 1 Cambodia general info (incl. Lonely Planet 2000)
 2 history

\1 Cambodia general info (incl. Lonely Planet 2000)

PNH - Taxi Cantha is a new taxi company with metered taxis. They charge KHR 3500 for the flag and the first 2 km. After that, it is KHR 500 per km. After dark, they provide an armed guard next to the driver. Tel. (018) 810 267 or (023) 982 452.

 KILLING FIELDS are some 10 km outside of PNH, at Choeng Ek. For a tour inquire at the Capitol Rest or rent a car for USD 20 a day. It is also possible to take a moto. Entrance is generally USD 2, but it may be different, depending on the guard, your face, the weather, and what else...

- Pick out PNH  SEASON Cool(Best): Nov-Feb 17-27C, Hot season: Mar-May 29-38C, Rainy: Jun-Oct 27-35C, Tourist Peak : Dec-Jan

The relative stability which Cambodia is now enjoying is having a significant impact on the tourism industry. The Angkor temples are unsurprisingly beginning to draw the considerable numbers of tourists previously discouraged by the security situation. Hotels, restaurants & travel companies are appearing at an alarming rate in Siem Reap. With an apparently stable government & the collapse of the Khmer Rouge due to large-scale defections, the country is now safer than at perhaps any time in the past 30 years. Whereas before safety issues dictated that typically only Phnom Penh, Siem Reap & Sihanoukville were accessible, it is now possible to explore the country quite extensively & see other sides of Cambodia such as the hilltribes of Ratanakiri, primary forests in Mondulkiri & the deserted hill station at Bokor.

SAFETY Visitors to Phnom Penh should be aware that armed theft of tourists can occur & is more likely late at night. These are infrequent, isolated incidents & shouldn`t necessarily deter you from sampling Phnom Penh's extensive nightlife. Simply take just as much money as you need with you. Resident Ex-pats advise carrying a token 10-20$ & to hide any other money / valuables. Once it gets late & quieter, always use motos to get around the city, preferably with a driver you know. You'll also feel more comfortable if you go out with a group of people from your guest-house.

Cambodia has such an unstable recent history that no-one is ever quite sure what's around the corner. It is adviseable to keep yourself well-informed about current affairs within the country.There are some excellent cheap English & French publications which allow you to do this:

English: Cambodia Daily 1200 riel, Phnom Penh Post 3500 riel,fortnightly Bayon Pearnik - free monthly, French: Cambodge Soir, 1500 riel - daily.

The other major info sources are from GHs & people, both long-term resident ex-pats & travellers themselves. In Phnom Penh, Capitol GH is a renowned place for info, but now any friendly guest-house area is good for finding out what you need to know.

With regard landmines - There are still many thousands of land-mines & unexploded ordnance in more remote areas of Cambodia. The chances of approaching these areas unknown to you is very small. In rural areas, always seek local advice & don't stray from that path!!

 Health Hazards Outbreaks of both malaria & dengue fever do occur in Cambodia, particularly in more rural areas of the country such as Ratanakiri province. Phnom Penh is supposed to be clear as most major cities are, but travellers have reportedly contracted malaria from the Boeng Kak lakeside area. Whether you take tablets or not, bring a mosquito net, although most guest-houses provide one & take the usual precautions, particularly at dawn/evening.

-- National Khmer Not an easy language to pick up but the numbers & basic greetings get you a long way for little effort.

Foreign English & French In general, the older generation are more likely to speak French, the younger prefer to learn English. Cambodians like to practice, it is very easy to make friends here.

-- Currency local currency : Riel (R) NOTES : 100, 200,500,1,000,2,000,5,000, 10,000 US$/RielRate : $1=3910riel, April, 2001

-- Basic Travel Costs

Most tourist places accept riel & US$. Change given in riel and US$. Basic min. price (R=Riel) Room s$3 d$5 (restaurant) local 4000+ (local stall) 2-4,000 (restaurant) int'l $3+ coffee 1500R coffee(milk) 1,500-2000 Drinking Water(1-L) 500+ Coke(bottle) 1,000 Beer 3,000-4,000 breakfast(Ame) 3,-4000 breakfast(local) 2-3,000 Toilet Paper 1,000 T-shirt $1-3 post card 500-2000

-- Bank/Exchange Cash: US$ are accepted everywhere. Change will be given in both $ and Riel. Most foreign currencies can be changed at banks & money changers. Embassies in Phnom Penh will only accept US$ for visa payment. It is strongly recommended you bring US$ cash/TC as exchange rates for other currencies are very low. Best to obtain US$ cash from the bank & change to riel from local money changers for the best rate. Many guest-houses, restaurants & bars throughout Cambodia charge in dollars so the best policy is to carry a mixture of dollars & riel. Thai baht is an acceptable alternative in Ko Kong, Battambang, Sisophon, Poipet). Banks operate nationwide policy in terms of commission rates, exchange rates etc & all but the most isolated provincial towns will have one or more banks offering travellers cheque exchange. Phnom Penh offers slightly higher dollar/riel exchange rates than in the provinces. T/C: Encashment only at banks
and major hotels. Best rate for US dollars. T/C commission: 1-2% Encash at Banks for US$ then change to riel at private money changers. Credit Card: Only at expensive hotels & restaurants. Travel agents may require a surcharge. Cash advance possible at some banks. Fee charged up to 4%, usually with a minimum charge of $10. ATM'S: None Bank: General Opening hours M-F 7:30-11:30 14:00-17:00 a few banks open on Saturday mornings. Rate at Airport: $1/check $1 = 3850R Airport Bank: Pochentong Airport, Phnom Penh Foreign Trade Bank Of Cambodia: Daily 8-30am - 6-00 pm Good exchange rate of $1=3920riel, B=87r Credit card cash advance This service will be available for Visa card only by summer (July /Aug). Charge will be 4%, min amount issued 200US$ Black/Alternative Market: Many private moneychangers in main towns, usually in market areas.

-- Immigration/Visa Visa: 30 days, can be obtained at airports. US$20 Cambodian visas are issued for international flights on arrival at Pochentong Airport, Phnom Penh & Siem Reap airport. The cost for a 1 month visa is 20$. Bring 3 photos, join the queue & fill in lots of forms!! No visa issued at land border crossings Make sure you have already obtained you visa from the Cambodian embassy prior to travel. The Cambodian Embassy in Bangkok issues 30 & 40 day visas for 20$. This requires one working day. Don't forget your 3 photos. At the time of research. If you plan to enter Cambodia overland, get your visa at an embassy elsewhere.Visa Fee: Bangkok $20, Saigon $20 Vientiane $20 (Takes one day). You will needVisa Extension: Visa Extension: at Immigration office in Phnom Penh: Express service 45$ for 1 month extension, requires 1 working day Regular service costs 31$ but takes between 25-30 days!! Overstay charge is $3/day

-- Border Crossings

Vietnam: Moc Bai Thailand: 1) Aranyaprathet(th) - Poipet(cam), 2) Hat Lek(Th)-Koh Kong(Ca) then Sihanoukeville Laos: No official land entry point at this time.

-- VIETNAM VISA - MAKE SURE YOU HAVE MOC BAI SPECIFIED AS YOUR ENTRY POINT ON YOUR VIETNAM VISA, NOT NOI BAI (HANOI AIRPORT) OR TAN SON NHAT (HO CHI MINH AIRPORT). OTHERWISE YOU WILL BE REFUSED ENTRY & HAVE TO RETURN TO PHNOM PENH Vietnam border crossing: via Moc Bai Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam) Saigon to P.Penh by Bus (245 km) non A/C$5, A/C$12. 7-9 hours incl 3h waiting at border. See transport P.Penh for more details. Warning this service may be cancelled as the bus is often under repair. by Taxi $20 $5/person, then walk to cross the border : then another taxi $20 $5/person, to P.Penh. journey takes 5-6 hours. P.Penh to Saigon/Ho Chi Minh by Taxi $20-23/taxi to the border, Cheap option if you can find 4 people to share. Taxi will come to your GH. Put a note up at your GH. Capital GH arranges - $6/person Many Vietnamese taxis are lying in wait at the border, $20 or $5/person to Ho Chi Minh (bargain hard you're in Vietnam now!!) Journey
from Siem Reap to Ho Chi Minh takes 4-5hrs. Taxi Stand: 2 block S from the Central Market Must bargain. by Bus V.Oknhe Tep Phon, 182st+211St, behind Shell Station & large car repair garage. Buy ticket up to 1 hour before taking bus. Bus on M/W/F 4:30, non a/c $5, Tu/Th Sa 4:30 a/c $12. Arrival time in Ho Chi Minh - 15:00 (Approx). Warning the bus was being fixed at the time of research. Check with Guest Houses for the current situation. No one at the station speaks English so if you want to check there go with a moto driver who can translate for you.

Visa to Cambodia in Saigon: apply at Cambodian embassy in Saigon. 1mth Visa $20, 3 photos, issued same day. Visa to Vietnam Vietnam Embassy: Monivong Blvd / junction St 436,Mon - Fri 8-11:00, 14-16:00, T425481 Visa from the embassy costs US$50. Changing stated visa entry point or date costs US$10 in each case.

Capitol GH can also provide Vietnam Visa: 1-month Visa(Good from the day you specify) Overland entry possible. Price according to processing time (working days): $78/1day, $75/2 days, 65$/3 days, $50/4days:$42/5days

-- Thai : Aranyaprathet(th) - Poipet(cam) From Poipet there is onward transport (trucks) to: Sisophon, Siem Reap, Battambang. The border control is open daily 07-17:00. To enter to Thail, the visa issued at border. !Warning Cambodian officials may ask for $5 "Entry Stamp Fee". Travelers have said that they refused to pay with no consequences.

To ENTER to Cambodia Bangkok to Aranyaprathet: Train: dep 05:55 (arrives 11:40) & 13:05 (arrives 18:30 cross border next day). 3rd class only 49B. Tickets issued from 1hour before departure. Bus: runs every hour from the Northern bus terminal. 5hrs,112B. Aranyapathet train/bus station to the border: a tuk-tuk/moto 20-30 B. The border to the Poipet truck stop, a moto 5-10 B Trucks go to Siem Reap, Sisophon & Battambang. The road is bearable as far as Sisophon by Cambodian standards, but some of the drivers take the concept of lunacy to a completely higher plane! After Sisophon, it's rodeo time welcome to Cambodia!! Should you arrive too late to cross or obtain transport, there are guesthouses/hotels in both border towns. Poipet to other destinations in Cambodia:Trucks: Sisophon Trucks 2 hrs, 2000riel outside, 4000riel inside Siem Reap Trucks 5-6 hours, $3/out, $5-in) Battambang 4 hrs, 5000riel-out, 8000riel-in Bargain, especially for the well-touristed Siem Reap route. National Route 5
to Sisophon & Battambang is a reasonable road, a dilapidated tarmac surface pitted with large potholes. National Route 6 to Siem Reap from Sisophon is in terrible condition, you probably spend as much time in rice fields detouring bridges / bad sections as on the "road". The journey takes around 5-6 hours but travel time varies depending on season/ route condition & who's behind the wheel!! Many trucks bounce into Siem Reap well after dark with no reports of any security problems since the crossing opened. Army patrol checkpoints along the route. Tourst minbus Bus Khao Sarn Rd Bangkok to the Thai border 320Baht. Bangkok to Siem Reap direct 1200B. The border to Siem Reap, Tourist minbus 250B

To LEAVE from Cambodia Siem Reap to Bangkok. 12-15 hrs. Siem Reap to the border: Trucks leave Psah Leu market Dep. around 7:00 US$5/inside US$3/outside. Bargain. Many of the Siem Reap guest-houses organise trucks to the border. Price likely to be a little higher than from market. Border crossing is easy, 30min. 7:00-17:00. Thai visa is given at border. The border to Bangkok, Tourist bus 250B The border, Aranyaprathet: 6km away. Take a open-air bus 5B After immigration walk right through the market area. or Motor bike taxis 30B may be able to bargain down. Aranyaprathet to Bangkok: Train dep 6:30(arr11:15) & 13:35(arr.19:15) 3rd class only 49B Bus hourly 5:00,-16:00. 112B 5hrs Aranyaprathet: Exchange: Siam City Bank: Bus station, M-F 8:30-15:30. Good rates.

-- Thai: Hat Lek(th) - Koh Kong(cam) daily 7-17:00. The most comfortable route between Bangkok and Phnom Penh. A modern express boat operates between Ko Kong & Sihanoukville, Cambodia's principal port. National Route 3 is an excellent sealed road which connects Sihanoukville with Phnom Penh.

To ENTER to Cambodia Bangkok/Trat to Phnom Penh. Bangkok to Trat Bus Ekamai Bus Stn, Bangkok (Buses #11, 2 from Khaosarn area). A/C every 2 hours 8:30-16:30). 5 hours, 169B Trat to Khlong Yai Songthaew 35B, 75 min. Khlong Yai to Had Lek (border) Songthaew 20B 20 min. taxis from Trat to the border. Bargain hard!! The border to the port on the main land: a moto-30B or taxi-60B 15-20 mins. Then to Koh Kong: Small boats 40B 5 mins(Very expensive You will need to bargain) Koh Kong for Sihanoukville Boat departs at 8:00, ( To get the 8:00 boat from Koh Kong, it is probably necessary to hire a taxi from Trat to the border as local transport will not get you to Ko Kong before 8:00 Bargain hard!! Alternatively, overnight in Khlong Yai, smaller & quieter than Trat. Most travelers entering Cambodia this way will stay at least one night in Ko Kong. (see Ko Kong page) Koh Kong to Sihanoukville Speedboat dep 8:00. 500B/$13. 3.5 hours.

