Blog: NEW ANGLES ON THE KILLING FIELDS

Author: Rob Lemkin

Created: 4/19/2012 12:00:00 AM

Kong Korm, acting president of the Cambodian opposition Sam Rainsy Party, made an interesting remark in a speech on Tuesday at Choeung Ek on the 37th anniversary of the Khmer Rouge takeover. He said Vietnam and China sought dominance over Cambodia through opposing factions in the Khmer Rouge. “One Khmer Rouge is in China’s control and another Khmer Rouge is in Vietnam’s control.”

Our current film (working title Suspicious Minds) is about that very conflict inside the Khmer Rouge – and also about how hard it is to get that story. (See last month’s Guardian story)

Kong Korm appears to blame China and Vietnam but evidence from our investigation so far is that the two Khmer Rouge groups were operating pretty independently. That is not to say each side was not seeking outside allies with various agendas, but our evidence so far is that the conflict that caused the Killing Fields was between Cambodians fighting over their own future.

We are doing our best to gather primary source material so this controversial history can begin to be properly told. But we hope that we will not be alone and that others will join this vital task.