By Nick Gier
New West
Norodom Sihanouk, now the beloved “King-Father of Cambodia,” right-wing leader Lon Nol, the North Vietnamese, Communist China, and Richard Nixon must all share in the blame.With the 35th anniversary of the fall of Saigon coming up on April 30, most of us forget that the Cambodian capital fell to the Communists the same year on April 17. Led by Pol Pot and his henchmen, the Khmer Rouge launched an insane campaign of retribution that led to the death of about 2 million people.
In 1968 the Khmer Rouge numbered only a few hundred comrades, so what made it possible for the most extreme element of the Cambodia left to come to power?
Norodom Sihanouk, now the beloved “King-Father of Cambodia,” right-wing leader Lon Nol, the North Vietnamese, Communist China, and Richard Nixon must all share in the blame.
In March 1945 Sihanouk declared Cambodia’s independence, but the French, with U.S. support, reclaimed its colonial possessions in Indochina. While Ho Chi Minh went to war with the French, Sihanouk remained staunchly anti-Communist and the French allowed him retain his throne.
Cambodia’s independence was granted in late 1953, and the French were forced to leave Indochina after their defeat at Dien Bien Phu in May of 1954.
While remaining officially anti-Communist and neutral during the Second Indochina War (our conflict), Sihanouk allowed the Vietnamese Communists to move supplies along on his side of the border and to use the port of Sihanoukville.
In March of 1970 Lon Nol, a right-wing army general deposed Sihanouk and condemned him to death in abstentia, but the Cambodian people rallied to their prince’s side. Lon Nol insisted the North Vietnamese leave their Cambodian bases, but their response was to support Pol Pot and send 40,000 troops to the outskirts of Phnom Penh.
Sihanouk allied himself with Pol Pot and, mainly as a result Sihanouk’s prestige, Khmer Rouge forces grew from 6,000 to 50,000. Just like the corrupt South Vietnamese generals on whom we lavished support, Lon Nol did not have a chance against disciplined Communist soldiers.
In 1969 President Richard Nixon ordered secret bombing attacks in Cambodia and Laos, and then launched an invasion of Cambodia on May 1, 1970. The first killing fields were Cambodian villages where, from 1969-1973, hundreds of thousands of people died by B-52 bombing raids.
Yale historian Ben Kiernan has done the most extensive surveys of the actions of the Pol Pot regime. Over 60 percent of those interviewed said that they turned to the Khmer Rouge because B-52s destroyed their villages.
After Pol Pot ordered several major cross border attacks, the Vietnamese finally lost their patience with the Khmer Rouge. Early in 1979 they launched an invasion of Cambodia and the Pol Pot regime crumbled within months. The Khmer Rouge were able to hold out for years in the jungles, primarily because of Chinese and North Korean aid.
Because President Ronald Reagan did not want to give any credit to the Vietnamese Communists, he opposed giving the Khmer Rouge’s UN seat to the new government. At the same time the U.S. gave aid to rebel forces who were opposed to the Vietnamese imposed government.
The indirect effect U.S. aid was to support the Khmer Rouge, who were in a coalition with the other rebels, and whose troops levels went back up to 35,000. The Vietnamese had to expend considerable effort to defeat Pol Pot’s forces, and he was finally forced over the border where the pro-American Thai government protected him.
In 1989 the Vietnamese withdrew all of its forces, and under UN auspices elections were held in 1993. Thirty years too late, the first Khmer Rouge official, simply known as “Duch,” is now being tried for crimes against humanity.
For the first time since the French Protectorate of 1863, the Cambodian people can pursue their own affairs without adverse external interference. They no longer have to fear a madmen such as Pol Pot or dread quarter-ton bombs dropping from 30,000 feet.
Nick Gier was co-president of the Student-Faculty Committee to End the War in Vietnam in 1965-66 at Oregon State University. He taught philosophy at the University of Idaho for 31 years. Read or listen to all of his columns at www.NickGier.com
44 comments:
Thye killing field was created by the Khmer Rouge Pol Pot and his cronies.
It´s unreasonable to accuse Sihanouk, Lon Nol or the foreigner of being responsible of the Killing Field.
Sihanouk´s Cambodia with it
" neutrality" was living at that time beetween the 2 BLOCKS, covered by the Cold war.
Both Blocks were working, each with their own way, to destroy Sihanouk´s neutrality and Cambodia.