To LEAVE from Cambodia Sihanoukville-Trat/Bangkok Sihanoukville to koh Kong dep12:00 500B/$13. 3.5 hours. Travelling in this direction, be aware that the Thai border closes at 17:00. If your journey is delayed any later than 16:15, you may be best advised staying one night in Koh Kong rather than trying to make the border crossing before it closes. It is possible to reach Bangkok that same night(Very late), the alternative is to stay a night in Trat, a pleasant town with good day/night markets.

-- Laos : There is as yet no official entry for foreign tourists. Locals are able to use a boat from Stung Treng up the Mekong to the Laos border. There is also a road. At the border, you must first obtain an exit stamp from Cambodian immigration officials, an entry stamp from Laos immigration & pass Laos custom police. Several travellers are now attempting this crossing watch this space!! and see the travel report of someone who crossed via this route below. Laos Embassy: 15 Mao Tse Tung Blvd / junction St 63 (Trasak Paem) Mon - Fri 8-00 - 11-30, 14-00 - 17-00, Tel 426441 For visit Laos year, visa price now 20$, all nationalities. Transport to Stung Treng AIR: Flight from Phnom Penh to Stung Treng currently Mon, Wed & Sun. Cost $45 plus domestic tax, $10. BOAT/TRUCK: There are a number of alternatives with a combination of boat / truck. The cheapest is to get a minibus from Phnom Penh to Kompong Cham, a boat from K.Cham to Kratie,
then a truck from Kratie to Stung Treng. If you have time & the Mekong is high enough, (before March) slow cargo boats travel up the Mekong as far as Stung Treng. From Phnom Penh as far as Kratie, the river is uniform & unremarkable. North of Kratie, the nature of the river suddenly changes into a series of rapids coursing around thousands of sandy islets. This stretch is very rewarding, particularly by slow boat.

i) Express boat from Phnom Penh to Stung Treng every 5 days (check as maybe seasonal). Cost 60,000 riel. ii) Express boat from Phnom Penh to Kratie. Cost 30,000 riel. Kratie to Stung Treng by truck. Cost 10,000 riel. Journey time 5 hours. Last truck approx. 1 pm iii) Minibus from Phnom Penh to Kompong Cham. Cost 4000-5000 riel. Journey time approx. 2 hours Express boat from K.Cham to Kratie. Cost 15,000 riel. Journey time just over 2 hours. Kratie to Stung Treng by truck. Cost 10,000 riel. Journey time 5 hours. Last truck approx. 1 pm

Stung Treng to border a boat travels up the Mekong. Cost 20,000 riel. Alternatively it is possible to charter a boat to the Laos border. Strongly recommend you ask at Amatak GH in Stung Treng for latest information.

Report March 1998 - One Korean guy crossed this border - his report: Phnom Penh - Kampong Cham by taxi 5000Riel, Kampong Cham to Krati slow boat 10,000Riel, Kratie to Stung Treng taxi 25-30,000Riel (bad road) Stung Treng to Lao Border (Preah Rumkel) boat 6hours 15,000Riel. Traveler bribed a Cambodian immigration officer $25. Received an official entry stamp to Laos - 3500kip charge. We don't accept any responsibility for this information.

-- Transport

AIR: International Pochentong Airport 8 km west from city. shuttle bus US$2/p taxi (Official) US$7 or from outside: US$3-5/car. Airport Tax International: US$20, Domestic: Phnom Penh US$10,Regional Airports US$4. International Destinations: (Single & Return ticket price, US$): Bangkok OW$125,RT $215, Singapore $230/$360, Ho Chi Minh OW$65/RT$120, Vientiane OW$130, RT $250, Guangzhou $230/$390, Kuala Lumpur $190/$300, Hong Kong $230/$420, Several flights daily to/from Bangkok. Approx 2 flights daily from Ho Chi Minh. Approx 1 flight daily to/from Singapore, Kuala Lumpur. 2 flights/week to/from Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Vientiane. Domestic Destinations : Siem Reap $55/$105 - several flights daily Battambang $45/$85 - 1 flight / day Stung Treng $45/$85 - 5 flights/ week Ratanakiri $55/$100 - 5 flights /week Mondulkiri $50/$100 - 2 flights/week Koh Kong $50/$100 - 2 flights/week Prices vary between carriers & flight schedules alter frequently, please use above info as a general guide only.
Train: Until recently Train travel in Cambodia had a reputation for being very dangerous. Now it's a bit of an unknown quantity. From Phnom Penh lines run north-west to Battambang/ Sisophon & south as far as Kampot. Reportedly, the trains are very slow & get extremely over-crowded. Arrive early to fight for a seat. Phnom Penh to Battambang (4500 riel dep 06-00 arr 21-00). Reverse journey leaves Battambang 06-30 Phnom Penh to Kampot (not known). Battambang to Sisophon (dep 06-30, arr 11-00, 700 riel) Bus: Bus companies Ho-Wah Genting & GST operate routes to Sihanoukville & Takeo in comfortable A/C buses. They are expanding operations to further destinations (Kompong Chnang, Udong) and this will continue as road improvement projects are undertaken. Guesthouses can book for you. Pickup: From Phnom Penh's Central Market, minibuses & trucks offer cheap transport all over Cambodia. The trucks will leave only when packed & the roads are often in terrible condition. What with the burning sun ,
dust-strewn air & crazed driver's, it's easy to imagine you are disputing the lead in the Paris-Dakar rally ..and that's just the dry season!!! Guest-houses can arrange trucks to Siem Reap, Phnom Penh, Thai border, commission charged. Shared taxi : A good option if there's a few of you. Check around Central Market in Phnom Penh and bargain hard. Boat: Express Boat: From Phnom Penh, express boats operate up the Tonle Sap to Siem Reap For the best deal bargain with the operators themselves. Agents & guest-houses will offer limited discount, guest-houses offer free transport to & from the boats at each end. Express boats also travel up the Mekong to Kompong Cham, Kratie & Stung Treng. Slow boat: (May/June- Feb/Mar). For the more adventurous & well-prepared with plenty of time. Large cargo boats ply the Tonle Sap (Siem Reap) & Mekong (Kratie/Stung Treng) from Phnom Penh during the rainy season until the waters are too low. Take a hammock & food/drink. Crew may supply basic fish / meat &
rice. To arrange, it's best to visit the docks 1 or 2 days before you wish to depart & ask around. Useful if your moto driver can act as interpreter. You willl need to bargain hard. Trip to Siem Reap: (May/June - Jan/Feb)Cost is approx. $6-8. The journey takes about 2 days depending on water level.. See real life on the Tonle Sap as you drift by. Mekong: (May/June - Feb/Mar), From Phnom Penh to Kratie,$5 to Stung Treng $15 . The best stretch of the Mekong is north of Kratie. Watch out for Irrawaddy river dolphins.

-- Local Transport

In Phnom Penh & Siem Reap, moto taxis are the main option. Bus: Newly erected bus shelters have been spotted in Phnom Penh!! As yet no information on services. Taxi: Phnom Penh Un-metered easily found around Central Market. One company ( Vantha Travel) does operate a couple of metered taxis. 24 hour service. Car Hire: Car hire US$20+/day incl. Driver. Bargain Cyclo: Cycle rickshaw. Phnom Penh. The most stylish way to see Phnom Penh. Single journey 1500 riel, must bargain !! usually $1/hour Moto-Motorbike Taxi: Motos are everywhere. Typically 1000 riel per journey. Bargain. One word of caution about moto drivers. The moto drivers at the GH's have good english. 95% of moto drivers in Phnom Penh have no english beyond .."you need moto?". It helps to know your way back from town to your GH or navigate by landmarks obvious to locals (Psah Central, Wat Phnom). On the upside, these guys are usually cheaper!!! In Siem Reap $5-6/day Mo-ped: $3/day, Dirt bike US$6/day ask at hotels, guest houses
and agents. May need to show your passport. Bicycle: Phnom Penh $1+/day in very bad condition. The roads are also poor and the traffic is horrendous except on Sundays. Resembles a very fast, high quality graphics game of frogger but you only get one life & no extra man after 10,000 points good luck. No bicycle rental in Siem Reap which is a shame because it would be the best way to get about town.

-- Mail/Telephone

POST OFFICE Post Office GPO: on Preah Ang Eng No13 (between Wat Phnom & river) Hours: Daily 7.00 - 11.00, 14.00 - 17.30 Poste Restante service, charge 500 riel per letter. Address: c/o Poste Restante, GPO Phnom Penh, Cambodia Telephone cards can be bought here & at many shops. Denominations are 3$, 10$, 20$,50$, 100$. Mail Japan Europe/AU/NZ USA Asia Post Card * 1,700 1,800 2,100 1,700 Letter(10g) 2,200 2,300 2,500 2,000 Small Parcel 1kg 47,100 58,400 81,000 28,300 Post Restante Receipt 300R Direct phone service, phonecards, stamps. There is also an EMS (express mail office), hours not known. TELEPHONE General opening hours: M-F 6:30-21:00 rates SEA Europe USA Asia 1min $1.6 $1.8 $1.8 $1.5 Fax 1min $6 $5 $5 $4 After 1 minute charged per 15 seconds. 20% discount on these prices at weekends. From Siem Reap cardphones: all international calls cost $5/min. Local Call 10cents/min Card Phone $2, $5, $10, $20

-- Customs

These customs are common throughout South East Asia. Toilet: Squat toilets are usual. Toilet paper is rare - cleaning by left hand is the custom. Flush with hand bucket. Most Guesthouses have western style toilets, some even have toilet paper. Bathing: take water from a water pool with a bucket and pour over your head. Most guesthouses have showers. Left hand: Do not touch others with your left hand as it is considered dirty - see above for explanation. Touching the head of others: It is quite insulting to Cambodians. Never ever touch with your left hand. Tipping: Not customary. Clothing: Casual dress is generally acceptable . However religious sites require that arms and legs be covered. Footware (indoor): Locals don't wear shoes inside houses or temples. Remove your shoes before entry. Bargaining: Common practice in markets, street stalls, taxis, cyclos.

-- Other

Souvenirs: Gems, silver. !Warning Gems are often fake. Voltage: 220 volts, 60 cycles in Phnom Penh. 100volts, 50 cycles other areas. Most types of plugs can be used, except British. Photography There are some photo shops in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. OK quality.

Newspapers Cambodia Daily, 1200R, (Some editions have a section in Japanese) Cambodge Soir (1500 riel, daily), are English/French newspapers which cover important events in Cambodia & internationally.e English Language Newspapers are essential to keep up with the political and safety situation in Cambodia: Phnom Penh Post (3500 riel, every 2 weeks) Bayon Pearnik - monthly (free), some visitor info (Sometimes lists events or gives tourist info and excellent free city map mainly intended for the Ex-Pat community, contains amusing articles. Available from Guest Houses and some bars, restaurants, free. Many of the articles are satirical, so take everything you read with a generous pinch of salt. can read on the internet: www.bayon-pearnik.com Newspapers: Bayon Pearnik - (free, monthly)

-- Festivals/holidays 1998

Many festivals & holidays are based arround the lunar calender, dates are not specified. Jan 1 PH International New Year's day Jan 7 PH Victory Day(Celebration of the defeat of the Genocidal Regime- the Khmer Rouge in 1979) Feb 5-7 Vietnamese & Chinese New Year Mar 8 PH Women's Day April 13-15 PH Cambodian New Year. Chaul Chham. 3 days festival for welcoming the new year. !Warning Lots & lots of water throwing. May 1 PH Labor day May 17 PH ? Visaka Bhucha Day/The birthday of the Buddha May 14? PH Bonn Chroat Preah Nongkoal(the Royal Ploughing Ceremony) Many activities during the 2 months. May 21 The Agricultural Day Jun 1 PH International Childrens Day Jun 18 PH The Queen's Birthday. Jul-Sep Buddhist 'Lent'(time of meditation) for 2 months. Ceremonies are held at the beginning & the end of lent. Sept 19-21 Brachum Ben Festival Sep 24 PH Constitution Day & Re-accession Day. Sep27-29 Bon Dak Ben & Pchoum Ben commemoration festival held for the spirits of the dead. Food offerings are made
to monks for 15 days. Oct Bonn Kathen: Cambodian religious festival lasts for 1 month. Oct30-Nov1 PH King Norodom Sihanouk's Birthday Oct 23 PH Paris Peace Treaty Nov 10-12 Bonn Om Tuk: Water festival, lasts for 3 days. Boat races held in Phnom Penh. Nov 9 PH Independence Day From France in 1953. Parades are held in Phnom Penh. Dec 10 PH Human rights day

-- @ Internet @ Internet is just starting up in Cambodia. There are a couple of internet services in Phnom Penh. 1 dependable e-mail service in Siem Reap. Email from Phnom Penh - $1/email, is much cheaper than telephoning. From Siem Reap the charge is $1/kilobite (about half a page).

-- Info for Japanese

Info notes: in Capital GH in PP & No260,No258 in Siem Reap are very famous. Japanese papers: The Japanese restaurant Kyoto in PP has Japanese magazines, books & newspapers. The Japanese embassy has newspapers up to 5 days old. Cambodia Daily Newspaper has a Japanese supplement. Japanese yen: Not recommended. Limited number of banks change yen T/C, com2%. Cash can be changed, but the rate is low.

-- Hi Les,

>Any recommendations for a decent hotel, about $20-$25, including any > email address so I can book before I go.\

We stayed at the Neak Pean Hotel (53 Sivatha Road / Siem Reap / Tel: (855) 964-429 / Fax: (855) 380-073 / neakpean@camintel.com). . It costs $20 for a "single" -- this means you get one large bed. Or, you can pay $25 for a "double" -- 2 single beds. The place has air con, hot water, bathtub, and there's a small pool. The folks are very friendly and will be happy to make any arrangements you'd like -- although you'll probably double your price. You're better off making your own arrangements.

