Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
broke out on the streets of Phnom Penh, resulting in many deaths, and Prince
Ranariddh, who had just left the country, was ousted by Hun Sen in the
coup of July
1997
. Foreseeing a bloody struggle, many foreign workers fled the country and
investors hurriedly pulled out, leaving projects half-completed, bills unpaid and
thousands out of work; the Asian financial crisis of the time only exacerbated matters.
he
1998 elections
were the first to be self-administered post-Khmer Rouge. In
addition to the CPP and FUNCINPEC, the elections were contested by the
Sam
Rainsy Party
, a breakaway association of ex-FUNCINPEC members (for all the
proliferation of parties, there remains little real ideological difference between them,
although FUNCINPEC is generally regarded as royalist, the CPP as “communist”, and
Sam Rainsy as “democratic”). The CPP won the majority of the seats in the Assembly,
but failed to achieve the required two-thirds of the vote to form a government, and a
tense few months ensued until another coalition was formed, with Hun Sen as prime
minister and Prince Ranariddh as speaker of parliament.
The end of the Khmer Rouge
Outlawed in 1994, the Khmer Rouge started to suffer
defections
to the government
almost immediately. Nevertheless, they retained control of the north and northwest of
the country, where their leaders remained in hiding, amassing immense wealth from
the proceeds of illegal logging and gem mining. Their guerrillas continued to stage
random attacks, kidnapping and murdering foreigners and Cambodians, while
their presence prevented access to many parts of Cambodia and deterred tourists
and investors alike.
The ultimate demise of the Khmer Rouge came a step closer in 1996 when, after
striking a deal of immunity from prosecution,
Ieng Sary
, erstwhile Brother Number
Three, and two thousand of his troops defected to the government side, leaving a last
rebel enclave, led by Ta Mok and Pol Pot, isolated in the north around Anlong Veng
and Preah Vihear. An internal feud led to Pol Pot being tried by a court of his comrades
in July 1997 for the apparent attempted murder of a cadre. Some nine months later he
was dead, though it remains unclear if this was due to natural causes or whether he was
murdered; whatever the truth, he was hastily cremated in Anlong Veng. Late in 1998,
Khieu Samphan
, who had been the public face of the Khmer Rouge and president of
Democratic Kampuchea, and
Nuon Chea
, Brother Number Two, gave themselves up to
the authorities. Anlong Veng was effectively returned to Cambodian jurisdiction the
following year.
Ta M ok
, “The Butcher”, was arrested attempting to cross to Thailand in
March 1999, and finally, in May the same year, Kang Kek Leu, alias
Duch
, the
notorious commandant of Toul Sleng torture prison, was tracked down and arrested.
The new millennium
he
elections
of 2003 were acknowledged as having been the most successful to date.
Although they were won, unsurprisingly, by the CPP, opposition parties were well
represented, with the Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) - the nearest the country had to a liberal
party - and FUNCINPEC polling enough votes between them to stop the CPP
forming a government. The resulting stalemate lasted the best part of a year, and it
wasn't until June 2004 that Hun Sen and Prince Ranariddh agreed to form a coalition.
1989
1990
1993
Vietnamese forces withdraw from
Cambodia. The Khmer Rouge retake
Pailin and establish themselves in areas
around the Thai border
China and the US
withdraw support for the
Khmer Rouge
Sihanouk's son Prince Ranariddh wins
national elections - but is forced into
a coalition with Hun Sen