But both block never had the vision to turn Cambodia into the killing Field. The masters of the Killing Field were the Top leaders of the KR.
The King can do no wrong ??
Unfortunately, Sihanouk hasn't been a true king in the first place. One of his biggest mistakes he made all his life is when he called on his people to join hands with Pol Pot in the vain hope that he could get even with Lon Nol, now he has to eat crow.
Being swayed by personal feelings, he must be responsible for millions'deads in the killing field.
Sihanouk is the leader of Khmer people murderer to fulfill his REVENGE and BENEFIT Hanoi, and finally Cambodia is being VIETNAMISED.
This stupid Sihanouk never never has a REMORSE AT ALL for what he had destroyed Cambodia and her people.
Please stop asking the same question over and over again.
For the last time, the dirty viets were(and still are) pulling the strings behind the scene.
it was lon nol's corrupted gov't; sihanouk's revenge; pol pot's stupidity; superpowers' pawn war; the victim is cambodia and khmer two millions plus khmer lives.
11:26 am, you are right on with a regional power play (the Youn and Siem) thrown in.
There is no doubt that khmer people revered Sihanouk as god but Sihanouk preferred Communist over the free world and in so doing he openly support the vietcong.The first president of the khmer republic did not trust yuon so he kick the old fart SIHANOUK out.
Khmer rouge hate Sihanouk and went underground to form a resistance and when he (sihanouk)got kick out ,he went AHEAD and join the khmer rouge.Now,it's a golden opportunity for khmer rouge to USE Sihanouk for their agenda with the help of CHINA.
The only person responsible for the khmer suffering is traitor SIHANOUK.
Some comments are only the idea of hating. Why we Khmer still blame each other about the past
The political situation at that time was only the fighting between the communist and the free world from the 2 Russia and USA.
And the US Army have lost the batter-fields, because America wanted very bad to lost this war.
Did America destroyed the Communist system in Vietnam. No, because until today Vietnam is still run by the communist system.
Thanks the Khmer Rouge, because the KR destroyed the real Communist Ideology from this planet.
This is written in sheer ignorance. The timeline of events is sloppy and often wrong.
When and why exactly did Sihanouk come onto the same side as the Khmer Rouge? This guy hasn't done the research.
You think U.S. support for the Khmer Rouge started under Ronald Regan? Think again.
http://www.iias.nl/article/american-wars-french-borders-thailand%E2%80%99s-acrimonious-adjacency-cambodia-part-1
I thinks most of the Khmer leader are not smart enough to lead a country. Most of them are uses by the neighbor enemies of us. Like ah short dog Sihanouk and ah monkey Hun Sen.
No matter what Sihanouk did to Cambodia,there are always some fucking khmer people support him.
Killer King!
That's not me,that's Lon Nol who gave rice to Vietcong.
HiHIHihi ,Yuon chea kror Peu,Akatagnou.
នេះជាពាក្យរបស់ស៊ីហនុ :
១-ខ្ញុំជួយយួនទាល់តែអស់រាជបល្លង្គ ។
២-ខ្ញុំខ្លាច ខ្ញុំរៀងហើយខ្មែរក្រហមនេះ ។
the Cambodian people can pursue their own affairs without adverse external interference. They no longer have to fear a madmen such as Pol Pot...How can this idiot say such things when we see the 'Duch' trial with international lawyers present and Hun Sen and his cronies killing outspoken good people like Chea Vichea? He should know that if you have a voice that will oppose or rub Hun Sen the wrong way, the only way out of Cambodia is in a box.
Nobody could forget the key role of the united states in this tragic story for Khmer People : coup was fomented by the CIA with help of Lon Nol to overthrow the khmer monarchy.
The USA must act of repentance for their crimes in cambodia.
The time has come now on trial for crimes of the CIA in Cambodia.
Go and learn something at http://khmer-heroes.blogspot.com
We have a mad king!!!
1) Vietnam used Cambodia to fight Americans.
2) USA used Cambodia to fight Yuons.
3) Pol Pot a crazy man, Nuon Chea a dump, Ieng Sary a killer, Khiev Samphan an anti-social.
4) China helped Khmer rouges, the killers.
Poor Sihanouk, Lon Nol and others were there just to be kicked..
Colonialist France gave up the kampuchea krom in Vietnam against the Khmer interests.
The Cambodians which have the French nationality should not feel proud of this history.
Colonialist France gave up the kampuchea krom in Vietnam against the Khmer interests.
