Report on the February 14, 2010 Meeting with Sam Rainsy and Sean Pengse in Paris

14 February 2010
Provided by Anonymous attendant

Over 100 people from several parts of France (and also Belgium) completely filled the meeting room under a catholic church in Paris China town to listen to Sam Rainsy and Sean Pengse elaborate on the loss of Cambodian territories because of continuous border encroachments by neighbouring countries.

But the debate actually covered broader topics including the current political, economic and social situation in Cambodia, as well as the evolution in diplomacy and geopolitics.

The participants represented several political parties, organizations and associations but also included independent personalities from different spheres of activities.

The discussion was lively but cordial, showing a high motivation to help redress the situation in the Motherland.

The participants agreed that the Hun Sen government was exacerbating tensions with Thailand in order to divert the public attention from worsening internal problems (economic crisis, unemployment, corruption, land grabbing, popular discontent) and from the ongoing annexation of Cambodian territories by Vietnam.

Technical aspects of border delineation were well explained by the panel. Evidence of border encroachment by Vietnam in Cambodia’s Svay Rieng province was fully exposed.

A linguistic problem was also raised as it is polluted by political considerations: The use of the word “yuon.” The current pro-Vietnamese government in Phnom Penh tries to ban this word considered as politically incorrect. But in the near future, the word “khmer” also will become politically incorrect with the government encouraging people to use instead the word “kampuchea”, as in “chun cheat kampuchea,” which tends to replace both “chun cheat yuon” and “chun cheat khmer.” With the continuous flow of Vietnamese immigrants into Cambodia, “chun cheat yuon” and “chun cheat khmer” will soon semantically if not politically merge and form only one nation called “chun cheat kampuchea.” When half of “chun cheat kampuchea” do not speak Khmer and are alien to Khmer culture, the colonization of Cambodia by Vietnam will be completed, meaning the death of the Khmer people as a nation.

Many other trends discussed during the meeting also illustrate the organized death of Cambodia under the current regime.

In order to prevent such a national tragedy the participants strongly expressed their desire to see the formation of a large union of Khmer patriotic forces so as to bring about a democratic change in Cambodia. An ad hoc committee was entrusted with the task of preparing the creation of such a union.