First some pre history – Animism dominated the area until the 1st century when Buddhism & Hinduism arrived at the same time from India. From the 1st to 12th century, the dominant empire, was the Angkor and Cambodia was 70% Hindu until about 400 A.D. A slow conversion to Buddhism accelerated under Java 7’s reforms and Cambodia is now 90% Buddhist. The Angkor Empire fell in the 1400’s after successive invasions by Siam (Thailand.)
The Cambodian Genocide: Pol Pot was the leader of the Kampuchea Communist party from 1963-75. He was a Maoist and believed society should retreat 400 years to be completely agrarian. He was supported by Vietnamese infiltrators, trained in Khmer, and had Chinese Communist weapons and financing.
Gaining control of Cambodia by uniting the hill tribes, he organized a new government and put his beliefs into radical action. He drove everyone out of the cities and systematically killed intellectuals, student, doctors and professionals.
But it evolved into the psychopathic and indiscriminate “killing fields” and 3 million people were murdered.
People were killed for having glasses. Feces checks identified anyone who was “over-fed” and their throats were slit. Soldiers were conscripted and their families were killed to keep them ideologically focused. Whole villages were burned alive for no apparent reason. 25-30% of the population was murdered in the name of one man’s ideology.
Cambodian Land Mine Museum: The visit here was harrowing. There were case after case of recovered Russian, Chinese and US mines, and also rooms full of unexploded ordinance.
27 million US bombs were dropped on Cambodia during the American War. 5 times that many mines were deployed. Millions still remain.
Mines were made to maim not kill. A dead enemy is quickly buried. An injured enemy requires evacuation, care, and resources.
Many of the staff were amputees, and we heard story after story of lives ruined and lives still being ruined on a daily basis (510 mine incidents were recorded in 2024).
Siem Reap, Killing Fields we visited a small killing field in a monastery in urban Siem Reap. We were wrecked by stories of mass execution, torture, and viewed a drinking well where hundreds were drowned and their skeletons recovered.
A Maoist social experiment of cooperative farms, the elimination of currency, forced marriage, child abduction and indoctrination started with destroying the existing structures, religion and economy. It devolved into a psychopathic killing spree.
From Pol Pot to now: Pol Pots government was defeated by the Vietnamese as Cambodian peasants joined them en masse. The VN ruled formally from 1979-89 until UN pressure for Cambodian independence (based on 1953 treaty w/ French) resulted in a Vietnam exit. Cambodians we talk to say it was a “show exit” and the Vietnamese and some Khmer still rule in the shadows today.
The first Cambodian election was in 1993 – and the Kings son won as Prime Minister. Later under an impending revolution the King made the guy who came in second (Hun Sun), a dual prime minister. Hun Sun ruled until 2023 when he won again. But he appointed the current Prime Minister in his place – his own son Hun Manet.
Both families are incredibly wealthy, and are heavily inter married. And both are rumored to have Vietnamese or Khmer Rouge roots and connections. There is zero tolerance for public or press criticism and even the stories above were delivered in a whisper.
Mac and Juju explore Southeast Asia 