> 2. What is the best way to see Angkor Temples, the guidebook says hire a > moto with driver, is this the best way

We hired a motor bike for ourselves and wandered around on our own. It costs $5/day The place is actually a bike repair shop on Sivatha Road (the main drag through town) across from the Cambodian Commercial Bank (the first bank on the right as you head away from Angkor into town). You must return the motorbike by 8 PM, but they'll drop it off at your hotel in the morning if you'd like. Don't worry if the motorbike doesn't have a tag -- we saw more cars and motorbikes without tags than with them and no one every hassled us -- or anyone else. Be sure to use the lock they provide for the motorbike. At first, we parked in the guarded parking lots, but ultimately, just locked it and left it.

> 3. Some websites say you need 4 passsport photos at Siem Reap airport, others say only one is required. Which is correct.

They want 1 at the airport, but we forgot to bring ours. The officials glared at us for a few minutes and then just handed our passports down the line -- there are 7 or 8 who glance at the passport before you're allowed to proceed to Immigration.

> 4. I am also getting conflicting details about the visa fee and int'l departure tax at Siem Reap. Can anyone give me up to date info ?

As of July 2001, the entrance visa fee was US$20 -- it must be paid in US dollars and the exit fee from the Siem Reap airport is US$8 -- be careful that your bills are in good shape or they won't be accepted. Indeed, you don't need/want to exchange any money into the local currency. Be sure to have lots of US$1 for all the small purchases.

Have a super time!

A country in SE Asia, sometimes called Kampuchea. Most Cambodians live on the fertile plains created by the floodwaters of the Mekong River, or near the Tonle Sap (Great Lake) and Tonle Sap River NW of Phnom Penh. PNH is Cambodia's capital. About a thousand yrs ago, Cambodia was the center of a great empire of the Khmer people, who controlled much of the SE Asian mainland. Angkor, a huge ruined city that was the capital of the Khmer empire, has magnificent sculpture and architecture.

Govt: Cambodia is a monarchy with a king as head of state. But the king has only ceremonial powers. A prime minister heads the govt. Cambodia's legislature consists of a 122-member National Assembly and a 61-member Senate. The voters elect the Assembly members. Party leaders and the king appointed the first members of the Senate, which was established in 1999.

People: Most of Cambodia's people are Khmer, one of the oldest ethnic groups in SE Asia. They speak the Khmer language, which has its own alphabet. Most Khmer are farmers, laborers, or soldiers. Chinese make up the second largest ethnic group in Cambodia. A majority of Cambodians are Buddhists. Most Cambodians live in villages of 100-400 people and work on rice fields near the villages. Rice and fish are the main foods. Most of Cambodia's adults cannot read or write. Many parts of the country do not have schools.

Land: Low mountains border Cambodia, except in the SE and along part of the coast. The great Mekong River flows south from Laos through Cambodia and enters the South China Sea through Vietnam. Fertile plains cover about a third of the land, and forests cover much of the rest. During the dry season, the Tonle Sap River flows SE from the shallow Tonle Sap and joins the Mekong at PNH.

During the monsoon (rainy) season, the river flows in the opposite direction. The river does this because floods and melted snow from the Mekong's source in Tibet make the river rise to a level higher than that of the lake.

The temp of PNH aver about 85F (29C) throughout the yr. The rainy season lasts from May to Nov. The coast receives nearly 200in (510 cm) of rainfall a year, and Phnom Penh gets less than 60 in (150 cm).

History: Cambodia has been a monarchy during most of its history. About A.D. 100, people in the southern part of what is now Cambodia established the kingdom of Funan. This kingdom became one of the greatest early powers of SE Asia. Funan gradually lost its power and influence, and by A.D. 600, a new power, Chenla, had arisen north of Funan. The kingdom of Chenla broke up in the 700's.

Between the 800's and 1400's, the Khmer controlled a great Hindu-Buddhist kingdom in Cambodia. Its capital was Angkor. The Khmer built hundreds of beautiful stone temples at Angkor and elsewhere in the empire. They also built hospitals, irrigation canals, reservoirs, and roads. The Khmer empire reached its peak during the 1100's, when it took over much of the land that is now Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Costly construction projects, plagues, quarrels within the royal family, and wars with the Thai weakened the Khmer empire. Thai forces captured Angkor in 1431, and the Khmer abandoned the city. But an independent Khmer kingdom, with its capital near what is now Phnom Penh, survived until the mid-1800's. In 1863, the French, who occupied southern Vietnam, made Cambodia a protectorate.

Thai and Japanese forces occupied Cambodia from 1941 to 1945, during WW II. After the war, Cambodia moved toward independence. France recognized Cambodia's independence in 1953. In 1955, King Norodom Sihanouk gave up the throne in order to take a more active role in politics. He took the title of prince, and became prime minister in 1955 and head of state in 1960.

In Mar 1970, two members of Sihanouk's govt Lt Gen Lon Nol and Prince Sisowath Sirik Matak overthrew Sihanouk while he was out of the country. In Oct 1970, the govt of Prime Minister Lon Nol abolished the monarchy and proclaimed Cambodia a republic. Lon Nol dissolved the legislature in 1971. The next year, he made himself pres and assumed full control of the govt.

During the 1950's and 1960's, Cambodia had declared itself neutral in the struggle between Communist and non-Communist nations. But the US and South Vietnam charged that North Vietnam had troops and supplies in Cambodia for use in the Vietnam War. In 1969, U.S. planes began to bomb Communist targets in Cambodia. In Apr 1970, after Sihanouk was overthrown, U.S. and South Vietnamese troops entered Cambodia to clear out the Communist supply bases there.

The U.S. troops left Cambodia at the end of Jun, after the Communist camps had been destroyed. But the Vietnamese Communists withdrew deeper into Cambodia. By the end of 1970, all of Cambodia was at war. Govt forces fought the Communists with the help of South Vietnamese troops and U.S. military aid. The U.S. bombers ended their raids in Aug 1973, but ground fighting continued.

Meanwhile, Cambodian Communists of the Khmer Rouge organization were engaging in full-scale warfare against the country's non-Communist government. In April 1975, they took control of Cambodia. Neighboring South Vietnam and Laos fell to Communist forces the same year. Soon after, North and South Vietnam were unified into the single nation of Vietnam.

The Khmer Rouge Communists, led by Pol Pot, took full control of the Cambodian government and began to supervise the lives of the people closely. They forced most people in cities and towns to move to rural areas to work as farmers. They made everyone dress alike, and they discouraged the practice of religion. The government took over all businesses and farms. It killed large numbers of Cambodians, including many former government officials and educated people. In addition, the sharp decline in agricultural production in Cambodia caused severe food shortages in the 1970's. At least 1 million Cambodians died as a result of execution, starvation, disease, or hard labor under the Khmer Rouge. Many others fled to Thailand and other countries.

In 1977, disputes led to fighting between Cambodia and Vietnam, its Communist neighbor to the east. In January 1979, Vietnamese troops and Cambodian Communists won control of most of Cambodia. They overthrew the Khmer Rouge government. The Cambodians who fought on the side of the Vietnamese took control of the govt.

The Vietnamese supported the govt and gained much influ-ence in the country. Strict control of the lives of the people continued under the new government. The Khmer Rouge continued to fight the Vietnamese and their Cambo-dian allies in some areas of the country. Non-Communist groups also joined in the fighting against the Vietnamese and their Cambodian allies. The Khmer Rouge and two main non-Communist groups each gained control of a part of Cambodia. In 1982, the groups formed a coalition. Norodom Sihanouk became head of the coalition.

In the 1980's, the govt took steps to reduce its control of the economy. These included allowing Cambodians to own their own small businesses and farms. In addition, Vietnam gradually withdrew troops from Cambodia. In Sep 1989, Vietnam said that it had completed the withdrawal.

Also in 1989, Cambodia's govt and opposition groups began negotiations to resolve the war. In Oct 1991, they signed a UN-sponsored peace treaty. Under the treaty, the UN took over admin of the Cambodian govt in 1992 to guide Cambodia through a period of transition to democracy. The UN worked with a 12-member Supreme National Council made up of members of the former government and the three opposition groups.

In May 1993, democratic, multiparty elections were held for a 120-member assembly. A transitional government was formed by the parties that won the most seats. It governed until a constitution was put into effect in September 1993. A new democratically elected govt headed by two prime ministers was established. The office of king was restored as a ceremonial position. Sihanouk, who had been head of state in the transitional govt, became king. The Khmer Rouge, though it had signed the UN peace treaty, boycotted the elections and did not join the new government. But by the late 1990's, nearly all the members of the Khmer Rouge had been arrested or had surrendered to the govt.

Relations between Hun Sen and Prince Norodom Ranariddh, the two prime ministers, were strained. In July 1997, Hun Sen forced Ranariddh from office. Elections for the National Assembly were held in July 1998. Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party won the most seats, and he remained prime minister. In 1999, Cambodia established a new Senate.

 Rte #6 runs from Poipet in the NW at Thai border through Sisophon to Siem Reap on to Kompong Thum in central Cambodia to PNH in the south central.

$1 = 4000 Riel. E# 117 M#119 free from orange phones.

The info below is provided by LP readers and is not verified by LP. For the official lowdown, contact your nearest embassy or check out our travel advice.

You can now get visas at the border for 1000 baht, but touts will try and do it for you and charge up to $42 US for the service. They also try and pre-sell the trucks to Batten Bang and Siem Reap claiming they need to pay police and pay for official govt registered pick up truck services. I did it by myself for 400 baht a seat in the cab. On the Thai side of the border they claimed it would cost $30 US.

Angkor Wat:You can no longer extend a one day pass into a 3 day pass. You can now however rent motorbikes without a guide to drive around the site. By hiring the motorbike for two days you can go for sunset after 4pm and all day the next on the one day pass. Two up on the motor bike make the situation cheaper and gives you the flexibility to go exactly where you want. Ryan (Nov 00)

Visas are given at Siem Reap airport. Forms are handed out on the plane. Fee is US$20 for tourists, US$25 for business. You need to bring one passport photo as there are no facilities for obtaining them in the airport. Anon, UK (Oct 00)

You can get the cambodian visa immediatly at the border crossing point Hat Lek for about 1000 baht then go to Koh Kong to take the Speedboat to Sihanoukville. The boat departs every day at 7:15 for about 600 Baht the journey takes about 3-4 hours. Geroge Kouprizas (Oct 00)

The international departure tax from Siem Reap Airport was only US$8, rather than the US$10. Norman Lagerquist (Sept 00)

The Australian Embassy in Phnom Penh has received reports of Cambodian border officials asking travellers to produce an international vaccination certificate. When they are unable to do so, a fine between US$5-50 is imposed. There are variations on this theme but, it should be noted there is no requirement to show proof of vaccination status when crossing into Cambodia. Wayne Dawson, Australian Embassy, Cambodia (Aug 00)

The Cambodian Embassy in Bangkok issues visas in one and a half days (bring your passport in the morning and collect at 16:00 the next [working] day) against the standard fee of $20. At the Poipet border crossing there is now however a visa issuing booth, but what regulations (or fee) apply for obtaining a visa there I do not know. Jan Willam van Dorp, England (Jul 00)

It is no longer possible to extend a tourist visa to Cambodia for longer than one month. I found this out today (29/6/00), after visiting the Direction des Etrangers and requesting a two-month extension. In one month's time, after my extension expires, I will have to get my ass onto a truck and travel over the most piss-poor road in Cambodia, in the height of the rainy season, all so that I can walk five feet into Thailand and cross back into Cambodia on a new visa. This makes me very depressed, because for an extra five dollars I could have gotten a business visa at the airport, which can be extended for three months for $45. Michael Sternhell, U.S.A. (Jul 00)

In response to below: I think it might just be an immigration officer's attempt to gain an 'additional salary'. As I crossed that border in September 1999, I could not show an approval of a cholera vaccination. Nor did my girlfriend hold any vaccination form. So the officer told us that he must ('government rule') give us anti-cholera medicine for US$5 each. As we and some other travellers refused either to take any unknown medicine or to pay anything for it, he let us pass the border without further hassle. Maybe things have changed and it really is 'official policy' now, but somehow, I think not. Stephan Erhardt, Germany (Jun 00)

Crossing the border between Thailand and Cambodia on my way to Angkor Wat, I had a Cambodian visa but the authorities also asked me for my International Certificate of Vaccination (yellow vaccination form). There were a few travellers who did not have this with them and they were charged 50B. Steve Rasky, USA (Jan 00)

Beware of the help you may be offered in obtaining an entry visa at the Phnom Penh airport. Upon entry to the airport we were approached with an offer to secure the tourist visa for $25. The problem is the tourist visa itself only costs $20 and the help being offered consisted of nothing more than avoiding the visa line which only took five minutes! Ron Lish, USA (Nov 99)

Bangkok is a good place to get a Cambodian visa. If you persist it can be issued on the same day. The visa is valid for 30 days after the day it is issued and not for 30 days after entering the country. Make sure you arrange your travel plans accordingly. Antti Saarela, Finland (Oct 99)

Travel Tips - It seems to make a big difference if, like Cambodians, you respectfully use two hands, rather than one, to hand things to people and receive things they hand you. Cambodians on the other end of these interchanges look relieved or gratified when foreign visitors do this. Local residents in Phnom Penh tell me that the motorcycle taxis are extremely dangerous and are involved in many bad accidents. Local people are constantly telling their drivers to slow down, stop weaving, stop driving in the oncoming lanes, etc so you should do the same. Bonnie Baskin, USA (Feb 01)

The rate to rent a taxi for one day is $20 Law Wai Man (Feb 01)

Siem Reap: On arrival there is a circus of moto-drivers trying to convince you to take you to their guesthouse. Be sure you know where you want to go before arriving. It will make your life a lot easier. In general however moto drivers in SR are very helpful and a lot safer than Phnom Penh. Dr MC Lall, UK (Dec 00)

The airport is 15-20 minutes from the town centre. If not with a tour group, a good idea is to ask the hotel to have them meet you. However there are taxis and they shouldn't charge you more than $US5 to get to any part of town. Anon, UK (Oct 00)

Banks: better to do banking in Phnom Penh or Thailand because of confusion between different banks, rates and technology. No ATMS in Sihanoukville. Bring lots of US dollars. You can still do banking at many banks in Sihanoukville, it might be as simple as visiting one bank, or you maybe sent on a wild goose chase depending on what you are exchanging, how much and how much money you are willing to part with for charges. Mark Widdifield (Sept 00)

Use up all your Cambodian Riels before you leave Cambodia. It is difficult to change them in Bangkok. Anthony Wong (Aug 00)

The cost of getting into the Royal Palace has increased to US$3 per person. You're also still charged US$2 to take pictures and people should be warned that there are now 'photo guards' who actually challenge people taking pictures to produce their camera ticket. Ugly scenes may result, including threats to confiscate your camera, if you can't produce one. So it's better to be safe than sorry.

