This dyad belongs to the conflict Cambodia (Kampuchea): Government
Summary of conflict Cambodia (Kampuchea): Government
After years of fighting, the Khmer Rouge ousted the sitting right-wing regime in 1975. The group installed a communist regime and began a three year long authoritarian and violent rule. In 1978, a new regime was installed with the help of Vietnamese troops. This marked the beginning of a new conflict period that included the Khmer Rouge, two non-communist rebel groups, the Cambodian government and Vietnamese troops. Despite a peace agreement in 1991, the conflict lasted until 1998.
Background to the conflict and the Khmer Rouge regime (1967-1978)
The conflict over the governmental power in Cambodia can be traced back to the early 1950s when France ended its colonial rule over the country. In 1955, one years after independence, the Cambodian King Sihanouk abdicated, became known as Prince Sihanouk, and took power as the head of state in a one-party system state. He sought to eliminate the opposition and used repressive measures against the press, free speech, and all other religious beliefs than Buddhism.
The discontent for Prince Sihanouk’s regime grew, especially within the opposition communist party in Cambodia. In the 1960s several groups started to oppose the sitting regime and in 1967 the first armed uprising was launched. During the early clashes, the Cambodian communists became referred to as the "Khmer Rouge", to separate them from the right-wing insurgents called the "Khmer Blue". After a few years of political turmoil, Prince Sihanouk was ousted in a military coup in 1970 by right-wing military leaders. A new authoritarian leadership under General Lon Nol began. The Khmer Rouge continued their resistance and an uneasy anti-governmental alliance with Prince Sihanouk and his royalist followers was established.
In 1975, the anti-government alliance managed to force Lon Nols forces out of Phnom Penh, but rather than share power with the royalists, the Khmer Rouge under the leadership of Pol Pot took control and started an ambitious experiment attempting to create a new society, influenced by the Chinese Cultural Revolution. This lead to severe repression of the civilian population, as Cambodia became known as "the killing fields". The question of how many died under the Khmer Rouge regime is still being debated, with 1,7 million being an often cited figure, while others put the number either much higher or much lower. After the takeover in 1975, the country was renamed Democratic Kampuchea.
The Vietnamese invasion and the Peoples Republic of Kampuchea (1979-1991)
In December 1978, the rebel group KNUFNS (Kampuchean National United Front for National Salvation), was formed. It was heavily supported by Vietnam and shortly afterwards its formation a full-scale Vietnamese invasion of Kampuchea was launched. Phnom Penh fell in early January 1979 and a pro-Vietnamese communist regime was established by KNUFNS. The country was renamed the Peoples Republic of Kampuchea. The Vietnamese invasion was preceded by a border conflict between Kampuchea and Vietnam (1975-1977), for more information see the interstate conflict Cambodia-Vietnam.
The Khmer Rouge regrouped and started an armed resistance characterised by guerrilla warfare. In 1982, the Khmer Rouge once again entered into an anti-government alliance, this time together with two non-communist groups; KPNLF (Khmer People’s National Liberation Front) under the leadership of Son Sann and FUNCINPEC (National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia) lead by Prince Sihanouk. Together the three groups formed the anti-government alliance CGDK (Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea).
Both Western countries and China supported the alliance in an attempt to limit the Soviet/Vietnamese influence in the region. When the Cold War ended, the Vietnamese withdrew their forces from Cambodia and the general foreign support to the warring parties decreased substantially. A UN-sponsored peace agreement signed by all parties in 1991 signed by all parties seemed to end the conflict, but there were several implementation problems and the Khmer Rouge chose to continue their armed struggle for another seven years. KPNLF reformed and became a legal political party, and FUNCINPEC formed an uneasy coalition government together with the sitting Kampuchean government from 1979. The country was renamed once again in 1989, this time to the State of Cambodia.
Negotiations and the Paris Agreement (1987-1991)
Since the mid 1980s, there had been several proposals of negotiated settlements made by the different warring parties, as well as by neighbouring states and the UN. None of these proposals lead to any negotiations until the end of 1987 when Prime Minister Hun Sen of the Kampuchean government met with FUNCINPEC’s leader, Prince Sihanouk. The other two member groups of the anti-government alliance CGDK (Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea) initially rejected or refrained from commenting on the talks.
