Roots of Resistance: The Development of Khmer Rouge Ideology and Policy, and How Cambodians Rebelled to Survive

Abstract:

Cambodia’s modern fate was sealed on April 17, 1975, when the Khmer Rouge came to power following years of political turmoil and civil war. The regime ended in January 1979, but not before killing at least 1.5 million Cambodians and annihilating all of Cambodia’s modern infrastructure. The Khmer Rouge’s ideology was the result of centuries of Cambodian struggle against foreign nations—the culmination of a desire for an empowered and unified nation centered on Khmer values and culture, harkening back to the glory days of the Khmer Empire. The policies that they implemented centered around the use of violence, paranoia, and deceit, which they used as tools for maintaining control over the general population. Their policies maintained party ideology, seeking to eliminate all foreign influence, and were also designed to enforce compliance with lofty goals for Cambodia’s production and development. Cambodians were evacuated from their homes, relocated, and made to work excruciating hours. People died of starvation while laboring in fields of plenty. The Khmer Rouge separated families, dismantled the Khmer language, and executed people for the smallest transgressions. Beneath the surface of the Khmer Rouge’s all-encompassing policy, Cambodians rebelled. They preserved a sense of unity, snuck around within the structure that the Khmer Rouge had created, and maintained their right to silence. These hidden acts of resistance ultimately allowed for the preservation of life, culture, and nation.