Cambodian History Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Despite their other theoretical differences, virtually all scholars of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) agree that the organization's members share an almost religious commitment to the norm of non-intervention. This... more

Despite their other theoretical differences, virtually all scholars of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) agree that the organization's members share an almost religious commitment to the norm of non-intervention. This article disrupts this consensus, arguing that ASEAN repeatedly intervened in Cambodia's internal political conflicts from 1979 to 1999, often with powerful and destructive effects. ASEAN's role in maintaining Khmer Rouge occupancy of Cambodia's UN seat, constructing a new coalition government in exile, manipulating Khmer refugee camps and informing the content of the Cambodian peace process will be explored, before turning to the 'creeping conditionality' for ASEAN membership imposed after the 1997 'coup' in Phnom Penh. The article argues for an analysis recognizing the political nature of intervention, and seeks to explain both the creation of non-intervention norms and specific violations of them as attempts by ASEAN elites to maintain their own illiberal, capitalist regimes against domestic and international political threats.
[the full version is available via my website, http://www.leejones.tk]

Moscow: Institute of Oriental Studies, RAS; Oriental University, 2019. — 244 pp., ill. The book is a collection of essays dealing with various aspects of Southeast Asian and Cambodian epigraphy and state formation. The first essay shows... more

Moscow: Institute of Oriental Studies, RAS; Oriental University, 2019. — 244 pp., ill.
The book is a collection of essays dealing with various aspects of Southeast Asian and Cambodian epigraphy and state formation. The first essay shows the decisive step to the territorial state in Southeast Asia that took place in the seventh century CE. The second essay offers English and Russian translations of the Văt Luong Kău inscription K. 365 issued in honour of the King Devānīka and found near Vat Phou in Laos. Devānīka’s kingdom had no relation to the kingdom of Zhenla, except the possibility that Zhenla conquered the kingdom of Devānīka or his successors. The third essay gives English and Russian translations of the earliest dated Old Kkmer inscription K. 557/600 of 611 CE found in Angkor Borei. The essay includes a short overview of the personal names in the inscriptions of Cambodia. The fourth essay includes English and Russian translations of the Phnom Preah Vihear inscription K. 733 and a discussion of the root vidyā in Old Khmer inscriptions. The fifth essay outlines the history and archaeology of Funan and its transition to Zhenla. The essay is written in Russian. It shows a gradual Indianization of the Lower Mekong River Delta where the kingdom of Funan emerged in the beginning of the Common Era.
Предлагаемая монография «Становление государственности в Юго-Восточной Азии: Фунань и Ченла» состоит из двух частей. Первая написана на английском языке, вторая – на русском. В первой части предлагается концепция формирования территориального государства в регионе в VII в., даны комментированные переводы ключевых ранних надписей, найденных на территории Индокитая. Это санскритская надпись царя Деваники из Ват Пху K. 365, древнейшая датированная древнекхмерская надпись из Ангкор Борея 611 г. K. 557/600 и недатированная санскритская надпись из Преах Вихеар K. 733, в которой упоминаются такие школы индийской философии, как ньяя и вайшешика. Анализ надписей показывает как множественность политических центров в ранней Юго-Восточной Азии и значительные масштабы влияния на неё индийской культуры, так и сложный характер местной антропонимики, в которой одновременно существовали санскритские, древнекхмерские и другие австроазиатские имена. Вторая часть монографии посвящена изложению сведений о древнейших царствах Индокитая – Фунани и Ченле, известных из китайской исторической традиции. Данные письменных источников сопоставляются с результатами археологических исследований в Индокитае. Дана характеристика культуры Окео. В отдельном параграфе рассматриваются царские надписи эпохи Фунани, которые могли быть изданы её правителями или в их честь. Другой параграф показывает циклический характер завоевания Фунани древнекхмерским царством Ченлой: её правители Читрасена-Махендраварман и Ишанаварман оба именуются победителями Фунани в древнекитайских источниках. Особый параграф касается положения зависимых лиц в доангкорской Камбодже – кхнюмов, которых традиционно считают рабами, но чей статус остаётся не вполне ясным.