The Cambodians which have the French nationality should not feel proud of this history.
In 1954, His Majesty N. Sihanouk obtained full independence of Cambodia's of French colonial administration.
NORODOM IS A DOG FAMILY AND PROSTITUTE ...
French made Cambodia smaller by cutting Kampuchea Krom and gave it to Yuon.
USA abandoned Cambodia in the arms of Khmer rouges.
China helped Khmer rouges to win the war and to kill Khmers.
We trust who now ?
None of them.
the point is do learn well from the KR lesson and avoid it at all cost! rememer like the tv program called "seconds from disaster", disasters don't just happened, there were critical events that led up to them, really. yes, analyze the KR ideology and what led up to it and what kind of situation at the time that opened the opportunity for them to take over power of cambodia and destroyed and killed people, etc... yes, there were a slew of events that contributed to it, really! it shouldn't be a blaming game, it is an educational discussion that reveal the knowledge in ordert o understand what happened, really. again, time is god and time will destroy everytime if we don't write it down in the history book. time goes on now, despite what happened then, you see. nothing last forever, including KR stupid regime, and so forth. let's all learn from this, etc... god bless all.
we have to understand that the stupid KR people hated civilization. they rather live simple lifestyle and in their own world like the stone age era, rather than go with the flow with the rest of the world. now, that is good and all if cambodia is the only country or race on the planet. what the stupid KR failed to understand is to see the world beyond the 'frog in the well' mentality. they think the world operate like them or something; that's why they killed off any signs of civilization, etc. they rather go back to the stone age era, but the problem is they try to take cambodia along with them and ended up in disaster as a result! KR people were a bunch of ignorant ones, believe it or not! of course, it's all in their mind. without the rule of law, we saw what happened in cambodia during that time, you know!
in short, the KR ideology was a rebellious against what the entire world stands for. they were so against the world i.e. they don't believe in the way french drew the map for cambodia by given a lot of khmer land to neighboring countries, etc... they think if they did not conform to the western way, they will win back the lost khmer lands etc... you see, you have to understand their radical thinking! of course, they hated the neighboring countries that stolen lands from cambodia; however, they were stupid because once they started to kill their own people in order to silent their voice, their philosophy, etc, they turned stupid, really!
yes, remember the world is huge and consist of many many countries and race and nationalities, etc... KR can't do it alone, etc... that's where stupidity came into play for them! they were all about rebellion and law of the jungle, you know! from this lesson, let cambodia learn that before we do something this radical again, we must look at the entire world and be mindful of the bigger world out there. yes, in case you didn't know, the world is huge and consist of many many countries with many many different people, languages, philosophies, cultures, and so forth, really! now wake up and see the world, ok! we, humans, in the world, need one another; can't go do it alone like war or whatever, you know! this is the smarter way; i hope cambodia will realize and embrace this knowledge about the world forever from now on! nope! we are not alone on earth, you know!
Don't blame the United States for your downfall.We only try to help you to avoid falling into communist but you motherfucker didn't even try help yourselves first and , what can we do ?So taste the Communist you idiot to see if you like it or not ?.
KR leaders are not ignorant, they are educated people. They wanted to be the best Communist regime on earth. They wanted to be regconized and proud of themself. If you just look at their history and life, they did not have any success in life at all. Whatever they tried to do, they wanted to be better then others. They did not want any help from Vietnam because they thought they can do better.
They won the war before Vietnam and they sent their troop to Vietnam to help fighting the war.
This kind of idea was trickled down to the village level. KR cardre compete with each others. If one village can produce 100 tons of rice, the others claim that they can do 150 tons.
i think the cambodian ways like the KR way is so local or so regional; they don't have any sense of worldliness or global view like most countries have. so, when your view is narrowed down only to a local or regional level, of course, you are blinded by your own arrogant, your own radical or extreme view, etc... that is why our wise ones labeled it "frog in the well" mentality. now why not try to analyze this important philosophy of the "frog in the well" mentality. i bet that will enlighhten us all to why KR did what they did, then, etc...
yes, KR people have small mind and a frog in the well mentality, alright! it is better to think globally from now on in cambodia.
