An exchange between Thanh and Sokhom

Posted as comments on KI-Media

I am a Vietnamese/Nguoi Viet or what you all refer to as "Yuon", I would like to share a heart to heart with Khmer readers .

I understand Khmer's animosity against Vietnam. The Viet nation expanded and took over your former lands. You have the Right to Hate Me and my people.

But I just want you all to understand a few things about Vietnam:

We are not bad people. We are people like you. We breathe air, we eat food, we have blood that runs red like every human being in this world. When a normal Viet individual sees a Khmer person suffer in pain, we sympathize and we feel and share the pain that you feel. We don't you to go hungry nor do we want you to get sick. A Khmer who comes to a Viet for help - will always be given assistance. In the past hundreds of years of history, often times Viet and Khmer have been good to each other. Making love, fighting wars together, exchanging cultural practices like food and music (many similarities, e.g., Samlar machu-Khmer & Canh chua-Viet, the Viet Folk Songs of the Mekong Delta has the same musical rhythm).

When Siam invaded Cambodia, Khmers asked for Viet help and the Viets always did provide assistance. When the French ruled and abused Viets and Khmers, we joined together to oust the foreign White Man. When Pol Pot committed genocide, Viets removed him from power. Pol Pot had killed all the intellectuals and about 90% Buddhist monks. Vietnam allowed your cousins - Khmer Krom Buddhist monks to go to Cambodia to REVIVE your religion. YES, that's true! Communist Vietnam helped to foster a new generation of your Buddhist clergy.

I DO NOT support Vietnam swallowing and erasing Cambodia from the map. Cambodia is a beautiful country with a wonderful culture, marvelous architecture and a beautiful and charming people. I wish for its preservation and longevity. Long Live Cambodia and the Khmer Nation!

But I as a sole individual, I am powerless to stop my country and people from trying to swallow Cambodia (& Laos).

Even though I oppose Vietnam's actions, I understand why Vietnam continues to attempt to dominate Cambodia & Laos.

You Ask for the Reason WHY???

The ANSWER is: It's how the way the real world works, the way life is.

In all aspects of life, the concept of the "Survival of the Fittest" applies. In International relations, especially power politics, the Strong wins and dominates over the Weak. Just like how Japan invaded Korea and East Asia or how the US invaded Iraq or how Chile invaded Bolivia. These examples, the invaders sought to secure their access to mineral deposits, oil, and natural resources. Since there is only FINITE/LIMITED resources, these countries knew war would only bring destruction, death and hatred - but their interests had to be secured. To this day, the Koreans and Chinese hate the Japanese, the Iraqis hate the Americans, the Bolivians hate the Chileans. The animosity never really goes away.

You see, there is a limited amount of land, water, oil, and natural resources in this world. I wish we live in a world with limitless bountiful natural resources - but the fact is - we don't. That's why psychologically, there is a competitive mentality of the strongest will prevail. The strong bully the weak to make sure he has enough food & water, a safe home to live and continue his future. It's VERY UNFAIR to the weak .

That's what Vietnam and the Viet people had to learn. And we learned it in a very hard way. The Viet suffered greatly at the hands of the Chinese.

In ancient times, the Hundred Yue tribes lived in area now known as Southern China and Northern Vietnam. They were a distinct ethnic group from the northern Han Chinese people. But the Chinese became more and more powerful, and their populations pushed south. Over the centuries, the Chinese managed to conquer and assimilate Southern China. The Nanyue (Nam Viets) were the southernmost tribe, and the only Yue people to remain apart from the Chinese empire. But even the Nam Viets were annexed for a thousand years until the year 938, the Viets regained their independence from China. The Chinese raped us of our literature, culture, and people. They forced their Chinese culture, values and customs onto us.

For the next 1,000 years, unsatisfied with swallowing Quang Dong, the different Chinese empires attacked Vietnam and sought to re-annex it into the empire. The Viets resisted and fought galantly over and over and over again and won. From these wars, we have our legendary warrior heroes like Le Loi and Tran Hung Dao.

Fast forward to modern day 20th and 21st centuries, China continues to threaten Vietnam with invasions and taking its lands and waters. China took more of the Northern border region and are presently invading the Paracel and Spratly Islands in the East Sea (South China Sea). China is intent on doing all it can to weaken Vietnam. In response, the Viets know too well how to deal with the Chinese with centuries of experience.

Yes, they call us Viets as clever, manipulative and deceitful. We Viets had to develop such skills and qualities to survive to this day. We, Viets always have to try to be one step ahead of the Chinese and be more clever and deceptive than them.

