of the border and mine laying

ØNixon was far more pro-active with both of these, but this only pushed the communists deeper into Cambodia and more destabilising for Sih

ØIt also resulted in increased NV support for the Khmer Rouge

ØBy 1970, Sih regime had been significantly destabilised, and the Vietnamese communist moved at will in the borderlands

ØLon Nol estimated that 40,000 were in Cambodia

ØAll pointed towards a KR rebellion

ØIn March 1970 Sih had gone to France for obesity treatment, followed by a visit to Russia to ask for aid

ØWhile away the RIGHT WING national assembly replaced him with the pro-American General Lon Nol!

ØCambodian economy in trouble, but Sih had a very extravagant lifestyle

ØMiddle class and senior military wanted to fully align with the USA

ØThey also felt that they could profit more from US ties

ØLon Nol had encouragement from the USA

ØSih had been out of the country for too long

 ØHOWEVER – Although there were many that welcome Sih downfall, Lon Nol’s Khmer Republic was very short of popular support

ØDuring 1970, tens of thousands protested in PRO-Sih demonstrations

ØTribal/gang warfare broke out… Some eating the hearts of opponents

ØN & S Viet incursions into Cambodia created a lot of anti-Vietnam sentiment, with Cambodians attacking Viet citizens

ØThe Mekong River became clogged with 1000s of dead bodies

ØThe Viet (300,000) fled the country ØAnd then (with Lon Nol’ssupport), the US and ARVN invaded Cambodia to try and remove the communists… it failed

ØThe NV responded by supporting the Khmer Rouge, and the exiled Sih!

ØBy 1975, they had overthrown Lon Nol, with both sides committing atrocities

ØCommunists were well organised and popular with the poor

ØThe Khmer Rouge were supported by Sihanouk!!!  He urged the peasants to follow them

ØThe KR were supported by Viet Com, despite the beginning of Pol Pots purges of Viet and Sih supporters

ØThe atrocities of the ARVN pushed the people towards the communists

ØUS bombing created resentment among the ethnic Khmer

ØUS left Indochina in Jan 1973 (Paris Peace Accords)

ØIn April 1975 PP established the DK, with the aims to…

ØBe free of corrupting influence of foreigners

ØBe self sufficient in food production

ØCleanse social blemishes

ØBe great again

Ø1975 was to be Year Zero for the Kampuchea

ØThe exclusion of ALL foreigners and influence

ØThe Demolition of urban life

ØThe social elevation of the poorest peasants

ØThe creation of huge agricultural co-operatives (collectivisation)

ØThe enforcement of uniformity amongst the Khmers

ØMass executions

Ø2 million residents deported from Phnom Penh (15,000) from the hospitals

ØWorked in agricultural labour camps, with 650,000 dying by 1979

ØMotivation was low, and therefore so was production

ØStarvation problems grew for all, and cannibalism grew in the province of Pursat!

ØDissent punishable by death

ØEstimates are that 2 million died under Pol Pot, with up to a million of those being executed (8mill pop)

ØThose that spoken a foreign language or wore glasses were ‘parasitical intellectuals’

Ø80% of teachers and 95% of doctors were murdered

ØPublic buildings converted into torture chambers

ØMass graves became know as the ‘Killing Fields’

ØMost of PP victims were Ethnic Khmers

ØAlthough relatively speaking more ethnic minorities died

ØMuslim Cham, largest ethnic minority in Cambodia

ØThey tried to rebel, but were persecuted and often executed by the KR

ØChinese Cambodians were considered capitalist, and so over half died, despite China helping Pol Pot financially

ØRemaining Vietnamese were expelled, any remaining were hunted down and murdered

ØKhmer Krom and tribal minorities, many Krom were massacred, but many hill tribes were left alone, including keeping there own languages

ØBroke off diplomatic relations with all but China

ØSome CPK cadres still considered China an enemy though

ØVietnam was PP biggest concern, and in 1977 border clashes led to PP…

ØExecuting Vietnamese minds in Khmer Bodies, anyone who appeared to support the Vietnamese

ØNumerous border zone purges… yet KR had challengers and so…

ØThe KR showed the peasants Sihanouk, who was in confinement in Phnom Penh to gain support for the KR regime

ØOpened the regime to work with some challengers to win more support

ØAppeal to the Chinese for help

1.Deng Xiaoping (leader of China) promised support, but openly scolded PP for the actions of the regime and the troops

2.The purges greatly weakened the Khmer Rouge support

3.Contributed significantly to the Vietnamese invasion of 1978

•Christmas day of 1978 – Vietnam invaded and Pol Pots regime collapsed

•But why did they invade?

•Continued KR purges

•Cambodians fleeing onto Vietnam to escape Pol Pot’s regime

•Continued border clashes initiated by KR

•Crimes of the KR incursions in Vietnam… ****, disembowelment, children cut in two, schools burned down

•KR rejection of talks on disputed regions

•Desire to dominate Indochina

•Khmer Rouge retreated into the jungles

•Many Cambodians welcomed the Vietnam Invasion

•New Cambodian Government under a KR defector, HengSamrin

•International concern over Vietnamese intervention

•Created PKR

Ø140,000 strong Vietnamese occupation force remained in Cambodia to support HengSamrin

ØPRK opposed by China, US and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), who all declared support for Pol Pot!

ØThroughout the 1980s… 30,000 Khmer Rouge guerrillas opposed the PRK… They also renounced Communism to try and win support from anti-communist nations

ØAnother opposition was the KPNLF, who were led by many of Lon Nol’s officers.  8000 strong army, but no peasant support

ØSih also returned in 1982, to lead a coalition Government with both of the above!  The CDGK 

ØChinese gave KR $100mill of weapons each year in the 1980s

ØFelt that USSR support for Vietnam was part of a USSR expansion plan

ØChina consistently warned Vietnam against expansion in the region

ØThe ‘boat people’ (Vietnamese of Chinese ethnicity), who fled the persecution of the Hanoi government

Ø1979… China invaded Vietnam to ‘teach them a lesson’… both sides suffered numerous causalities, and both claimed victory

ØThe UN supported Pol Pot and condemned the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia, at the behest of the USA and China

ØMarch 1990, UN security council proposed formation of coalition containing all of the warring factions, which would hold elections supervised by a UN peacekeeping force.  Signed in Paris in October 1991

ØAgreement of Paris was… all factions to demobilise, National elections in 1993, UN would administer Cambodia until elections with Sihanouk as Head of State!!!

ØKR refused to demobilise, Hun Sen (Vietnamese sponsored) worked with the UN

ØKR kidnapped and killed UN workers

ØSih stated that he was a puppet, and retired to Beijing

ØElections still took place, with Sih son (Ranariddh) winning 58 seats, and Hun Sen winning 51 (with the help of violence, intimidation and bribery)

ØThe UN persuaded Sihanouk, Hun Sen and Ranariddh to govern together

ØThis was a epic mistake, as the government was corrupt, undemocratic and plagued by KR resistance

ØFrom French colony to pawn in the Cold War game of the USA, USSR and China

ØThe Sino-Soviet rivalry had a massive impact later on, with the Chinese supporting the KR/Pol Pot, and the USSR supporting what was essentially a puppet Vietnamese leadership

ØOnly at the end of the Cold War, were USA, USSR and China willing to work on a real settlement for Cambodia

ØCambodia represents a very tragic story of Superpower interference and impact

ØNone more so than the USA, who's intrusions were probably the most damaging, as their actions and non-actions were one of the main reasons for the rise of Pol Pot