Nokor Reach is a present day Khmer national anthem. It probably became to be a national anthem after independence in 1953. In more than two decades after the coup in March 1970, there are three national anthems for Cambodia, change follow... more

文化研究學會104場論壇 2014年6月12日
重新理解東南亞的多元：從抵抗精神談起

《從審判紅高棉的國際合作與不合作看柬埔寨人的歷史記憶、傷痛和解與後殖民抵抗》

... Collapse and Regeneration from Funan to Angkor The history of the Khmer civilization is characterized by cycles of fragmen-tation, collapse, and reorganization. ... When the Thai army sacked the capital of Angkor in ad 1432, they... more

... Collapse and Regeneration from Funan to Angkor The history of the Khmer civilization is characterized by cycles of fragmen-tation, collapse, and reorganization. ... When the Thai army sacked the capital of Angkor in ad 1432, they conquered a distinctly Khmer kingdom. ...

Extraordinary Justice is an in-depth history and analysis of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, an internationalized criminal tribunal established by the UN and Cambodia to bring to justice leaders of Cambodia's Khmer... more

Extraordinary Justice is an in-depth history and analysis of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, an internationalized criminal tribunal established by the UN and Cambodia to bring to justice leaders of Cambodia's Khmer Rouge, believed responsible for war crimes, genocide, and other crimes against humanity. Told from an insiders' perspective, this book traces the establishment, operations, and likely aftermath of an epochal experiment in transitional justice.

The Complex Layout and Construction Plan of the Angkor Wat

This article will first consider the decline of human rights in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge’s Democratic Kampuchea regime. This will be compared with the situation in the Vietnamese-backed regime which followed Democratic Kampuchea,... more

This article will first consider the decline of human rights in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge’s Democratic Kampuchea regime. This will be compared with the situation in the Vietnamese-backed regime which followed Democratic Kampuchea, and with the post-conflict regime that was established after the Paris Peace Agreements of 1991. In particular, it will examine the different ways Cambodians lost their human rights under the revolutionary socialist regime of Democratic Kampuchea, the post-revolutionary socialist regime of the People’s Republic of Kampuchea, and the neoliberal post-socialist conditions of contemporary Cambodia. The article will conclude with a consideration of the future of human rights in Cambodia.

When you mention Cambodia, most people will instantly think of ‘a place of rumor, myth and legend’. After all, it is ‘the only nation in the world that proudly adorns the national flag with a ruin’ – Angkor Wat (A&E Television Networks... more

When you mention Cambodia, most people will instantly think of ‘a place of rumor, myth and legend’. After all, it is ‘the only nation in the world that proudly adorns the national flag with a ruin’ – Angkor Wat (A&E Television Networks 2007). In short, Cambodia is popularly known for its past glories and everlasting wars. After 90 years, it achieved independence from French in 1953 only to fell back to 'Year Zero' under Khmer Rouge regime. Finally achieved peace in 1991 (BBC 2015), Kingdom of Cambodia still suffers from unstable politics despite booming economy thanks to agricultural and tourism industries. With temples destroyed, books burnt and scholars massacred, most of Cambodian heritage has survived through storytelling, songs and dances (Thomas n.d). Accordingly, this essay will attempt to explore the influence of postcolonialism on Cambodian performance art. During the past three decades, it has fueled nationalism that soothes war-traumatized Cambodians and helped maintaining cultural autonomy in a converging world.

Until very recently when rivers and streams were essential communication routes in Southeast Asia, the Mekong was the main one. Due to their nature, the Khone Falls (also called Li Phi, ຫຼີຜີ in Lao) form a natural obstacle to navigation... more

Until very recently when rivers and streams were essential communication routes in Southeast Asia, the Mekong was the main one. Due to their nature, the Khone Falls (also called Li Phi, ຫຼີຜີ in Lao) form a natural obstacle to navigation and due to its location and topography, Khone Island has always formed the link between the lower and middle Mekong basins. Sometimes located in the middle of a political entity, but more often acting as a natural border between two political entities, the control of Khone Island has always been of strategic and commercial importance for them.
The purpose of this research is to determine what were the peoples, political and social entities of the region through the ages, their interrelationships and what represented the Khone Falls for them (strategic, commercial, religious, asset or obstacle, etc...) to trace the history of Khone Island and the region surrounding it through the ages.
Eventually, I plan to publish the results of this research, to produce a book in Lao for the inhabitants of Khône as well as information panels for tourists and fact sheets for tourist guides.

