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The Cambodian genocide [a] was the systematic persecution and killing of Cambodian citizens [b] by the Khmer Rouge under the leadership of Prime Minister of Democratic Kampuchea, Pol Pot. It resulted in the deaths of 1.5 to 2 million people from 1975 to 1979, nearly 25% of Cambodia's population in 1975 (c. 7.8 million). [3] [4]
The idea that the deaths which occurred under Pol Pot's government should be considered genocide was first put forward by the Vietnamese government in 1979 after the revelations of the killings committed at Tuol Sleng prison. [454] The Vietnamese-backed PRK administration swiftly opened the prison to visitors as the "Genocide Museum". [293]
In June 1997, Pol Pot was taken prisoner during an internal power struggle within the Khmer Rouge and offered up to the international community. However, no country was willing to seek his extradition. [209] The policies enacted by the Khmer Rouge led to the deaths of one quarter of the population in just four years. [210]
By late 1979, UN and Red Cross officials were warning that another 2.2 million Cambodians faced death by starvation due to "the near destruction of Cambodian society under the regime of ousted Prime Minister Pol Pot", [4] [5] who were saved by international aid after the Vietnamese invasion.
For example, UCLA academic Patrick Heuveline wrote in 2015: "The range of estimates of excess deaths under Pol Pot's rule of Cambodia (1975–79) is too wide to be useful: they range from under 1 to over 3 million, with the more plausible estimates still varying from 1 to 2 million."
The court heard testimony from 39 witnesses over five days. The verdict, handed down on August 19, 1979, found the two leaders of the Khmer Rouge guilty of genocide, sentenced them to death and ordered the confiscation of their property. [1]
Reporter Nate Thayer survived several brushes with death while covering Southeast Asia conflict and was the last journalist to interview dictator Pol Pot.
Pol Pot, in turn, intends to take advantage of the peace process to extend his men's control throughout the country, sabotaging the planned elections. [ 47 ] [ 48 ] To facilitate peace negotiations, Vietnam removed its troops from Cambodia and Laos: on May 26, 1988, the Hanoi government announced that all its forces would leave Cambodia in ...