NICK GIER IS BIASED TOWARD THE VIETNAME. ALL THE DESTRUCTION IN CAMBODIA CREATED BY VIETNAMESE SINCE DAY ONE. THE MANY ATTEMPTS TO EXTERMINATE CAMBODIANS STRONGLY STARTED WHEN THE VIETNAMESE WERE EMPLOYED BY THE FRENCH TO GOVERN THE STATE OF CAMBODIA & LAOS. THE VIETNAMESE MADE THEMSELVES CAMBODIANS AND THEN CREATED KHMER ROUGE BY RECRUITING CAMBODIAN STUDENTS WHILE IN PARIS. AMONG CAMBODIAN CIVILIANS MANY WERE VIETNAMESE ESPOIONAGES.
NICK GIER IS PAID BY HANOI TO HIDE THE CRIMES THAT COMMITTED BY THE VIETNAMESE IN CAMBODIA? SAY WHATEVER YOU WANT BUT THE FACTS THE VIETNAMESE DID COMMIT CRIMES AGAINST CAMBODIANS. "DAM TAE ONG" WAS ONE OF MANY EXTERMINATING STYLE BY THE VIETNAMESE.
CHINA CAME TO HELP CAMBODIA WAS AFTER THE VIETNAMESE HAVE BEEN PRESENCE IN CAMBODIA SINCE FRENCH COLONY.
NICK GIER SUCKS JUST THE SAME INDIAN MAN WHO WROTE THAT HO CHI MINH & HINDO, ERASING KHMER EMPIRE!!!!!!
ALL PROBLEMS IN CAMBODIA CREATED BY THE VIETNAMESE ALONE.
hey, the cambodian case is that, if we don't like someone doing something bad to us, we must tell them bluntly. you don't cooperate with them like in the case of someone always put the blame in the viet/youn for orchitrated destruction in cambodia. maybe it was once true, but it is questionable as time passes. just because history indicated that it was true what the viet/youn historical enemy did to some khmer people then, doesn't always true in this day and age. again, the key is time. as time passes, things too will change and become different and better or worst. it's time that tells. anyway, tell the viet/youn monster to go away, that cambodia don't need them to come and tell us or dictate to us or colonize us or whatever the case maybe may. tell them to go to hell and get lost, ok! we are only stupid if we cooperate and accept them, really! tell them to get lost already! this is cambodia, when they want to have good friendship with us, they have to respect our ways and our law, etc... so, tell them to get lost from cambodia, if your heart till your heart is content, really! no more excuses for cambodia, now!
yes, tell the viet/youn to go to hell and get out of cambodia! we don't need them! start by educating our population and from there let time takes care of itself, really! everyone has gotten to start somewhere, somehow, really!
is it hard to tell youn to go to hell away from cambodia? whose fault is that, then?
Hey,what are you talking about?.We need yuon here in Cambodia to provide us SEX.Their P...are cute,tight and DO MERE ស្រណុកលឹកអាច់លឹកនោមហើយ ។
Don ‘t forget another predator history of Kampuchea, which has never missed an opportunity to weaken the Khmer and to move in Khmer territory when the Khmer fought each other:
the Siamese to the west.
Therefore, on behalf of the Khmer Krom people and the Khmers Kampuchea Krom Federation, UNPO would like to appeal to the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to consider the following requests:
1. Decolonize Kampuchea-Krom, Motherland of the Khmer-Krom people, composed of 68,600 km2 , forming the southernmost part of present Vietnam.
2. Place the Kampuchea-Krom territory under the United Nations control in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, Chapter XI, Chapter XII, and Chapter XIII, in order to create a free and fair political environment allowing the Khmer- Krom people to exercise their right to self-determination.
Its our Khmer fault for the killing field.
Khmer always killed each other since the Funan and the Chenla, but Khmer never changed Khmer identity and always come back stronger.
5:15 AM
You are really dreaming!
You have to fight for that. The Vietnamese will never let that happen easily and you know that!
5:15 AM
Why are you posting your requests here?
Shouldn't you send them to the Vietnamese embassy in the country where you currently live?
Vietnamese were the killers of Cambodian people. Pham Boi Chau started his 1st revolution in
1900, then his god son Ho Chi Minh carried on.
They made Vietnamese to be Cambodians and they created KR.
They Viets are the most evil creature worse than all evils in the universe.
Before 1975, USA helped Republican Vietnameses and Cambodians to fight against communists backed by China.
After 1979, USA helped Republican Cambodians and SECRETLY Khmer rouges with China against USSR clan.
From 197X to 1989, USSR (Russia) helped Vietnam to invade and occupy Cambodia.
China helped Khmer rouges from the beginning to the end.
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