Also, you can't take photos at the National Museum and will have to hand your camera over on arrival if the entrance people spot that you have one. All very well, but I went there twice and did not see anyone guarding the cameras - they were all just left on a table in full view and access! If your camera is in your bag when you arrive, you should leave it in there and all will be well.

The entrance ticket problem at Angkor has now been sorted and there does not seem to be any recycling of tickets going on - tickets are punched on presentation at the checkpoint each day. There are lots of guides, particularly at the outer temples, checking that you are not dropping in without a ticket. Sara Partington (Apr 00)

On the desk of the hotel I stayed at in Siem Reap, I came across a free booklet called The Siem Reap Visitors Guide. If only I'd had this before I left home; it would have made a big difference to how I went about planning the trip. This free guide is put out by Canby Publications in Phnom Penh. It has everything you need to know, from maps to a full list of hotels with prices and email addresses. They put out guides for Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville as well. You can view all three guides in full at: http://welcome.to/phnompenh Armed with this free guide and Lonely Planet's Cambodia, you'll be fully informed. Anthony Voykovic, New Zealand (Apr 00)

We strongly recommend you do not buy trinkets at the markets in Siem Reap. Items like silk and cotton scarves, postcards and local crafts can be purchased at Angkor Wat. The advantages are a cheaper price (after haggling), often a better range and best of all youre helping out the adorable children who successfully hound travellers into submission. Gregory & Melanie, USA (Nov 99)

In response to the above: I would object to this. Having talked to quite a few of these children (some speak very good English), I got the impression that since they earn the majority of the family income, they don't go to school any longer. It's really no problem to get the same price in Siem Reap; it just takes a bit more bargaining and shopping around. Chris Diehl (Dec 99)

Response to below: for the record, I paid for almost everything I bought last week in the Siem Reap markets (kramas, silk skirts, etc) with Thai baht, which everybody happily accepted (although the merchants did quote me prices in dollars before I asked if I could pay in baht). I also used baht without any trouble to pay for supplies in the small grocery store near our hotel and to get all our film developed at the photo shop. We did have to pay slightly higher prices in baht than we would had we paid in dollars, but we didnt spend that much money in Cambodia anyway. Aron Danburg, USA (Jul 99)

US dollars were the only currency accepted for visas, entry fees and hotels. In markets and restaurants, prices were quoted in dollars, though they did accept local currency. Carry a few twenties and the rest in 100s. Baht were not accepted. To change other currencies, a commission is charged. Robert Patterson, USA (Jan 99)

Planning: we think there is a need for a sleeping bag in parts of Cambodia in December and January, and if you're riding a moto early in the morning a jumper would be nice. Credit cards: the situation is pretty bad; don't rely on credit cards for anything if possible. Many banks will do advances for Visa and a couple for Mastercard but they'll charge you. Cambodia's national airline doesn't even take credit cards. Email has well and truly arrived. The phone lines are still too dodgy and expensive for good Internet access but at least you can email. Malaria: it's amazing how easy it is to get a fever in the tropics, but there are only a few reliable places to get a malaria test done. Many local physicians are notorious for not actually testing but diagnosing everyone as having malaria. One way to have peace of mind is to carry a Falciprum Malaria test kit. And bring some good insect repellent as it can be hard to find in some places. Jady Smith & Kate Davey (Jan 99)

Moving About - It is now possible to get a mini bus from the border to Siem Reap and Vice versa 5USD. Most guest houses in Siem Reap sell the tickets - pickup from your guest house. You can also buy ticket right through to Bangkok. Jane Ward & Paul Prowting, UK (Aug 01)

Actually there are two ( possibly) slightly more pleasant ways to travel onward into Cambodia. Shared taxis (Camry sedans) are available from Poipet to Seam Riap, Battambang, Sisaphon, Phnom Penh and probably other places. If the budget isn't really tight you can buy yourself more room by paying for 2 seats. Example - 2 seats to Battambang is 300 baht. There is now also a mini bus to Seam Riap from Poipet - with a connection to and from Bangkok. There's still all the jolting but at least there is less dust. Anne Horsley, Thailand (Apr 01)

If you want to hire a 250 bike as described in the guidebook, you will not be asked for a driving licence, you will not be asked for an International Green Card, and, in fact, you will not be asked to demonstrate your ability to even hold a bike upright.

You might just be OK driving in Sihanoukville, where the roads are OK, although the driving isn't. Do NOT, however, think that you can attempt the trip to Kampot if you are a complete novice, and do not attempt it on a scooter (although the local people seem to manage). This (so called) road has got potholes that will eat pick-up trucks, and you are a long way from help. If you are an experienced off-roader, though, it is a brilliant trip. Fergy Campbell, UK (Mar 01)

Scams and Warnings While at the temples at Angkor Thom in Siem Reap, I was with a tour guide by the side of the road and wanted to take some pictures of some macaques that hang out there by the temples. I very rarely see monkeys in the wild so this was exciting. To make a long story short, I was bitten on the knee by one of the larger macaques. It wasn't a terrible bite, but we took it seriously and followed up promptly at one of the local clinics. Although we don't think the animal was rabid, I am receiving my full series of rabies shots in the US. That was the least of my concerns, however. When I arrived back in the US, I spoke with an epidemiologist in my hometown. He warned me of a rare but fatal virus that macaques carry. I've done some research and discovered that macaque bites are very common. They occur at the CDC in Atlanta, they bite tourists and locals all over Thailand and Cambodia. The CDC gets calls all the time about macaque bites.

80% of adult macaques carry the Simian B Virus, which is also known as the Herpes B Virus or the Monkey B Virus. It is transmitted through bites or their bodily fluids. Last year a boy in England died of it, and in 1997 a monkey handler at the CDC died of it. It basically attacks your nervous system and almost certainly results in death. Because it is a herpes virus, the monkeys have to be "shedding" the virus to transmit it to you, so it is rare. There have been about 40 cases of it documented. Many doctors do not know about it, and certainly travelers do not know about it either. The treatment is to take anti-viral meds (Valtrex) in hopes that your body will take care of any virus that is transmitted to you. I spoke with a couple of doctors in Cambodia who had never treated a known case of this. The embassies did not have any information about it. One doctor in Cambodia had never heard of it! There are perhaps many more undiagnosed cases of this though.

It is very serious, especially if untreated, and I want to raise the flag on this so other travelers know to stay away from macaques, even ones that seem friendly. They are used to getting fed and are very tame, but they will bite for no reason at all. The only reason I heard about this virus is that the epidemiologist I spoke with just happened to live in Cambodia for 15 years. Becky Vander Eyk, USA (Sept 01)

Another scam at the border is people purporting to be Cambodia border officials who will organise your visa on arrival for 500 baht more than it'd cost you to do it yourself (the visa office is right next to the border crossing). Mary Gillespie, Australia (Feb 01)

Unfortunately the old Vietnamese moped scam has caught on in Cambodia not just Phmom Penh but also in Siem Reap. People hire the bike it is then stolen, the victim is then expected to pay for a new bike plus if the police are notified they will want a large payment or offer the victim a jail sentence, as you know the owner will get the orginal bike back , it takes all of 2 minutes for a local to buy a key for a motorbike just be careful where you park it. Mark (Jan 01)

There were robberies on the beach every single day we were in Sihanoukville, and it is only a small place, and it is only a small place. There were obvious gangs of youths patrolling the beach, often one or two would persistently follow you for the whole day in hope that you would leave your belongings on the beach. The youths had nothing better to do and no one to stop them. The police would only come to the beach for a $US10 bribe. Cambodia is not as 'safe' as some backpackers believe. Thieves were crawling under hammocks to steal from people. Lorraine Little, England (Aug 00)

We were staying in a guest house in Phnom Penh when one morning the police arrived to check the rooms. We had been quiet and had nothing illegal in our room, however when one policeman checked our room he found a bag of marijuana. We had no idea why it was in our room, it wasn't ours. We were taken to the police station and weren't allowed to ring the embassy. We were in jail for 3 days and 2 nights until they helped us to find a lawyer, who was totally corrupt.

After hours of questioning, we understood that we had two solutions: to pay and be freed or not to pay and be in jail for maybe 2 to 6 years. The conclusion was, we had to pay US$3,000 to bribe the lawyer, the police and the general public prosecutor of Phnom Penh.and we were totally innocent! Be warned, the police earn $US20 a month, so they need money and know how to find it. Check your rooms when you arrive somewhere and be sure nobody can go inside when you leave for the day. Jo et Loic, France (Aug 00)

I recently visited Angkor Wat in Cambodia. On the main road just before the entrance to Ankor Wat there is a sign directing people to The Land Mine Museum. It is well worth a visit. Word of mouth has moved very quickly and the number of people visiting is increasing daily.

The problem is that he is taking travellers into the mine fields to watch him remove mines. A general invitation was posted with a time and place to meet. Much to everyone's surprise 29 people showed up on the day we had arranged to visit. At this time I spoke with the guide about his responsibility for the safety of all and the danger of having so many people in this dangerous situation. He was a very personable guy and was too shy to turn anyone away. He promised that this would never happen again and that it would be limited to no more than 5 people. One accident would be devastating for everyone involved. Carol Vernal, USA (Aug 00)

I was in Cambodia for five months and stayed mostly in Phnom Penh. I along with a friend were robbed at gunpoint at 6:30 pm in a well lit area during the festival time. Phnom Penh I believe is best visited a month or two either side of the major festivals. Just like the western world there is a massive increase in robberies just before and after the main festivals ie. the water festival and the Khmer New Year. The Khmers want new clothes and to pay off any outstanding debts they will do anything to achieve this. P Shroe, UK (Aug 00)

Tips for Angkor: the little boys that follow you around to tell you about the temples will eventually ask you for money. If you are not prepared to pay, tell them that you don't want any guides. We had several small 'guides' follow us around Angkor Tom and when they finally asked for money it turned out that we didn't have more than $2. They refused to accept the little money we did have, which we could not understand, and they put up a huge show with tears and angry words making us feel terrible. They continued to follow us as we walked around the other temples whining for money. It was terrible. Lisa Schipper, UK (Jun 00)

A friend of mine and I recently experienced the dodgyness of the so-called express boats on the Tonle Sap River. The boat we were on sunk halfway between Siem Reap and Phnom Penh causing the death of an unfortunate Vietnamese man, 54 and father of four. Unfortunately the boat had no safety features such as life jackets. Swimming was the only option to stay alive.

The boat, a small motorboat powered by three massive 200HP engines, literally flew on the water even though it was nastily overcrowded. According to local press, some 55 people were on a boat that I reckon could barely carry 30. People like us, who lost valuable items (or had them irreparably damaged), couldn't claim any money back as the dodgy carrier was not insured against such occurrences. We couldn't afford to remain in Cambodia the necessary time to sort the whole thing out - the canny carriers were aware of that, so they kept on delaying things. The people from the boat company had no interest in rescuing the Vietnamese man - they were more concerned with 'rescuing' the three outboard engines. I'd suggest that all travellers make sure that any such boat isn't overcrowded. Roberto Savastano, Italy (May 00)

Gems, Highlights and Attractions - If you are around Angkor Wat, there is an interesting open air museum to see. It's called the 'Civil War Museum' or 'Landmines Museum'. It's located 200m from the main road to the temple compound, on the right side, about one km before the entrance check point. It has been open for three months, it's free and it's a fast training course on landmines. Akira, the guy who built it, is a young deminer and this garden/museum displays his personal collection of landmines from various countries. The museum is not government sponsored, so donations are appreciated to contribute to the demining of Cambodia. Lorenzo Sonelli, Thailand (Jan 01)


Electricity: 220V, 50 Hz (unstable supply)

-- Cambodia - THE ULTIMATE NOWHERE. TREKKING THROUGH THE CAMBODIAN OUTBACK IN SEARCH OF THE KOUPREY.

Ratanikiri Province, Cambodia-- So, this is nowhere. And here I finally am, right in the middle of it. After yrs of extreme, uncomfortable and downright unwise treks in search of the world's most remote places, I finally made it to the rearmost of backwaters, the most track-free of trackless wilderness. After countless war-story swap meets with other hard-core travelers, I finally scored supreme bragging rights by getting here - a Godforsaken, deserted jungle in NE Cambodia.