Illuminating developments in contemporary Cambodia with political and aesthetic theory, this book analyses the country’s violent transition from socialism to capitalism through an innovative method that combines the aesthetic approach and... more

Illuminating developments in contemporary Cambodia with political and aesthetic theory, this book analyses the country’s violent transition from socialism to capitalism through an innovative method that combines the aesthetic approach and critical theory. To understand the particularities of the country’s transition and Cambodia’s unfolding encounter with neoliberal capitalism, the book pursues the circuits of desire connecting the constellation of objects and relations, which is identified as Cambodia. Chapters focus on the pre-colonial empire of Angkor, the invasions of Siam and Vietnam in the nineteenth century, the devastation of the Khmer Rouge genocide and the subsequent Vietnamese occupation, and the present rapacity of Hun Sen’s neoliberal government. A creative combination of auto-ethnography, critical theory, and area studies and the analysis of a historical moment, the book is of interest to academics working on comparative politics, Asian studies, holocaust studies, critical theory, and in the politics of aesthetics.

Focusing exclusively on external forces risks producing an over-generalized account of a ubiquitous neoliberalism, which insufficiently accounts for the profusion of local variegations that currently comprise the neoliberal project as a... more

Focusing exclusively on external forces risks producing an over-generalized account of a ubiquitous neoliberalism, which insufficiently accounts for the profusion of local variegations that currently comprise the neoliberal project as a series of articulations with existing political economic circumstances. Although neoliberal economics were initially promoted in the global south through the auspices of structural adjustment programs designed by the International Financial Institutions, powerful global south elites were only too happy to oblige. Neoliberalism frequently reveals opportunities for well-connected government officials to informally control market and material rewards, allowing them to easily line their own pockets. It is in this sense of the local appropriation of neoliberal ideas that scholars must go beyond conceiving of ‘neoliberalism-in-general’ as a singular and fully realized policy regime, ideological form, or regulatory framework, and work towards conceiving a plurality of ‘actually existing neoliberalisms’ with particular characteristics arising from mutable geohistorical outcomes that are embedded within national, regional, and local process of market-driven socio-spatial transformation. What constitutes ‘actually existing’ neoliberalism in Cambodia as distinctly Cambodian is the ways in which the patronage system has allowed local elites to co-opt, transform, and (re)articulate neoliberal reforms through a framework that ‘asset strips’ public resources, thereby increasing peoples’ exposure to corruption, coercion, and violence. It is to such an 'articulation agenda' that this article attends, as in seeking to provide a more nuanced reading to recent work on neoliberalism in Cambodia by outlining some of its salient characteristics, I reveal a more empirical basis to theorizations of ‘articulated neoliberalism’.

Built in the early twelfth century, Angkor Wat is one of the world’s largest ancient religious structures. Each year thousands of visitors make the pilgrimage to Angkor Wat to witness the equinox sunrise over the temple’s lotus-shaped... more

Built in the early twelfth century, Angkor Wat is one of the world’s largest ancient religious structures. Each year thousands of visitors make the pilgrimage to Angkor Wat to witness the equinox sunrise over the temple’s lotus-shaped towers. In addition to the equinox alignment, however, there are other alignments at Angkor Wat and many of the surrounding temples. In this article multiple solstice alignments are identified for Angkor Wat and eleven nearby temples to include: Bakong, Phnom Bakheng, Phnom Bok, Phnom Krom, East Mebon, Pre Rup, Banteay Srei, Ta Keo, Baphuon, Preah Khan, and Bayon.
Subsequent to ground and aerial reconnaissance of the above sites, archaeoastronomic assessments were made using Google Earth, with solstice azimuths calculated using standard protocols. More than seventy solstice alignments were thus identified.
The multiplicity of solstice alignments combined with other data suggest that it was important for Angkor temples to be connected to the sun. If, as endorsed here, Angkor temples were microcosmic models of the cosmos, then arguably, solstice alignments connected the temples to the cyclic movement of the cosmos as manifested by the solar cycle.