Prince Sihanouk and Prime Minister Hun Sen continued their talks in January the following year, but the first real comprehensive negotiations were initiated by the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) the same year. A conference was held in Indonesia 25-28 July 1988. It included all three members of the anti-government alliance CGDK (Khmer Rouge, KPNLF and FUNCINPEC), the Kampuchean government, Vietnam and the ASEAN member states. No agreement was signed at the end of the conference but it was seen as the first step towards a negotiated settlement.
In the following years, the international community increased its efforts to find a peaceful solution to the protracted conflict. A number of agreements were signed, such as the Framework document of 28 August 1990 and the formation of the Supreme National Council on 10 September 1990.
On 23 October 1991 the Agreement on a Comprehensive Political Settlement of the Cambodia Conflict was signed between the government of Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge, FUNCINPEC and KPNLF. The agreement was signed in Paris, France, during a peace conference hosted by the French government, hence the common reference to the agreement as the “the Paris Agreement”. Besides reaffirming the above noted agreements, a ceasefire was called into place and a cessation of all military support to the warring parties was agreed upon. Furthermore, the parties agreed to demobilize all of their forces before elections were to be held. A new army would be formed at a later stage. The police force was to be reconstructed and trained by UNTAC (United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia), which was deployed to Cambodia in 1992.
In order to regulate the incompatibility over governmental power the Supreme National Council was formed and subsequently led by Prince Sihanouk (leader of FUNCINPEC). This council was the outcome of a power-sharing arrangement between the parties under which power would be split almost equally between the warring parties. The Council was to be seen as the sole representative of Cambodian sovereignty and authority, until free and fair elections could be held. It was composed of six members of the Cambodian government, two members of KPNLF, one member of FUNCINPEC and two members of the Khmer Rouge. Due to several problems with the implementation of the peace agreement, Khmer Rouge decided to continue their armed struggle which was finally ended in 1998, following the death of Pol Pot and the surrender of the last senior Khmer Rouge leaders.
Foreign involvement
Throughout the conflict, there were considerable foreign involvement which has been heavily influenced by the international relations of the Cold War. Despite the atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge, USA and a majority of the countries in the UN supported the group and the group was allowed to keep the Kampuchean chair in the UN General Assembly. China was a strong supporter of the Khmer Rouge since the group’s early days and remained its main arms supplier until the end of the 1980s. USA shifted their support from the Khmer Rouge to the two non-communist groups, KPNLF and FUNCINPEC, in the mid 1980s. Vietnam on the other hand remained with troops in Kampuchea until 1989 and was, together with the Soviet Union, the Kampuchean government’s (which took control of the governmental power in 1979) strongest ally.
Thailand played an important role throughout the conflict. Thailand and Kampuchea was engaged in a border conflict in 1977 and 1978 (see interstate conflict Cambodia-Thailand). Furthermore, a large number of Kampucheans fled the violent Khmer Rouge regime and crossed the border into Thailand. After the instalment of the pro-Vietnamese regime in 1979, the flows of refugees that made it to the Thai border increased. When reaching its peak, over 500 000 refugees were reported to be living in refugee camps along the Thai-Kampuchean border. The Khmer Rouge, FUNCINPEC and KPNLF also had troops stationed along the border and repeatedly crossed the Thai border for protection (with the support of the Thai military).
With the ending of the Cold War, the international climate surrounding Cambodia also began to change and the support for the warring parties decreased. Peace initiatives were initiated for the first time in 1988 by ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) but the real break-through came in 1991 with the signing of the Paris Agreement. UNTAC (United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia) arrived in Cambodia in 1992 with the mission to implement the peace agreement and administer the 1993 elections.