ANGKOR NOW - THE RISKS AT CAMBODIA'S FAMED RUINS ARE NOW FEW--AND SO ARE THE CROWDS. Siem Reap, Cambodia - Talk about a trip to write home about... Back in 1871 Frank Vincent Jr. dropped out of Yale Univ and, despite frail health, the 17-year-old embarked on "a systematic tour of the most interesting parts of the world."

SHAKING THE FEAR FACTOR - Phnom Penh, Cambodia-- With Vietnam emerging as the latest Asian hot spot for travel, the two other countries that once made up French Indo-china--Laos and Cambodia--remain far, far off the beaten path. And they're likely to stay there for a while. Fear, after all, is a powerful disincentive to tourism.

 A CAMBODIAN RIDDLE - Three brothers wish to divide twenty-four bottles amongst themselves. Of the twenty-four bottles, twelve are large and twelve are small. Of the twelve large bottles, seven are filled with alcohol and five are empty. Of the twelve small bottles, seven are filled with alcohol and five are empty. The question is: How should the three brothers divide up the bottles in such a way that each obtains the same number of large and small bottles?

-- This article appeared in AsianWeek Jun 1 00 issue. Language Barriers. For the new generation of Cambodian Americans, the Khmer language both unites and divides By Jessica Zimmer

In high school Phavantha Mao never thought about applying to a four-year univ. Back then, his mentality was typical of Cambodian American students: Good schools are for the rich, for kids of another race.

 As he says those words today, however, Mao speaks with a sense of irony: Not only is he a fourth-year engineering student at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), but he is also president of the Cambodian Student Society. Still, Mao says he wouldnt be content with just a secure future and material goods.

 When I take a step back, I see a lot of my peers struggling, he says. Some already have families. Some have been working at McDonalds for three or four years.

 Mao says on campus, he and his friends often discuss the sense of responsibility they feel being the first-generation of Cambodian Americans to get a college education. And like many of them, Mao volunteers in the community and hopes to continue after he graduates. But, in order to increase his influence with older Cambodian Americans and with newer immigrants, he says he will need to improve his Khmer (the Cambodian language). Currently, he speaks at a 1st grade level.

 The struggle of the Cambodian community in Long Beach to maintain the Khmer language is an American story. As the generations progress, the homeland that parents and grandparents so often speak of seems more and more distant. In addition, the lack of a common language widens the gap between the generations. Those who are non-English speaking and first generation are often at odds with the younger generation, many of whom speak only English. Meanwhile, the so-called 1.5 generation grapples with their identity, trying to find their place somewhere in between the old country and the new one.

 Maos acquisition of English and, consequently, his loss of Khmer follows a typical pattern. After escaping Cambodia, Mao spent seven years in a Thai refugee camp, where schools lacked resources and trained staff. When he arrived in the United States, learning English became the priority. And in college, hes been too busy to take Khmer classes. Most of us are going high-tech, he says. Khmer isnt seen as essential. Its just something nice to know.

 But now that schools winding downhes set to graduate next yearMao has reassessed the importance of learning Khmer. This summer he hopes to study the language, perhaps at a temple or at a local non-profit organization.

 What makes Maos story unfortunate is that until last semester he would have been able to take Khmer at CSULB, a campus situated in the center of the largest Cambodian American community in the United States. But just this past spring, the university eliminated its Khmer literacy courses. In the past two years, partly because of the passage of Proposition 227a California ballot initiative that sought to ban bilingual education programs in public schoolsKhmer classes have been empty. The lack of students prompted the university to reduce Khmer classes to conversational-level courses rather than a full-literacy curriculum.

 A Program To Develop Bilingual Education Teachers

 In 1990, Long Beachs Cambodian American population was estimated at a mere 18,000, according to census statistics. Since then, however, the community has increased substantially, as families have expanded and sponsorship has allowed more Cambodians to immigrate to the United States.

 Non-profit organizations that work within the community estimate that today there are some 50,000 to 55,000 Cambodian Americans in Long Beachthe largest population outside of Cambodia.

 It was fitting, therefore, that CSULB was one of only three U.S. universities to offer a Khmer language program. Established in 1995 by a consortium of faculty and staff from the College of Liberal Arts and the College of Education, CSULBs Khmer coursework was initiated to prepare teachers to pass Californias Khmer/English bilingual certification examination.

 City and school officials hoped that the university program would encourage a greater number of fluent Khmer-speakers to become bilingual teachers in the Long Beach Unified School District. In 1997-98, some 9,500 limited English proficient Khmer speakers were enrolled in the district, far more than in any other district in California or the United States.

 But when Proposition 227 took effect in November of 1998, the district virtually eliminated its Khmer/English bilingual language classes, and thus the need for bilingual teachers.

 To many advocates in the community, that change has hurt Cambodian American students, their families and the entire community.

 Mao, who arrived in the United States at age 12, says that when he was in junior high school, he was placed in an English as a Second Language (ESL) class, but the teacher spoke Spanish. Not surprisingly, Mao says he was lost during those years. He would speak Khmer to Latino students and would wonder why they couldnt understand him. When summer came, he didnt even know there was vacation, so for two weeks he would take the bus to school, wondering where all the students and teachers were. He ended up playing basketball from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m.

 Those years hurt me. It was terrible not knowing what was going on.

 Mao was able to pick up more English in high school, where other Cambodian American and Latino students more fluent in English helped him with the language.

 Mao says if he had Khmer/English bilingual classes, it would have helped tremendously to have someone able to understand [you], to see through you and understand your history and why you are here. That would have quadrupled my learning process.

 Students like Mao had little support from home, since few of their parents had any English proficiency. Indeed, according to 1990 census statistics, 95 percent of Cambodians spoke Khmer at home, and 73.2 percent did not speak English well.

 Sameoun Sim, a sophomore at CSULB, says that many people in his parents generation have not found it easy to approach the school system or the city government to demand bilingual teachers. Since they dont speak English, they dont have a voice, says Sim.

 The Language Barrier

 Although the younger generation, primarily those under 18 who arrived in the United States as small children or who were born in the United States, have English fluency, the older population of Cambodian Americans largely remains in poverty because they lack English proficiency.

 Meanwhile, many of those who arrived in this country as older children or teenagersthe so-called 1.5 generationlack language skills in both Khmer and English. In 1990, only 46.2 percent of Cambodian American males and 28.6 percent of females completed high school, compared to an average of 78 percent for all Asian Americans. Only about 28 percent of Cambodian males and 3 percent of females attended college, compared to an average of 38 percent for all Asian Americans.

 Maos experience is typical of those who are in their 20s and 30s. After escaping from the war in their homeland, many Cambodians were interned in Thai refugee camps. Housed with their families in impoverished conditions, children and teenagers received inadequate education for years. Because of an almost complete lack of financial resources, young people attended single-room schools with students from all grade levels in one classroom; good teachers were as rare as school supplies were scarce.

 Mao arrived at a Thai refugee camp when he was five years old. A year later, his family moved to Kaoidang, a camp where students were taught in Khmer. The school was a bamboo hut and the teachers were older Cambodian refugees. Just having a place to sit was a luxury, says Mao. Students had just one pencil to use for the whole year. There might have been some paper, but you couldnt just pick up a stack.

 Mao was there for about five years before he moved to another camp. Though the schooling was not great, he says, it motivated [us] to study.

 Numerous Cambodian Americans of this age group have suffered because of this break in their schooling. Mao says that many Cambodian American students understand when other people speak English or Khmer, but have difficulty forming sentences in either language.

 I would say that we linger between Cambodian and English, he says.

 Generation Gap

 Wayne Wright, a Khmer/English bilingual teacher at Lincoln Elementary School in Long Beach, believes that if more students had Khmer competency, there would be fewer communication problems between younger students and their parents.

 Theres a huge generation gap, and the language problems only make it worse, said Wright. Ive had to translate between parents and children when issues come up.

 Thira Srey, an administrator at the Long Beach-based nonprofit Cambodian Association of America, says the 1.5 and second generations are becoming increasingly Americanized. But as they have assimilated, the gap between them and the first generation has increased. The space between the generations is very great. Grandparents dont understand their grandchildren, he says.

 That gap exists not only because of language barriers but because of cultural barriers as well, says Srey. Parents are used to raising their children by authoritarian rule. Cambodian American children who are not given room to develop more freely often rebel and turn to friends for support and guidance.

 In America, young people must be aggressive to survive, he says. In Cambodia, you dont have to be aggressive. You can stay with your family, but here after 18 its not so easy to stay with your parents. Young people must learn to be aggressive and independent. If they assimilate into a good environment that is good and they will have a good future.

 But there is also evidence that more of the 1.5 and second generations are interested in reconnecting with their roots. After years of trying to master English, Srey estimates that about 10 percent of the young people are studying the language of their parents and grandparents. At Sreys Cambodian Association of American, where Khmer language classes are held, 70 students are now enrolled, compared to 50 in 1997 and just 18 students 10 years ago. More young people, after earning a college degree, are interested in learning Khmer, says Srey.

 Young people realize that if they want to get a job, the most important thing is that they are fluent in English, he explains. So first they learn English and some go on to college and get their diploma. After that some have returned to the Khmer language and culture.

 Helping the Community With Language

 When CSULB started its Khmer language program, the university and social service agencies felt that the presence of such a program would help train students for community service. Khmer speakers are needed to assist older generation and recent immigrants, who are non-English speaking and remain in dire need of outreach. In 1990, the Cambodian American per capita income was just $5,120 compared to national per capita income of $14,143. And in 1989 poverty rates stood at 42.6 percent.

 Terry Yamada, a professor of Asian and Asian American Studies says, a lot of potential was wasted when the Cambodian refugees arrived. Its when people first came here that they needed to be fitted into English language programs; taught how to drive a car, and given government services.

 Instead, she says, thousands of them were turned away because of a lack of help on city, state, and federal levels.

 The Cambodian community is being ignored on multiple levels, says Yamada. There is an inability to be effective and intervene, in cases where people need access to welfare, medical, and social services.

 Program Goals Shift

 The university administration still feels that there is a future in teaching Khmer. John Attinasi, director of Bilingual Education at the College of Education at CSULB, hopes that the now-conversational Khmer language program will offer more people the opportunity to work with the Cambodian community.

 Our goal is to give people a greater fluency in the Khmer language so that they can engage in assisting the Cambodian community of Long Beach with many types of social services, says Attinasi.

 Furthermore, Attinasi says the elimination of the full-literacy Khmer curriculum at CSULB is not necessarily permanent, but was a short-term decision based on low enrollment. If we renew the demand for the Khmer literacy classes, they can be offered again, he says, adding however, that to do that would require efforts by the public schools and community to lower the dropout rate and increase college enrollment.

 Sim and Mao say that if Khmer could be used to fulfill the general education language requirement, more students would enroll. Moreover, if more students learned the language they could teach English to others in the community.

 However, even Sim adds that if the social conditions of the community dont improve, few students are likely to value the Khmer language. If we got another chance to take Khmer without changing anything, we probably wont take advantage of studying the language. People might still think it is a waste of time, he says.

 Mao, on the other hand, is more optimistic. With the war, people lost hopeand their sense of pride in the Khmer culture diminished. But as the political situation and economy there improves, and as Cambodian Americans move up the social ladder in the United States, he predicts there will be renewed interest in Khmer. He already feels that change. Five years ago, most people were just glad to be here, he says. But now when I walk down the streets of Long Beach, businesses are thriving. There is a sense of community. Many hope to travel back to their homeland. And young people are trying to reconnect with their parents.

 Adds Mao: Language is the best way to do that.

- Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh, is situated at the junction of the Mekong and Tnl Sab rivers. Other major cities are Btdmbng, Kmpng Cham, Kmpt, and Cambodia's only deep-water port, Kmpng Sam, located on the Gulf of Thailand.

- The Road to Angkor Wat Sep 10, 2001

Latest News Angkor.com exclusive-> What's the status of the road rehab project to link the Angkor area to the Thai border?

Mar 21, 2001- from Dr. Manaspas Xuto at the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs: "According to the information I now have, the Cambodian Government, in May 2000, gave the concession to PMC-ITI Development to develop the 154-kilometre long road from Poipet to Siem Reap, involving Highway 5A from Poipet to Sisophon and Highway 6 from Sisophon to Siem Reap. In November 2000, Cambodian press reported that PMC-ITI signed a sub-contract agreement with Kamol K. Construction Company of Thailand to do the job. The latest report was that in March 2001, the Cambodian Government announced the cancellation of the concession earlier given to PMC-ITI Development due to its failure to live up to the terms of the concession. As of now, several private contractors in Cambodia are bidding for the contract to build the said road. The respective offers of the bidders are being reviewed by the Cambodian Government."

Cambodia wants Hawaii's help Pacific Business News, Aug 31, 2001 Just a sort mention of Cambodian chief economic minister Suos Someth's trip to Hawaii to invite local contractors to help rebuild Cambodia's infrastructure. [A funny sidenote is that this site, Pacific Business News, wants people to pay $5.00 US to link to their articles. That's right, just to link. And in the small print is a notice that they do not even guarantee the link will not change or disappear entirely. Sorry, guys, there's no legal way to stop people linking to you...]

Cambodia asks for Thai soldiers to help build a road to Angkor Wat The Bangkok Post reports that Hun Sen asked for Thai Army help in building a road to Angkor Wat. Although the article is entitled "Road to Angkor Wat will be built by Thai soldiers," the article itself merely says Cambodia asked for help and Thais said Cambodia must pay for the construction. As far as we can determine, there is nothing definite.

