This "kind and gentle child" became a ruler who, without doubt, instigated one of the worst crimes of the Twentieth Century. Pol Pot (real name Saloth Sar), in pursuit of his warped 'vision' of a perfect Cambodia, systemically committed genocide against his own people.
During Pol Pot's three and a half years of rule over Cambodia, from 1975 to 1978, the Khmer Rouge, the group founded and led by Pol Pot, killed as many as two MILLION people through mass executions, starvation and slave labor.
When he came to power in 1975, he quickly set about transforming the country into his vision of an 'agrarian utopia' by emptying the cities, abolishing money, private property and religion and setting up rural collectives.
Pol Pot's radical social experiment claimed the lives of countless Cambodians. Anyone thought to be an intellectual of any sort was killed. Often people were condemned for wearing glasses or knowing a foreign language.
The political activity of Pol Pot began in post-World War II France, which ruled Cambodia as part of its Indochina colony. The son of a relatively well-off peasant family, he received a government scholarship in 1949 to study in Paris, where he was attracted to the ideas and vision of the French Communist Party.
He returned to Phnom Penh in 1953, worked as a teacher and was involved in the establishment of the Communist Party in Cambodia. Faced with police repression under the government of Prince Norodom Sihanouk, the country's first post-colonial ruler, the party leaders fled the capital in 1963, seeking sanctuary in the remote rural areas of the country.
In
the countryside, Pol Pot formed the Khmer Rouge and formulated a
political cocktail of Chinese style Marxism (based on justice and power
for the 'peasant' class), and anti-Western nationalism (based on
France's legacy of colonialism, and a reaction to American 'interference'
in the Southeast Asian region). This mixture resulted in a radical
anti-urban, anti-foreign, anti-intellectual philosophy.
As Cambodia became embroiled in the Vietnam War with Viet Cong troops and American forces fighting within her borders, the country became increasingly unstable. In this climate the Khmer Rouge grew and became more and more powerful, eventually overthrowing the capital Phom Penh in 1975.
Then began the horror known as the "Killing Fields". Anyone who has seen the movie of the same name has had a glimpse of what Pol Pot's vision for Cambodia actually accomplished.
After their overthrow in 1978, the Khmer Rouge continued to destabilize Cambodia's attempts to rebuild. Pol Pot became a reclusive, almost invisible figure. His death in 1998 brought a close to a tragic chapter in the history of this Asian nation.
BOTTOMLINE. A kind and gentle child changed by ideology and war. How different Cambodia's history may have been if this gifted leader met 'real' Christians while studying overseas, instead of radical communists!! Once again we see the impact one person can make on the destiny of a nation. Listen, it doesn't have to be just the "bad guys" who make that kind of impact!!
EXTRA. Many people come to Western countries to study, what else do they find? What a tremendous blessing it would be if they could return home with a faith and love that comes from knowing who Jesus is. Are there any foreigners studying near you? I'm sure they would like to have local friends to help with life in a new country. Maybe you can be that friend? Click on the highlighted text to find out you can Help A Student from another culture
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