Kampuchea

Kampuchea (officially Cambodia), republic in Southeast Asia, bordered on the north by Thailand and Laos, on the east and southeast by Vietnam, on the southwest by the Gulf of Siam, and on the west and northwest by Thailand. The capital is Phnom Penh.

Land and climate

Mainly a broad plain, Kampuchea occupies 69,898 sq mi (181,035 sq km), and is separated from Thailand by the Dangrek Mountains in the north and the Cardamom Mountains in the west. The Mekong, one of the most important rivers in southern Asia, enters Kampuchea from Laos and crosses the country from north to south. A large, shallow lake, the Tônlé Sap, occupies central Kampuchea. Annual inundations caused by the overflow of the Mekong River create excellent conditions for rice cultivation. The climate is tropical and humid, with a rainy season lasting from May to Oct. Rainfall is plentiful, reaching as high as 250 in (635 cm) per year in the Cardamom Mountains. Temperatures range from 68° to 97°F (20° to 36°C). Wildlife is abundant, particularly in the forests, and includes elephants, water buffaloes, tigers, leopards, honey bears, crocodiles, and snakes. Elephants are often domesticated. There are abundant freshwater fish. Plant life is also rich. The country produces tropical hardwood trees, as well as rubber, coconut, mango, orange, banana, and kapok trees.

People

About 90% are Khmers. The Chinese and Vietnamese are minorities and there are Chams, Europeans, Indians, Thai, and primitive tribes. The modern official language is Khmer, spoken by about 60% of the population, and French is used by a sizable minority. Numerous other languages are found among the hill peoples. Theravada Buddhism is practiced, and most Kampuchean males spend at least a short time in Buddhist monasteries, many of which are also educational establishments. There are several technical schools, and the Buddhist University and the former Royal Khmer University are located in Phnom Penh. The literacy rate is about 40%.

Located at the confluence of the Mekong and Tônlé Sap rivers, Phnom Penh is the principal city of the country. Other towns are generally much less than 50,000 in population. The majority of Khmers live in villages in the Mekong and Tônlé Sap basins. Their houses, often of bamboo and thatch, are built on stilts in preparation for the rainy season. Most Kampucheans are skilled in art, music, and dancing, and their many temples are elaborately carved.

Economy

Small and often primitive rice farms on the plains around the Tônlé Sap are the basis of Kampuchea's economy. Rice is the most important export product. Rubber is the second most important. In addition, corn, livestock, sugar, pepper, tobacco, cotton, coffee, and soybeans are raised. Deep-sea fishing in the Gulf of Siam is an important commercial activity, while the Tônlé Sap and the Mekong rivers provide one of the greatest concentration of freshwater fish in southeast Asia. The extensive forests are largely untouched and, because of transport problems, high-grade iron ore deposits in the north are also unexploited.

History

Mythology claims that the country was founded by a Hindu king, Kambu, who gave the country the name Kambuja. In the 1st century A.D., Hindu people established the flourishing kingdom of Funan, which ruled large areas. Toward the end of the 6th century, the territory was split up among rival groups. The most powerful of these, the Khmer, founded the great Angkor Dynasty between 800 and 850. This Khmer kingdom reached its greatest power about 1100 and attained a high level of civilization. Much of Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam were part of the Khmer empire, which began its decline in the late 14th century. By the middle of the 19th century the country was approximately its present size and in 1863, to prevent its complete conquest, King Norodom asked for the protection of the French. In 1887, Cambodia became part of the French Union of Indochina.

In the 1930s, a Cambodian nationalist movement gained strength and by 1940 anti-French feeling was running high. In 1953 Cambodia achieved full independence. Norodom Sihanouk became prime minister after the elections of 1955 and remained so for 5 years. In 1960 Sihanouk was made head of state, without the title of king. A member of the United Nations since 1955, Cambodia proclaimed a policy of neutrality. Aid from both communist and Western countries was used to develop the economy: to build roads, air-transport facilities, and irrigation systems. In 1963, Sihanouk refused further economic and military aid from the United States, and in 1965 diplomatic relations were broken off. The military coup d'etat of 1970, when Sihanouk was deposed in his absence, together with incursions of North Vietnamese troops, precipitated internal crises. General Lon Nol established a military government (the Khmer Republic) in Phnom Penh, but the new and inexperienced Cambodian army proved a poor match for the Vietcong. U.S. and South Vietnamese forces crossed the border to clear out enemy “sanctuaries” in April 1970, but American troops soon withdrew.

The Cambodian communists (Khmer Rouge) emerged in 1970 as a powerful political group. In alliance with the Khmer Rouge, Sihanouk formed an exile government in Peking. Civil war raged between Lon Nol's government forces and the Khmer Rouge, who were gaining control of the country despite intensive U.S. bombing. In Apr. 1975 Phnom Penh was besieged and surrendered to the Khmer Rouge. “The Royal Government of the National Union of Cambodia (Kampuchea)” returned from exile under Sihanouk. Following the resignation of Sihanouk in 1976, Pol Pot became prime minister of the newly named Democratic Kampuchea. The regime enacted harsh measures, evacuating all cities and suppressing opposition. Hundreds of thousands of people died or were killed. In 1978 Vietnam launched attacks against Kampuchea, and in 1979 Vietnamese troops captured Phnom Penh and proclaimed the People's Republic of Kampuchea. Pol Pot, as commander-in-chief of the Khmer Rouge forces, continued to fight the Vietnamese from unoccupied parts of the country. In 1983, Vietnam launched major offensives against the rebel forces and by Feb. 1985 had overrun all Khmer Rouge bases. In 1989 the Vietnamese forces withdrew. The U.N. established a preliminary government in 1991, which prepared free elections to be held in 1993, combined with the restauration of the monarchy. Sihanouk became King, and his son Ranarridh prime minister. In 1997 however, Ranarridh was deposed by Hun Sen.