July 30, 2001, excerpted from the Bangkok Post, July 30, 2001, by Wassana Nanuam Full article on the Bangkok Post site .... Hun Sen asked the Thai army to help repair the road from Poipet, opposite Aranyaprathet, to Sisophon and also help build a new one from Battambang to Siem Reap. .... Cambodia has also asked Thailand to build a road from Chong Chom pass in Surin to O Smach in Cambodia's Oddar Meanchey province to link with a road leading to Poipet and Aranyaprathet. A road toll will be imposed on tourists once it is completed. The Thai army's engineering corps are presently engaged in construction of a 159-km-long road from Koh Kong province to Sa-ae Rampil inside Cambodia. Thailand has contributed 200 million baht to its construction. The Cambodian premier also wants Thailand to supply electricity to O Smach from Surin, to Poipet from Aranyaprathet, and to Hat Lek from Chanthaburi. ... Hun Sen blasts slow road builder Phnom Penh Daily, May 26, 2001

Angkor Wat fast track Tim McIntyre, excerpted from http://www.travel-asia.com/

....Apart from airlinks, one way this target can be reached is undoubtedly through increased land access. To this end, significant and expensive efforts are being made to improve land links with its neighbour to the west. Of the millions of dollars being pumped into road construction, the most noteworthy is undoubtedly the stretch of highway linking Angkor Wat with Thailand. This project is being jointly developed with the Thais.

At the recently concluded tourism workshop in Chiangmai chaired by Thai prime minister Thaksin, Sereyvuth said the framework for integrating the whole region had been laid out. Thailand has set aside over US$20 million for the road project into Angkor Wat, Sereyvuth revealed, adding that the 54 km stretch of road linking Thailand with the Cambodian destination had remained closed for over 30 years. Factoring the over 20 million Thais living within the four provinces bordering Cambodia, he added: With 10 million tourists in Thailand and a two to three hour road journey into Cambodia, the potential for business is huge.

Commenting on significant steps being made by Cambodia to integrate itself into the Asean tourism framework, Silkairs Menon noted: Cambodia is ushering a renaissance in international tourism in Asia. Certainly a new age in revenue generation is being ushered in as well. According to Menon, bilateral trade between Cambodia and Singapore was valued at almost S$854 million last year.

Border Roads Thailand - Cambodia Project April 27, 2001, http://www.cambodia-travel.com/news/apr002.htm

Cambodia and Thailand are discussing on a project to repair the road from Poipet to Siem Reap. Currently the overland route from Poipet of Thailand to Siem Reap of Cambodia is very tough due to damaged road and bridges. It can take from 10-16 hours ride for the distance of 150 km. This significantly hampers the tourist arrival by land.

The project will cost US$ 22 million for the 154 km distance. The deal from Poipet-Sisophon segment has been reached, but the Thai side is waiting for the proposal of the Cambodian side on the Sisophon-Siem Reap segment. Both countries will benefit from an increase in tourist traffic as the road enhance a cheaper to travel from Thailand to Siem Reap which houses the renowned Angkor Wat.

Road to Angkor Wat Bangkok Post (link to this article on the Bangkok Post website), April 22, 2001 Nondhanada Intarakomalyasut

The road from the border to Angkor Wat will be ugraded at a cost of one billion baht, as part of an effort to make Thailand a gateway to the ancient Cambodian city.

The cost of the 200km link from Poipet, across the border from Aranyaprathet, to the ruins township of Siem Reap will be met by the Transport and Communications Ministry, or through a loan from the Asian Development Bank or a third country, Deputy Prime Minister Pitak Intrawithayanunt said.

It would mean a high quality road all the way from Nakhon Ratchasima to Angkor Wat, benefitting tourism and freight services. The Cambodian government was in agreement, he said. Other planned joint projects include renovation of the road to the ancient Khmer temple on Phra Viharn hill, on the border.

Webmaster Article on Angkor Development The webmaster of angkor.com wrote a short article highlighting development around the Angkor Wat area. The English version is here.

The Road to Siem Reap February 3, 2000 - Thai Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan traveled to Siem Reap to sign an agreement with the Cambodian government to reconstruct the road from the Thai border at Poipet to Siem Reap with a loan from the World Bank. This first stage should be completed in 2003 and turn the present overland, 10 hour trip to a 1 1/2 hour trip. The road is the first part of a highway that will eventually link Bangkok to Ho Chi Mihn City via Phnom Pen.

 -- Border Roads Thailand - Cambodia Project 27 April 2001

Cambodia and Thailand are discussing on a project to repair the road from Poipet to Siem Reap.

Currently the overland route from Poipet of Thailand to Siem Reap of Cambodia is very tough due to damaged road and bridges. It can take from 10-16 hours ride for the distance of 150 km. This significantly hampers the tourist arrival by land.

The project will cost US$ 22 million for the 154 km distance. The deal from Poipet-Sisophon segment has been reached, but the Thai side is waiting for the proposal of the Cambodian side on the Sisophon-Siem Reap segment.

Both countries will benefit from an increase in tourist traffic as the road enhance a cheaper to travel from Thailand to Siem Reap which houses the renowned Angkor Wat.


\2 history

Very little is known about prehistoric Cambodia, although archeological evidence has established that prior to 1000 BC Cambodians subsisted on a diet of fish and rice and lived in houses on stilts, as they still do today. From the 1st to the 6th centuries, much of Cambodia belonged to the South-East Asian kingdom of Funan, which played a vital role in developing the political institutions, culture and art of later Khmer states. However, it was the Angkorian era, beginning in the 8th century, that really transformed the kingdom into an artistic and religious power.

Forces of the Thai kingdom of Ayudhya sacked Angkor in 1431, leaving the Khmers plagued by dynastic rivalries and continual warfare with the Thais for a century and a half. The Spanish and Portuguese, who had recently become active in the region, also played a part in these wars until resentment of their power led to the massacre of the Spanish garrison at Phnom Penh in 1599. A series of weak kings ruled from 1600 until the French arrived in 1863.

After some gunboat diplomacy and the signing of a treaty of protectorate in 1863, the French went on to force King Norodom to sign another treaty, this time turning his country into a virtual colony in 1884. A relatively peaceful period followed (even the peasant uprising of 1916 was considered peaceful). In 1941, on the assumption that he would prove suitably pliable, the French installed 19 year-old Prince Sihanouk on the Cambodian throne. This turned out to be a major miscalculation as the years after 1945 were strife-torn, with the waning of French colonial power aided by the proximity of the Franco-Viet Minh War that raged in Vietnam and Laos. Cambodian independence was eventually proclaimed in 1953, the enigmatic King Norodom Sihanouk going on to dominate national politics for the next 15 years before being overthrown by the army.

In 1969 the United States carpet-bombed suspected communist base camps in Cambodia, killing thousands of civilians and dragging the country unwillingly into the US-Vietnam conflict. American and South Vietnamese troops invaded the country in 1970 to eradicate Vietnamese communist forces but were unsuccessful; they did manage, however, to push Cambodia's leftist guerillas (the Khmer Rouge) further into the country's interior. Savage fighting soon engulfed the entire country, with Phnom Penh falling to the Khmer Rouge in 1975.

Over the next four years the Khmer Rouge, under Pol Pot's leadership, systematically killed an estimated two million Cambodians (especially the educated) in a bid to turn Cambodia into a Maoist, peasant-dominated agrarian cooperative. Vietnam invaded Cambodia in 1978, forcing the Khmer Rouge to flee to the relative sanctuary of the jungles along the Thai border. From there, they conducted a guerilla war against the Vietnamese-backed government throughout the late 1970s and 1980s.

In mid-1993, UN-administered elections led to a new cons-titution and the reinstatement of Norodom Sihanouk as king. The Khmer Rouge boycotted the elections, rejected peace talks and continued to buy large quantities of arms from the Cambodian military leadership. In the months following the election, a government-sponsored amnesty secured the first defections from Khmer ranks, with more defections occurring from 1994 when the Khmer Rouge was finally outlawed by the Cambodian govt.

Treatment of the Khmer Rouge was one of the sore points of the uneasy coalition of Prince Ranariddh's National United Front and Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party. In Jul 1997, Hun Sen followed up accusations that Ranarridh was absorbing Khmer Rouge defectors into his ranks by setting soldiers against royalist troops. A weekend of heavy fighting and looting in Phnom Penh ensued and when the dust settled, Hun Sen assumed sole leadership of Cambodia. Elections in mid-98 returned Hun Sen to this position, with much grumbling from opposition candidates about dodgy electoral practices.

In early 1998, Khmer Rouge hardliner General Ta Mok fled to the hills with a few hundred loyalists, taking an ailing Pol Pot as prisoner. Pol Pot's death in April 1998 from an apparent heart attack was greeted with anger (that he was never brought to trial) and scepticism (he has been reported dead many times before). Khmer Rouge loyalists still hold positions of power in Cambodia but the organisation is more or less fatally splintered. Whether the death of one of the century's great tyrants will engender a healing process is yet to be seen.

Present-day Cambodia is bloodied and bowed after two decades of internecine war and the Jul 1997 collapse of shaky UN-sponsored democratic reforms. The ramifications of Hun Sen's violent assumption of power and the death of Pol Pot remain to be seen. The question on everyone's mind when visiting Cambodia is, how safe is it? If you stick to Phnom Penh, its surrounding attractions and Angkor you should be fine. This is one country where heading off the beaten track is just plain stupid.

Archaologists claim that what is known as Cambodia has been peopled since at least 4,000 BC. The kingdom of Funan, Cambodia's forerunner, was a trading stop for Indians on their way to China. That influence can be seen today in the country's traditional literature, dance, Hindu and Buddhist religions and architecture. Today's Cambodia occupies only a small corner of the Khymer Empire that from the 9th - 14th cen which extended over a larger part of SE Asia. The Khymers called their land Kampuchea or Kambuja, that has been westernized as Cambodia.

The area that is present-day Cambodia came under Khmer rule about A.D. 600, when the region was at the center of a vast empire that stretched over most of SE Asia. Under the Khmers, who were Hindus, a magnificent temple complex was constructed at Angkor. Buddhism was introduced in the 12th cen during the rule of Jayavaram VII. However, the kingdom, then known as Kambuja, fell into decline after Jayavaram's reign and was nearly annihilated by Thai and Vietnamese invaders. Its power steadily diminished until 1863, when France colonized the region, joining Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam into a single protectorate known as French Indochina.

The God-Kings. The first Cambodian king was Jayavarman who in the 9th century declared himself "god-king" identifying himself with Siva, king of the Hindu gods. He established his capital near Angkor. Jayavarman and his successors built up a great empire, which reached its highest point under Suryavarman II - builder of Angkor Wat - and Jayavaman VII, a Buddhist who built the Bayon temple. One of the great accomplishments of the god-kings was the construction of an elaborate irrigation system that allowed the Khymers to produce four harvests a year.

There followed a decline and loss of territory to the Thais. In 1432, Angkor was abandoned and the cap moved to Phnom Penh. Then in the 17th cen the Vietnamese began encroaching into Cambodia's territory in the Mekong delta, while the Thais annexed the NW. In 1846 the country became a French protectorate, which was occupied by the Japs and then, in 1953, became once more an independent country, ruled by a modern-day god-king prince Norodom Sihanouk.

Modern Times. Although it managed to stay neutral during the first years of the Indochinese War, Cambodia was eventually drawn into the conflict and its aftermath, suffering devastation and tragic loss of life at the hands of the Khymer Rouge. The Khymer Rouge was led by the infamous Pol Pot who allied himself with Prince Sihanouk to gain power but whom Sihanouk later referred to as "a more fortunate Hitler" because he got away with the slaughter of as many as 2 million of his countrymen. Today, a large faction of the Khymer Rouge has laid down its arms and with the help numerous intl agencies the country is recovering its soul and economy.

The French quickly usurped all but ceremonial powers from the monarch, Norodom. When he died in 1904, the French passed over his sons and handed the throne to his brother, Sisowath. Sisowath and his son ruled until 1941, when Norodom Sihanouk was elevated to power. Sihanouk's coronation, along with the Japanese occupation during the war, worked to reinforce a sentiment among Cambodians that the region should be free from outside control. After World War II, Cambodians sought independence, but France was reluctant to part with its colony. Cambodia was granted independence within the French Union in 1949. But the French-Indochinese War provided an opportunity for Sihanouk to gain full military control of the country. He abdicated in 1955 in favor of his parents, remaining head of the government, and when his father died in 1960, became chief of state without returning to the throne. In 1963, he sought a guarantee of Cambodia's
neutrality from all parties to the Vietnam War.

However, North Vietnamese and Vietcong troops had begun using eastern Cambodia as a safe haven from which to launch attacks into South Vietnam, making it increasingly difficult to stay out of the war. An indigenous Communist guerrilla movement known as the Khmer Rouge also began to put pressure on the government in Phnom Penh. On March 18, 1970, while Sihanouk was abroad, anti-Vietnamese riots broke out and Sihanouk was overthrown by Gen. Lon Nol. The Vietnam peace agreement of 1973 stipulated withdrawal of foreign forces from Cambodia, but fighting continued between Hanoi-backed insurgents and U.S.-supplied government troops.

Combat climaxed in April 1975 when the Lon Nol regime was overthrown by Pol Pot, leader of the Khmer Rouge forces. The four years of nightmarish Khmer Rouge rule led to the state-sponsored extermination of citizens by its own government. Between 1 million and 2 million people were massacred on the killing fields of Cambodia or worked to death through forced labor. Pol Pot's radical vision of transforming the country into a Marxist agrarian society led to the virtual extermination of the country's professional and technical class.

Pol Pot was ousted by Vietnamese forces on Jan. 8, 1979, and a new pro-Hanoi government led by Heng Samrin was installed. Pol Pot and 35,000 Khmer Rouge fighters fled into the hills of western Cambodia, where they were joined by forces loyal to the ousted Sihanouk in a guerrilla movement aimed at overthrowing the Heng Samrin government. The Vietnamese plan originally called for a withdrawal by early 1990 and a negotiated political settlement. The talks became protracted, however, and a UN agreement was not signed until 1992, when Sihanouk was appointed leader of an interim Supreme National Council to run the country until elections could be held in 1993.

