Cambodian Holocaust

http://www.countrywatch.com/cw_country.asp?vCOUNTRY=030

New Society Wanted an extreme form of peasant communism Foreigners expelled Embassies closed Foreign economic or medical assistance refused Foreign language banned Newspapers and TV stations were shut down Mail and telephone use banned Religion, education, health care all gone

How was the genocide carried out? 2 million people were evacuated from Phnom Pen by foot at gunpoint 20,000 died along the way Forced into slave labor Worked from 4 a.m. until 10 p.m. with 2 rest periods Every 10th day was a day of rest 3 days off during Khmer New Year festival Many died due to overwork, malnutrition, and disease Diet consisted of 1 tin of rice every 2 days

Who is responsible for the Cambodian Holocaust?

Pol Pot (Soloth Sar) lived in Buddhist monastery for six years leader of the Khmer Rouge guerrillas tried to turn Cambodia into a self-sufficient, agrarian utopia took control of Cambodia in 1975

Some More Background In 1949 Pol Pot went to college in Paris Became interested in Marxism 1953 returned to Cambodia and led a communist movement 1954- Cambodia gained independence from France 1962- Became leader of Cambodian Communist Party But had to flee to the jungle because Prince Sihanouk did not agree with him Formed the Khmer Rouge and waged a war against Sihanouk

US bombed North Vietnam which killed 150,000 Cambodians 1970- Prince Sihanouk was ousted by US military and joined Pol Pot and Khmer Rouge US bombed North Vietnam which killed 150,000 Cambodians These events led to economic and military destabilization in Cambodia Support for Pol Pot grew April 17, 1975- Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge army marched into Phnom Penh and seized control of Cambodia Wanted to create an agrarian utopia inspired by Mao Zedong Declared “This is year zero” and society would be “purified” Capitalism, western culture, city life, religion and all foreign influences were to be gone

What did Pol Pot want to do?

Pol Pot’s Goal Create a Self-sufficient, agrarian, utopia (true communism)

How did Pol Pot do this?

He Started Over = Year Zero Eliminate all knowledge of the past!!!!

How did he intend to pull this off? By enlisting the youth (9,10, 11 year old kids) of the country in his new army known as the Khmer Rouge (the young are easy to influence). By wiping the country clean of traces of the past (killing those with knowledge of the past). By controlling all aspects of the country (politically, economically and socially)

By forcing all citizens into collectives to work according to age, gender and skill. By holding indoctrination sessions every evening to remind them all of the wonderful rewards of communism. By publicly murdering anyone that questioned the Khmer Rouge.

Who are the Khmer Rouge?

Khmer Rouge The Communist Khmer Rouge came to power in this small Southeast Asian nation in 1975 as part of the vast upheaval caused largely by the spilling over of the Vietnam War. The Khmer are communist followers of Pol Pot Most are young and enjoy their new power

When the Khmer took over: The populations of Cambodia's cities were forced to evacuate the cities, move to the countryside and engage in agricultural labor. = Communes/Collectives/Cooperatives

They closed most institutions (schools, banks, government buildings, churches) and vowed to provided for their needs in the countryside. They required absolute obedience from all Cambodians.

Khmer Slogan “Keeping new people is no benefit, losing them is no loss.”

What type of person was the most threatening to the Khmer Rouge’s power?

Who was murdered? People with glasses People who could speak another language People whom had traveled Foreigners Counter-revolutionaries

Educated Prisoner Intellectuals and anyone else seen as standing in the way of the new social order were mercilessly killed, while many of those who escaped execution died from overwork and starvation.

S-21Prison (Interrogation Center) (a former high school)

S-21 Prison This building is now a museum devoted to helping those impacted by these events. Many Cambodians travel here to try to understand what happened to their families and friends. http://www.downtheroad.org/Asia/Photo/2Cambodia_Pictures/9Tuol_Sleng_Genocidal_Crime.htm

So what brought an end to all of this? The Vietnamese invaded and took over Cambodia ousting the Khmer Rouge from power. The country remained communist for some time but not in such extreme conditions. Pol Pot fled into the jungle and remained in hiding until his death. Pol Pot denied that he had ever done anything wrong and truly believed he held the future of Cambodia in his hands.

The Cambodian genocide of 1975-1979, eliminated approximately 1 The Cambodian genocide of 1975-1979, eliminated approximately 1.7 million people (21% of the country's population) A Killing Field

According to Yale University’s Cambodian Genocide Program There were over 200 killing sites 9,500 mass grave pits

Pol Pot's death in April 1998 heralded the end of the brutal career of a man responsible for overseeing one of the worst genocides of the 20th century. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/asia/june97/cambodia_6-18a.html

So what is Cambodia like after Pol Pot falls from power? DUMB literally!!!! For four years all they have learned about is communism they have been shut out from the rest of the world. They farmed and read Mao’s Little Red Book. Generations of people are dead.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/78988.stm

Want to see a great movie on this historical event? The Killing Fields