After a long civil conflict which ended in the late 1990s, Cambodia has been experiencing a period of rapid economic development. However, improvements in living standards and the advantages gained from the reintegration of Cambodian... more

After a long civil conflict which ended in the late 1990s, Cambodia has been experiencing a period of rapid economic development. However, improvements in living standards and the advantages gained from the reintegration of Cambodian society into the outside world do not appear to have had a positive effect on Cambodian society in general. In particular, the situation for the majority of Cambodians with disabilities is very different from the rest of society. The genocidal Khmer Rouge regime in the late 1970s and the subsequent extended period of civil unrest are the main reasons for the high prevalence of people with disabilities in this Southeast Asian country. In 2012, the Cambodian Government ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) and adopted the first laws for its enforcement. Government and public institutions, however, still directly and indirectly prevent disabled people from active participation on a large scale, and this is most evident in the approach to education. Although Cambodia has been considered to be a stable semi-democratic state for almost two decades, children and young people with disabilities still have limited access to quality education, despite international human rights obligations. The Czech Republic has been supporting Cambodia in several projects run by non-governmental organisations such as Caritas Czech Republic. Since 2010 Caritas has been working in the central province of Takeo to support children with disabilities in their educational development. In this project, Caritas Czech Republic has been working with Catholic Relief Services and experts from the Faculty of Education of Charles University in Prague. This paper first introduces the situation of disabled people in Cambodia in the historical and socio-political context. Secondly, the results of a study focusing on the preparation of teacher institutions across the country for special and inclusive education are presented. The study was conducted during 2012 and 2013. The results show that only a very small number of these institutions are actively preparing educators to work with learners with disabilities. There is a need for more intense training for all tutors and teachers. The training programmes should focus on a range of disabilities, assistive devices, inclusive curriculum and management of inclusion in the context of the current demands on teachers at all levels of the educational system.

The 9th-15th century Angkorian state was Southeast Asia's greatest premodern empire and Angkor Wat in the World Heritage site of Angkor is one of its largest religious monuments. Here we use excavation and chronometric data from three... more

The 9th-15th century Angkorian state was Southeast Asia's greatest premodern empire and Angkor Wat in the World Heritage site of Angkor is one of its largest religious monuments. Here we use excavation and chronometric data from three field seasons at Ang-kor Wat to understand the decline and reorganization of the Ang-korian Empire, which was a more protracted and complex process than historians imagined. Excavation data and Bayesian modeling on a corpus of 16 radiocarbon dates in particular demand a revised chronology for the Angkor Wat landscape. It was initially in use from the 11th century CE with subsequent habitation until the 13th century CE. Following this period, there is a gap in our dates, which we hypothesize signifies a change in the use of the occupation mounds during this period. However, Angkor Wat was never completely abandoned, as the dates suggest that the mounds were in use again in the late 14th-early 15th centuries until the 17th or 18th centuries CE. This ...

Cultural heritage recognised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has become the gold standard for the heritage industry. Many nations strive to have tangible, intangible and natural heritage... more

Cultural heritage recognised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has become the gold standard for the heritage industry. Many nations strive to have tangible, intangible and natural heritage inscribed on UNESCO’s various heritage lists. One of the most important UNESCO heritage sites situated in Southeast Asia is Angkor Wat in Cambodia, an extensive site comprising around 400 km2 of land housing countless magnificent remains of the Khmer empire. Its exploitation as a heritage site avant la lêttre can be traced back to colonial times. After the fall of the Khmer Rouge in 1979, Angkor Wat started to attract international attention, funds and interest, which turned it into a site that played a large role in helping UNESCO to define its heritage definition and practices.

Campos de la muerte: el genocidio camboyano en el régimen de terror de Pol Pot. Relatos e Historias en México, núm. 153, julio 2021

In 1875 three women of the palace and a male palace servant were executed on the order of King Norodom of Cambodia. One of the women, a lesser queen who had borne two of the king’s children, was beheaded with a sword for having entered... more

In 1875 three women of the palace and a male palace servant were executed on the order of King Norodom of Cambodia. One of the women, a lesser queen who had borne two of the king’s children, was beheaded with a sword for having entered into a sexual liaison with the man; the other two women were shot for acting as go-betweens for the couple. The French saw these executions as evidence of the despotism and backwardness of the Cambodian monarchy. Emancipating the women of the Cambodian royal ‘harem’ became a key objective of the French colonial project and assisted in legitimising their presence in the kingdom. Yet for Norodom, his actions were fitting retribution for an act he perceived as treason. The French did not realize that sexual fidelity on the part of the women of the palace symbolised the political loyalty of their families. This paper explores the institution of ‘women of the palace’ from both angles and how the French perception of the ‘harem’ as a place of immorality is the one that has endured in the minds of Cambodians. In reality, however, the women of the palace were inhabitants of a realm at once mundane and celestial; far from mere sexual playthings, their roles enabled the king to move between the worlds he represented and maintain diplomatic relations with the lands he ruled.