Free elections in May 1993 saw the defeat of Heng Samrin's successor, Hun Sen, who refused to accept the outcome of the vote and insisted instead on a power-sharing agreement. Under the arrangement, Hun Sen and Sihanouk's son, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, would act as coprime ministers. The Khmer Rouge stronghold in the western jungles splintered in 1997, with factions either battling each other or defecting. Ranariddh and Hun Sen both courted Khmer Rouge factions in an effort to shore up their power. In early July, Hun Sen took advantage of the charged political atmosphere to depose Ranariddh, officially the first prime minister and the country's only popularly elected leader. Hun Sen later launched a brutal purge, executing more than 40 political opponents. Meanwhile, King Norodom Sihanouk was unable to broker peace between Hun Sen and his son, Prince Ranariddh.

Shortly after the July coup, the Khmer Rouge organized a show trial of their notorious leader, Pol Pot. Pol Pot had not been seen by the West in more than two decades and he was sentenced to house arrest for his crimes against humanity. He died on April 15, 1998.

In the July 1998 election, Hun Sen defeated opposition leaders Sam Rainsy and Prince Ranariddh, but the opposition parties accused him of voter fraud. Although Hun Sen's CCP Party won the most seats, it needed a coalition with Ranariddh's FUNCINPEC Party to reach the two-thirds majority needed to form a government. A coalition government was formed in Nov. 1998, with Hun Sen as sole prime minister and Ranariddh accepting the lesser role of president of the National Assembly. Cambodia was able to regain its UN seat, lost nearly a year earlier following Hun Sen's coup.

In July 2001, the Cambodian senate unanimously passed legislation to set up an international war crimes tribunal to try senior Khmer Rouge officials. The special tribunal will be made up of Cambodians and foreign judges. King Norodom Sihanouk must also endorse the law before the United Nations can approve the tribunal. Among those expected to stand trial are Ta Mok, alias the butcher, and Kang Kech Iev, alias Duch, who ran the notorious Tuol Sleng prison.

ALTHOUGH THE LAND occupied by Cambodia has been populated for millennia, the area's history was unrecorded until the Chinese chronicles of the early Christian era. In the fewer than 2,000 years of its imperfectly documented existence, the Cambodian state has evolved along the lines of ascension, dominance, and retrogression inherent in all civilizations. Historians surmise that by the first century A.D. a small number of Khmer (or Cambodian) states already existed on the fringes of the earliest recorded state in the region, the empire of Funan. Centered in the Mekong Delta of present-day Vietnam, Funan derived its power from commerce.

With its port of Oc Eo on the Gulf of Thailand, Funan was well-placed to control maritime traffic between India and China. According to Chinese annals, Funan was a highly developed and prosperous state with an extensive canal system for transportation and irrigation, a fleet of naval vessels, a capital city with brick buildings, and a writing system based on Sanskrit. The inhabitants, whose adherence to Indian cultural institutions apparently coexisted with Mahayana Buddhism, were organized into a highly stratified society.

When the small Khmer states to the northwest of the Mekong Delta emerged into recorded history, it was to make war upon the declining empire of Funan. Between A.D. 550-650, these Khmer states overran their adversary, which fell apart, losing its tributary states on the Kra Isthmus and along the Gulf of Thailand. Chaos and economic decline followed the fall of Funan, but the sequence of events over the next 500 years led to the ascension of the Cambodian state and its evolution into an increasingly powerful and dynamic entity.

The first unified and distinctly Khmer polity to emerge after Funan was Chenla. It absorbed the Indianized cultural legacy of its predecessor and established its capital near the Tonle Sap (Great Lake), the heartland of Cambodia, then as now. Under expansionist rulers, its authority was pushed into the territories of present-day Thailand and Laos. The development of Chenla was not marked by an unrelieved accretion of power, however. Divisive forces quickly resulted in a split into Land (or Upper) Chenla and Water (or Lower) Chenla. Land Chenla demonstrated the greater vitality, controlled some thirty provincial cities, and sent emissaries to China under the Tang dynasty. Water Chenla slipped into vassalage to Java.