The 1997 Alleged Coup and Renewed Factional Fighting
As a consequence of the 1991 Paris Agreement, Cambodia’s former rebel organizations – with the notable exception of KR – participated in the 1993 elections. FUNCIPEC – led by Prince Norodom Ranariddh, the son of King Sihanouk – enjoyed significant electoral success, becoming the largest party. The ruling CPP – led by Hun Sen – became the second largest party, and agreed to enter into a coalition government with FUNCIPEC. Prince Ranariddh assumed the position of First Prime Minister, while Hun Sen became Second Prime Minister; it should however be noted that the military dominance of the CPP meant that the party retained most of the actual power in Cambodia. Despite forming a coalition government, the FUNCIPEC-CPP relations deteriorated over the following years. In early 1997, the two parties was on a collision course, as both CPP and FUNCIPEC were attempting to strengthen their respective power positions ahead of the scheduled 1998 elections. Reportedly, there was very little contact between the co-premiers Prince Ranariddh and Hun Sen. Another issue adding to the tenions were attempts by both FUNCIPEC and CPP to accrue the support of various KR factions, which had begun defecting from Pol Pot’s leadership. During the spring of 1997, there were several incidents were forces loyal to Prince Ranariddh and Hun Sen clashed with each other.
While the exact narrative of the events remain contested, large-scale fighting erupted in Phnom Penh on 5 July 1997. In what was described by most external observers as a coup, the fighting began when CPP troops and ex-KR fighters loyal to Hun Sen attacked forces supportive of Prince Ranariddh. In two days of intense fighting, Hun Sen’s forces took complete control over the capital, and Hun Sen himself declared that Prince Ranariddh had been removed from the position of First Prime Minister. While Hun Sen vehemently rejected the claims that he had conducted a coup – he claimed to have removed an armed threat against the capital by Ranariddh’s followers – the fighting in Phnom Penh left him as the uncontested holder of government power. Furthermore, Hun Sen’s decision to settle his dispute with Prince Ranariddh by military force had not been sanctioned by several high-ranking CPP officials, which reinforces the coup-like circumstances of the 5-6 July fighting. The exact death toll from the battles in Phnom Penh was not clear, but at least 60 people were killed; the actual toll may have been far higher, but the UCDP was unable to verify these claims.
Even as Hun Sen took full control over the Government of Cambodia, there was continued resistance from forces loyal to Prince Ranariddh. As the fighting in Phnom Penh abated, Prince Ranariddh – speaking from France, where he had been present during the coup – declared that his government was the sole legitimate holder of government power in Cambodia. The prince urged his followers to continue the resistance against Hun Sen, and his top military commander – General Nhiek Bun Chhay – vowed that there “would be no surrender”. For the remainder of 1997, forces loyal to Prince Ranariddh continued to battle Hun Sen’s government forces, with the most intense fighting taking place around the northern town O’Smach. Clashes continued in 1998, and the total death toll was in the hundreds. The fighting between the Cambodian government and Ranariddh loyalists was not ended until negotiations in the fall of 1998 eventually resulted in Prince Ranariddh agreeing to rejoin the Government of Cambodia, albeit with a much reduced role.
The ECCC and the struggle for justice
The question of the possibility to convict the ones responsible for the atrocities committed during the Pol Pot regime has been much debated over the years. The first time it was being discussed was after the ousting of the Pol Pot regime in 1979, but no senior Khmer Rouge leader was brought to trial. After the influential leader Pol Pot died in 1998 and the last senior members of Khmer Rouge surrendered, the threat of renewed violence by the group effectively ended. The question was then once again put on the agenda since the senior leaders of Khmer Rouge, the ones still alive, were living in different parts of Cambodia, without facing any charges. In 2006, ECCC (Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia) was established to begin the process of taking these leaders to court. The process has, however, been slow and marked with allegations of corruption and lack of resources. In 2009, the first trial started when Kaing Guek Eav, better known as Comrade Duch, was charged for crimes against humanity during the Khmer Rouge era. Several hearings were held in 2009 and 2010 and in July 2010, Duch was sentenced to 35 years in jail. Due to the time he had already been serving, nineteen years remained of the sentence. Prosecutors at the crime tribunal appealed against the sentence and a final verdict was still to be decided in 2011.