From the sixteenth to the nineteenth century Cambodia’s coinage consisted of small silver uniface coins with animal or vegetal designs. These coins continue to defy detailed attribution as their designs are without inscriptions and the... more

From the sixteenth to the nineteenth century Cambodia’s coinage consisted of small silver uniface coins with animal or vegetal designs. These coins continue to defy detailed attribution as their designs are without inscriptions and the images on them cannot be interpreted to indicate the time or place of issue. This study sets out to analyse the information available from Cambodian royal chronicles and from foreign accounts of Cambodian money to create a background for the early history of the coinage and to collect data from the coins themselves, such as variations in design and weight standards towards creating a framework for further study.

The Cbpab Srei [Code of Conduct for Women], first written at the turn of the nineteenth century, is one of the most cited pieces of Cambodian traditional literature. Various versions and commentaries in Khmer exist; only two French... more

The Cbpab Srei [Code of Conduct for Women], first written at the turn of the nineteenth century, is one of the most cited pieces of Cambodian traditional literature. Various versions and commentaries in Khmer exist; only two French translations have been made, and none in English, until now. Popularly believed to have been authored by King Ang Duong (r. 1848-1863), who is credited with the resuscitation of Cambodian sovereignty following centuries of Thai and Vietnamese aggression, the appearance of the text coincided with a strongly misogynist element that emerged in Cambodian elite society. Was this due to the bias of Ang Duong himself, unable to claim the throne for over a decade due to the incumbency of his niece, Ang Mei? Or was it due to the influence of a more austere form of Buddhism in the Thai court at this time? Moreover, did Ang Duong actually author the Cbpab Srei – and if not, why is it to him that authorship is most commonly attributed? This paper will explore these questions and posit other possible explanations for the more conservative attitude adopted towards Cambodian women during the latter half of the nineteenth century, as well as the implications that the emergence of this misogyny has had for gender equity in Cambodia.

Cambodia’s cinema history is strange and surprising. Popular films from France and the United States circulated through the Kingdom during the French colonial period. The 1950s and 60s saw extensive local production with the enthusiastic... more

Cambodia’s cinema history is strange and surprising. Popular films from France and the United States circulated through the Kingdom during the French colonial period. The 1950s and 60s saw extensive local production with the enthusiastic support of King Norodom Sihanouk, himself a passionate film- maker, but the Khmer Rouge regime (1975-1979) destroyed most of the existing material, including hundreds of feature films, raw footage and countless other ephemeral documents. In 2006, after representations by film-maker Rithy Panh and others, the Bophana Audio-Visual Research Centre was established in Phnom Penh to comb the world for every fragment of film and audio material relating to Cambodia’s history in order to reproduce it in an accessible digitized form. The archival preservation and duplication has continued apace. However the ethical use of these materials presents challenges. Contemporary documentary makers and digital enthusiasts frequently use fragmentary footage to support their political or historical interpretations without attribution or context. This paper discusses a propaganda film featuring the former King Norodom Sihanouk and his wife Monique shot in1973 in collaboration with the Communist Chinese, the North Vietnamese and the Khmer Rouge. Short scenes and extracts from this film circulate online and appear in many documentaries.The“archive effect”of this footage raises questions about the source and circulation of archival images with significant historical and political consequences.

Cambodia also Kampuchea or Royaume du Cambodge is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina peninsula in Southeast Asia hosting the biggest Hindu Temple complex in the world, but more than 4000 Hindu temples are spread... more

Cambodia also Kampuchea or Royaume du Cambodge is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina peninsula in Southeast Asia hosting the biggest Hindu Temple complex in the world, but more than 4000 Hindu temples are spread all over the country. Cambodian architecture is very diverse in style, design and features-illustrating that Hindu temple architecture was in its formative stage and was yet to arrive at the standardised situation of later centuries. Nevertheless, the influence of Gupta-era buildings on later Cambodian temple architecture is indisputable and continued right through to the medieval period. The Indianised kingdom facilitated the spread of first Hinduism(and later Buddhism) and the construction of numerous temples- on a gigantic scale and magnificence. The How, Why and What is explained in this paper.Most comprehensive paper on Cambodian Temples and Its Hindu Architecture

Overview and bibliography on Cambodian Buddhism for the Encyclopedia of Religion