The historical ascension of the Khmer polity began during the early 800s. The initiator of the period was the first empire builder, Jayavarman II (A.D. 802-50), who carved out a feudal state generally encompassing modern Cambodia. Jayavarman revived the cult of Devaraja, an Indianized cultural institution that was intended to confer, through elaborate rituals and symbols, heavenly approbation or even divine status upon the ruler. Following the reign of Jayavarman II, the two Chenlas were reunited peacefully, and the Khmer polity continued to develop, establishing over time a priestly hierarchy, an armed force and police, a provincial administration of subordinate officials, a system of courts, corve labor by the peasants, and a capital on the site of Angkor near the Tonle Sap. The Khmer state reached its apogee in the Angkorian period-- also called the empire of Angkor--during the period from the eleventh century to the thirteenth century, when it was ruled by a succession of able
monarchs. The last great monarch of the Angkorian period was Jayavarman VII (1181-ca. 1218). He reversed the Cham encroachments that had taken place after the death of Suryavarman II (1113-50) and carried the war to the enemy, conquering Champa itself and briefly reducing it to a Khmer vassal state. At its greatest extent, the Angkorian empire of Jayavarman VII encompassed not only Champa on the coast of southern Vietnam but also extended north to the vicinity of Vientiane in present-day Laos and south to include the small trading city-states of the Malay Peninsula. Jayavarman continued the public works program of his predecessors, uniting his realm by elevated military causeways with resthouses at intervals. He also built hospitals for the aged and the infirm and sponsored the construction of Angkor Thom and the Bayon, the last major temples of Angkorian times and splendid edifices in their own right, but presaging the decadence that shortly set in. Jayavarman VII's wars and public works exacted a heavy toll on the finances and the human labor force of the Angkorian empire. The drain of resources coincided with the gradual intrusion of Theravada Buddhism, with its egalitarian focus, at the expense of the Indianized cults that stressed a hierarchical, stratified society. Whether it was this development or the inability of the Khmer monarchs to command the fealty of their subjects that led to a societal breakdown remains open to conjecture. Also coupled with these internal developments was the accelerated southward migration of the Thai, who, dislodged from their state in southwestern China by the Mongols in the mid-1200s, flooded into the Menam Chao Phraya Valley. Subject to internal and external pressures, the Khmer state became unable to defend itself at the very time its enemies were growing stronger. Thai attacks were stepped up around 1350, and they continued until Angkor itself was captured and sacked in 1430-31. The fall of Angkor ended the dominant period of the Khmer state. Thereafter, its borders shrank, and it controlled little more than the area around the Tonle Sap, the alluvial plain to the southeast, and some territory west of the Mekong River. To the east, the collapse of the kingdom of Champa in 1471 opened the Khmer lands of the Mekong Delta to the steady Vietnamese expansion southward. The long waning of the Cambodian empire after the fall of Angkor is not well documented. The transfer of the capital from the Angkorian region around the Tonle Sap to the vicinity of Phnom Penh may have heralded the shift of emphasis from an agricultural to a trading society. Even with this change, the Khmer state retained some of its vitality into the seventeenth century, alternately trading and warring with its neighbors. By the eighteenth century, however, it had become a backwater buffer state, existing solely on the sufferance of its increasingly powerful neighbors, Thailand and Vietnam. The imposition of the French protectorate upon Cambodia prevented its neighbors from swallowing it completely. Cambodia's status declined further under the French, however, when the last vestiges of its sovereignty were lost, especially after 1884, when Paris imposed another unequal treaty that went beyond the original protectorate of 1863. The newer pact limited the authority of the king, abolished slavery, stationed colonial officials in the countryside, and codified land ownership. Reaction to the 1884 treaty produced the only sustained rebellion during colonial times. Unrest persisted until 1886 and was put down with troops from Vietnam. Thereafter, the French consolidated their grasp on the country, and Cambodia became merely a heavily taxed, efficient rice-producing colony, the inhabitants of which were known for their passivity. As the Southeast Asian colonies of the European powers stood on the brink of World War II in 1940 and 1941, the utter powerlessness of Cambodia was illustrated by the fact that it was compelled to surrender its provinces of Siemreab and Batdambang (Battambang), which included some of the country's most fertile agricultural area, to Thailand, as a result of the brief Franco-Siamese War. In addition, some months later it was the French, not the Cambodians, who selected the candidate who would sit on the throne in Phnom Penh. Their choice was the young Prince Norodom Sihanouk, because French officials considered him more manipulable than the heir apparent. (Sihanouk was then a shy youth, well-disposed toward his role as figurehead monarch, and totally inexperienced in governing. His formidable international reputation lay far in the future.) In March 1945, the Japanese swept aside the Vichy French administration in Cambodia (as elsewhere in Indochina), and they induced the young king to proclaim independence. The event offered little occasion for euphoria, however. The Japanese remained in control, and then, after the Japanese surrender, the French returned to reimpose their authority, granting the Cambodians, as consolation prizes in early 1946, the right to have a constitution and the right to form political parties. In the late 1940s and the early 1950s, the struggle for independence in Cambodia took place on several levels. Two political parties were formed under princes of the royal house. The Liberal Party, the more conservative of the two, advocated an evolutionary approach to independence. The Democratic Party, the more radical one, favored the rapid attainment of independence and the formation of whatever political alliances might be necessary. Underground, Cambodian guerrillas took to the jungles to fight the returning French. The Khmer Issarak, as these guerrillas were called, encompassed disaffected Cambodians from across the entire political spectrum. Meanwhile, the French managed to secure the return of Cambodia's two provinces lost to Thailand in 1941. In 1949, under increasing military pressure from the Viet Minh in neighboring Vietnam, the French granted Cambodia qualified self-government in certain areas and an autonomous zone in Batdambang and Siemreab. Sihanouk continued the political struggle above ground, embarking upon a campaign for independence. Using a combination of private and public initiatives and grandiose gestures, he exacted grudging concessions from a French government increasingly hard- pressed in Indochina by its war against the Viet Minh. In November 1953, Sihanouk announced dramatically that independence had been gained, and he returned triumphantly from Paris to Phnom Penh. Sihanouk quickly emerged as a leader of stature in his newly independent country. In an effort to gain a freer hand in the politics of his nation, a role he was not permitted to play as the ruler in a constitutional monarchy, he abdicated the throne in 1955 and formed a political movement, the People's Socialist Community (Sangkum Riastre Niyum, or Sangkum). With control of the Sangkum, Sihanouk succeeded in having himself named both chief of state and head of government. For nearly sixteen years, from 1954 to 1970, he dominated Cambodian politics and ruled at the head of a highly authoritarian and centralized government. In the countryside, Sihanouk kept the support of the people through his charismatic personality, his highly visible personal forays among the rural peasantry, and his adherence to the traditional symbols and institutions of the Khmer monarchy, such as public audiences and participation in time-honored ceremonies. Among the politicized urban elite, Sihanouk maintained power and kept his opponents off-balance through a range of manipulative stratagems, pitting them against one another when he could and co- opting them with government positions when he could not. In spite of Sihanouk's efforts, the situation in Cambodia began to go awry in the mid- to late 1960s. Internally, the country had been savaged by economic reverses. The budget was chronically in deficit; United States aid had been terminated; and state socialism had stifled development. Prices for Cambodia's export commodities--rice and rubber-- were declining. Numerous members of the youthful, educated elite were underemployed and dissatisfied. Among the politicized middle class, the military leadership, the intellectuals, and the students, opposition was developing to Sihanouk's authoritarianism. In the countryside, heavy taxation had ignited the shortlived Samlot Rebellion in Batdambang Province. Although suppressed ruthlessly, it refused to die out, and smoldered on in remote corners of Cambodia. Disaffected elements still were at large, and some of the country remained insecure. The radical wing of the Kampuchean (or Khmer) Communist Party, led by Saloth Sar (later to be known as Pol Pot), had gone underground and had taken up arms, unleashing its own insurgency against the Sihanouk regime. In the northeast, minority ethnic groups were alienated from the government in Phnom Penh because of its corve labor,
forced resettlement, and assimilationist policies. Internationally, the picture was not much better. Sihanouk tried to maintain a nonaligned course in the country's foreign policy. During its first decade of independence, Cambodia had received aid from East and from West, and it was respected internationally. In the mid- to late 1960s, however, this neutrality was fast eroding, and Cambodia was about to be engulfed by the war in neighboring Vietnam. The country rapidly was becoming a logistical rear area and a safe haven for North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces fighting the Saigon government. Cambodia was exposed to cross-border forays and airstrikes from South Vietnam to neutralize these enemy installations. The Cambodian port of Kampong Saom also was becoming the terminus for Chinese weapons and supplies that were then trucked, sometimes in Cambodian army vehicles, overland to North Vietnamese and Viet Cong supply depots. Sihanouk sought to adjust to the prevailing trends in Indochina. He sought to distance Cambodia from South Vietnam and accepted accommodation with North Vietnam and with the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam, the political arm of the Viet Cong. He broke relations with Washington, looked for support to Beijing--which was then distracted by its Cultural Revolution, and then resumed ties with Washington. Events in Cambodia were moving out of control, however. When Sihanouk went abroad for a lengthy sojourn in January 1970 to solicit Soviet and Chinese assistance in curbing the presence of North Vietnamese sanctuaries on Cambodian territory, domestic opposition to his regime became more outspoken and soon acquired a momentum of its own. The entire Cambodian National Assembly, led by a rightist cabinet under Premier Lon Nol, voted on March 22 to bar the return of Sihanouk to the country. Cambodia's first post-independence era thus ended, and the country soon was plunged into a period of war, chaos, and human suffering perhaps unparalleled in its history. The Lon Nol government that succeeded the fall of Sihanouk quickly abolished the monarchy and proclaimed itself the Khmer Republic. It initially enjoyed wide support among the urban population, but it soon proved itself unequal to the tasks of governing and defending the country and capturing the allegiance of the Cambodian masses. The new government in Phnom Penh began by fanning anti-Vietnamese sentiment among the Khmer population, as a result of which countless numbers of civilian Vietnamese migrants in Cambodia were massacred. The government then turned against the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong by calling publicly for their ouster from Cambodia and by initiating ineffectual military operations against them. Shortly thereafter, an offensive military thrust of the United States and South Vietnam into Cambodia dislodged North Vietnamese and Viet Cong units from their border sanctuaries; instead of driving them away from Cambodian territory, however,
it pushed them deeper into the country, where they soon swept before them the ill-trained, ill- armed, and totally inexperienced Cambodian republican forces. At the same time, two concurrent developments conspired to erode further the shaky position of the Khmer Republic. The first was that Sihanouk established a government-in-exile in Beijing, where he had fled following his ouster. There, he raised the standard of revolt against the republican regime in Phnom Penh, and he united in a common front with the armed Khmer communist rebels. Both sides saw the advantages to such an alliance of convenience. The Cambodian communists, dubbed the Khmer Rouge by Sihanouk, had ignited a small-scale insurgency in early 1968, but they had not been able to move beyond their redoubts in remote corners of Cambodia or to gain mass support in their first two years. Their alliance with Sihanouk, in a broad resistance front called the National United Front of Kampuchea, transformed their forlorn rebellion, which was aided by Washington, into a war of national liberation against a puppet regime in Phnom Penh. At the same time, Sihanouk's name attracted to the FUNK cause Cambodians of every political persuasion, including many people without communist antecedents. The second development, one with equally serious consequences for the Khmer Republic, was that the North Vietnamese quickly undertook the training of the Khmer Rouge guerrillas to transform them into a conventional fighting force. While this training program was underway, North Vietnamese units temporarily assumed the burden of keeping the Khmer republican forces at bay, an effort that did not tax them unduly. By 1973 the Khmer Rouge were conducting most combat operations against the Phnom Penh government by themselves. The ill-fated Khmer Republic was unable to defend itself. By 1971 it was on the defensive, and it was losing ground steadily. Fleeing the fighting in the countryside, peasant refugees crowded into the government's shrinking strongholds around Phnom Penh and the provincial centers. Lon Nol's inept and corrupt regime went from one military defeat to another. By early 1975, the situation of the Khmer Republic was so precarious that Phnom Penh itself was invaded, and government control was limited to the provincial centers and to a patch of territory in western Cambodia around the Tonle Sap. In the following months, the Khmer Rouge steadily tightened the noose around the capital until all escape routes were cut off, and resistance collapsed. The fall of Phnom Penh in April 1975 marked the end of the Khmer Republic. For the Cambodian people, the entry of the Khmer Rouge into the capital began the grimmest period in Cambodia's long history. The Khmer Rouge rulers of Democratic Kampuchea, as the regime that supplanted the Khmer Republic was called, envisioned a totally self-sufficient Cambodia. This self-sufficiency was to be achieved by accelerated agricultural production, which in turn would provide the wherewithal to develop the other sectors of the economy. Self-sufficiency, however, was pursued with such single-minded ruthlessness that between 1 million and 3 million persons died because of purges, beatings, malnourishment, and overwork. To head off opposition to economic and social restructuring, the new regime hunted down and executed virtually anyone who had served the former government. The regime emptied the cities of inhabitants and forced the entire population into rudimentary, badly organized collectives in the countryside; untold numbers died, worked to death under slave labor conditions or executed for minor infractions of camp discipline. At the same time, the regime nurtured an acute paranoia that brooked no potential opposition but that prompted it to eradicate the educated middle class of Cambodia. When this eradication was accomplished, it turned on its own cadres at every echelon, torturing and executing thousands. The regime's ruthless extermination of opponents, however, could not ensure its security; ultimately its own paranoia brought it down. Regionally, the Khmer Rouge paranoia manifested itself in the exacerbation of tensions with Vietnam. During the war against the United States and its allies, commonalities of enemy and of ideology had enabled the Vietnamese and the Cambodians to bridge their mutual distrust. After April 1975, however, with the xenophobic Pol Pot factions of the KCP in control in Phnom Penh, the traditional Cambodian antipathy for the Vietnamese reemerged. The source of the friction was the recurrent cross-border forays by combatants from both sides into the Mekong Delta and the Parrot's Beak area. The Khmer Rouge regime viewed itself as threatened, its territory violated by Vietnam. Hanoi in turn felt compelled to deploy substantial military assets along the border, as fighting continued to erupt on both sides of the frontier. By mid-1978 Hanoi's patience was rapidly running out, as it became obliged to commit division-sized units to pacification missions along the Cambodian border. Sometime in the fall of 1978, the leadership in Hanoi decided to mount a multi-division punitive expedition into Cambodia. To lend a veneer of political legitimacy to this military undertaking, Hanoi sponsored the establishment of an anti-Pol Pot movement called the Kampuchean (or Khmer) National United Front for National Salvation, made up of fugitive Cambodians who had fled the Khmer Rouge. Accompanied by token KNUFNS units, the Vietnamese launched their military campaign into Cambodia in late December 1978. The Khmer Rouge proved surprisingly vulnerable to the onslaught, and Phnom Penh fell to Hanoi's forces in early January 1979. The Khmer Rouge, defeated militarily for the time being, but not destroyed, ignited a persistent insurgency in the remote regions of Cambodia. The country then embarked upon a decade-long period of fitful rehabilitation, made more precarious by the lack of resources, the enduring guerilla war, and the military occupation by Vietnam. It was evident that the institutions of the new Cambodian regime, which called itself the People's Republic of Kampuchea, were virtually identical to those of Vietnam. In the PRK, only a single, pro-Vietnamese political party was permitted. This party, the Kampuchean (or Khmer) People's Revolutionary Party, was headed by a political bureau with a secretariat and a general secretary in charge. It also had a central committee with a control commission to handle day-by-day affairs. The party was backed by a mass movement--the successor to KNUFNS, the Kampuchean (or Khmer) United Front for National Construction and Defense and by a number of front organizations such as labor, women's, and youth groups. As in Vietnam, party and government were intertwined: the same individuals held concurrent leadership positions in both sectors. The Council of State was the highest government body; it reserved to itself the major decision-making authority. A Council of Ministers exercised cabinet functions and was responsible to a National Assembly elected from KPRP members. The National Assembly heard reports from ministers and from the rest of national leadership, but appeared to exercise little legislative authority. Cambodian rehabilitation and development were hampered by the civil war that plagued the country after the ouster of the Khmer Rouge. When the Vietnamese drove Pol Pot from power in their December 1978 invasion, they failed to administer the coup de grace to their adversaries, who regrouped their forces and initiated a guerrilla war against Hanoi's occupation forces. Despite their odious reputation and their abominable human rights record, the Khmer Rouge were able to attract guerrilla recruits to their ranks. The Khmer Rouge applied the same coercive measures in the remote areas of Cambodia under their control as those they had used when they ruled all of Cambodia, and they cast themselves as the sole nationalistic force opposing the Vietnamese occupation of Cambodia. In terms of the number of combatants they could muster, the Khmer Rouge, throughout the decade-long civil war, continued to be the largest single guerrilla force in the field. For many Cambodians, however, the option of joining either the Khmer Rouge or the Vietnamese-installed regime was a Hobson's choice. Consequently, soon after Hanoi's invasion, two additional insurgent movements arose among the Khmer refugees who had fled both Hanoi's and Pol Pot's forces. One of these movements coalesced around the elderly nationalistic figure of Son Sann, a cabinet minister under Sihanouk. Son Sann's movement took the name Khmer People's National Liberation Front, and its armed wing was called the Khmer People's National Liberation Armed Forces. In the meantime, a third insurgent force rallied under Sihanouk and his son Prince Norodom Ranariddh. Sihanouk's political movement was called for the National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia, and his armed wing, the Sihanouk National Army. The three insurgent forces maintained their own separate structures; they initiated their own guerrilla campaigns against the PRK regime in Phnom Penh and its Vietnamese mentors. After several years of sustained pressure from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to form a unified front against the Vietnamese occupiers, the Khmer insurgent movements came together in an uneasy union, the Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea, in mid-1982. Sihanouk was chosen president of the CGDK; during the succeeding years, he launched an unending series of attempts to bring reconciliation to his divided country and to achieve some power-sharing arrangement agreeable to all four warring Khmer factions. Although the methods for achieving peace in Cambodia remained in dispute, there was agreement that the Vietnamese occupation forces must depart and that the Khmer Rouge must never again reimpose its brutal rule over Cambodia. Cambodia's civil war had an international dimension as well. Arrayed on one side were the PRK, its Vietnamese allies who did much of the fighting, and, by proxy, the Soviet Union. Arrayed on the other side were the CGDK, its ASEAN supporters, and China. Vietnam was involved because it had placed the PRK in power and because it feared being caught between a hostile China and a pro-Chinese Khmer Rouge regime. The Soviet Union was involved because of its treaty relationship with Hanoi and because it provided much of the military hardware used by the PRK and by the Vietnamese. ASEAN was involved because it feared a heavily armed, expansionist Vietnamese state, which might not stop at conquest of the Indochinese Peninsula. China was involved and became the chief supporter of the Khmer Rouge faction in the CGDK because it saw the PRK and Vietnam as two more links in the chain of Soviet client states being forged around it. As the 1980s
closed, there were hopeful signs that the situation in Cambodia might not be as intractable as it had seemed in previous years. For example, the international environment had changed considerably. Soviet withdrawals from Afghanistan and Mongolia, as well as the renewed dialogue between Moscow and Beijing, culminating in a Sino-Soviet summit in May 1989, allowed to some extent Beijing's fears of encirclement by client states of Moscow. China itself stepped back from its support of the Khmer Rouge regime of Democratic Kampuchea s the sole legitimate government of Cambodia, and seemingly accepted the Vietnamese- installed Phnom Penh regime as a partner in any postwar government. The United States continued to oppose the return of the Khmer Rouge to a position of dominance in a future government, but appeared to acquiesce in a power-sharing arrangement between the Phnom Penh regime and the non-communist resistance.

Vietnam stepped up the pace of its troop withdrawal from Cambodia, ending its decade of occupation in September 1989--a year ahead of time. Among the four competing Khmer factions who remained at an impasse over power--sharing in a post-occupation Cambodia, informal meetings in Jakarta in February and May 1989 produced a useful dialogue, but little agreement on matters of substance. The PRK, in an effort to attract the support of Prince Sihanouk and the non- communist resistance and to isolate the Khmer Rouge, amended the Constitution and changed the name of the country, the flag, and the national anthem in April 1989. The amended Constitution, however, upheld the dominant position of the incumbent Kampuchean, or Khmer, People's Revolutionary Party, and made no provision for the establishment of a multi-party system in the newly named State of Cambodia. As a result of these cosmetic gestures, plus a series of meetings between Prince Sihanouk and Prime Minister Hun Sen, as well as conciliatory utterances by Khmer Rouge leaders, the differences among all sides seem to have narrowed, and the hopes for a successful resolution of the Cambodian situation seemed to have progressed sufficiently for the French government to convene the Paris International Conference on Cambodia from July 30 to August 30, 1989. The optimism on the eve of the conference--attended by nineteen countries including the United States, as well as the UN Secretary General and the four rival Cambodian factions, proved to be ill-founded. The forum expired amid the intransigence of the Khmer factions on five basic issues: verification of the Vietnamese troop withdrawal; establishment of provisions for a ceasefire in the fighting; determination of the status of Vietnamese residents in Cambodia; official characterization of the Khmer Rouge period as a genocide; and the establishment of a power-sharing arrangement among the four factions. The latter issue proved to be the major stumbling block. The
non-communist resistance headed by Prince Sihanouk lobbied for the inclusion of the Khmer Rouge on the grounds that they already exercised a decisive presence in Cambodian affairs and that their exclusion from a future government would lead inevitably to a civil war between them and the coalition that opposed them. The Phnom Penh regime countered that to include the Khmer Rouge in a postwar government would lead to a repetition of the cruelty and repression they wrought during the Democratic Kampuchea period. Thus, the impasse continued, and the failure of the Paris conference brought negotiations to an end for the time being. The State of Cambodia, in a preliminary fashion, however, cast about for a renewal of the dialogue by reconvening informal talks in Jakarta. In the meantime, pessimistic forecasts of a civil war in Cambodia following the Paris conference, the Vietnamese troop withdrawal, and the end of the dry season, seemed to be borne out. On the western frontier with Thailand,
Khmer resistance forces took to the field with renewed aggressiveness, capturing in succession a number of border towns.

The single-minded purposefulness of the Khmer Rouge in the rebel offensive came as no surprise. What astonished foreign observers, however, was the unexpected combativeness of the Khmer People's National Liberation Armed Forces, which in previous years had been reduced to ineffectuality by the bickering of its leaders. As this book goes to press, the Thai-Cambodian border remains in turmoil, with the Phnom Penh regime in a defensive posture--increasingly hard-pressed to contain rebel actions and confronting increased speculation from foreign observers as to whether it can hold its own or indeed survive without outside help.

Dec 28 1989 Russ R. Ross Andrea Matles Savada. SOURCE: Country Studies/Area Handbook by the US Lib of Congress.