Therefore, with China always a threat to Vietnam's survival, the Viet kingdom did all it can to ensure its survival including at the expense of Champa, Lao, and Kampuchea. Vietnam felt vulnerable against its hostile neighbors, so it did what could to survive: to become more powerful than its neighbors. Such required a large population, and with a population boom, more land and resources were needed. Therefore, it was natural that the Viet kingdom moved South into Champa and the Mekong Delta (Khmer Krom).

Think about it, if you had a giant neighbor like China who always attacked you and tried to assimilate you, what would you do? Wouldn't you try your best to secure your land, your independence, and your nation? YES, you would. And that's what Vietnam did. In order for Vietnam to secure its spot in the world and in the future, Vietnam had to grow its population and allow it to explode. With the population increase, the Viet kingdom had to try to expand. Naturally, the weaker neighboring kingdoms were targeted and they began to fall and succumb to Dai Viet (Vietnam). The lands of the Cham (Champa), the Lao and the Khmer began to be absorbed into the Viet domain. If you (Cambodia and Khmer people), were in our shoes, you would do the exact same.

Unfortunately, it's like a food chain: The more Big Fish China eats away at Medium Fish Vietnam's land, Vietnam tries to compensate by eating Smaller Fish Cambodia & Laos.

Another factor in today's world, is climate change. Vietnam is one of the 10 most vulnerable countries to the effect of climate change. The sea levels are rising and swallowing the already highly densely populated country of the Viets. The Mekong river is no loner the same; seawater is flowing into the Mekong Delta and damaging the crops.

Vietnam is viewing Cambodia and Laos in the West as sanctuaries from the effects of global warming. As a responsible nation and parent, it is trying to look ahead into the future for its people, its children. It knows that when the time comes, Viet people will move in and take over Laos and Cambodia. Really, the Viet people have nothing against you people, we don't hate you.

It's a very rough world out there. Everybody has to look out for their own backs. Survival... every nation from big to small fights for its survival (its national interests) - from the US and China to Kuwait and Nepal.

A "Dog Eat Dog" World or "Eat or Be Eaten".

It's really unfortunate how the world is, how things work.

I really am sorry for your loss. I want to apologize for the Viet people to every Khmer out there.

I know Khmers will always hate us. Khmer hate us Nguoi Viet because we play the Game too well. You hate us because we have managed to survive at Champa's expense and your expense.

You also hate us because you are secretly envious of the Vietnamese accomplishments. You see how Vietnam managed to fight off China, France, the US, and yet continue to swallow Lao and Kampuchea. You hate us because you cannot do the same. Because there is no other smaller neighboring country for Khmers to expand into. You hate the fact that Khmers are unlucky to be stuck between two bigger, powerful neighbors - Vietnam & Thailand.

I am honestly very sorry from the bottom of my heart for the pain & suffering of the Khmer people. I wish life could be easier for everyone and resources be limitless so that we don't have to survive at the expense of each other.

As a Viet, this post is meant to reach out to my fellow Khmer brothers and sisters: I know why you hate me (Viets), but please try to understand us.

God Bless You. Long Live Cambodia/Khmers. Long Live Vietnam. Long Live Friendship.

Thanh

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Dear Thanh,

I’m a Khmer national, and you can call me Sokhom. First, let me say thank you for taking the time to write. It’s very unfortunate that two nations as ours can not co-exist peacefully side-by-side. You have expressed your view, allow me to express mine.

Historically, Khmer Kings were kind enough to let Vietnamese people fleeing the wars with China to stay on our land. Instead of thanking Khmer kings for kindly providing shelter during the difficult times, the Vietnamese people took over our lands. In recent history, Norodom Sihanouk granted your country a passage through our country to fight the French colonialists and American imperialists to reunite your country - the North and the South. How did your country pay us back? Your country tried to annex my country! Can you tell me how Khmer people should feel about your country? You mention about the friendship between our two people. I don’t see it. Look at Khmer Krom people who were continuously abused by your people and governments. There were reports that Khmer Krom people were prohibited from learning Khmer language at public schools, or watching Khmer TV, or even having their Khmer names on official documents.

Like I mention earlier it’s very unfortunate that two nations as ours can not co-exist peacefully side-by-side. But things do not have to be that way, yet your country chooses to pursue the very same path of hostility it started hundred years ago. Cambodia has been betrayed times and times by Vietnam in the past, and as of today, Vietnam has not shown any intention to leave Cambodia alone.

I hope your government and people ask themselves the right question –

In the present context of globalization and advanced information age, will Vietnam be more secured and become stronger by annexing Cambodia?

Many small countries including Korea, are very successful on their own without having to annex other countries.

Sokhom