Cambodian+Holocaust

Five years of bloody civil war left Cambodians hungry for peace, and when Khmer Rouge gave them that peace in 1975, most were relieved that the war was over. When it was thought the United States would bomb the capital city, Khmer Rouge ordered the evacuation to be done on foot. Those who refused were shot, including those in hospitals who couldn't walk. The same order was given in many other cities and towns, changing the whole country into one, big, forced labor camp. His goal was to revert to a peasent economy with no class divisions, no shcools, no books, no money, and no hospitals. The constitution banned "reactionary religion" in 1976. Anyone who had any connection to the previous government was weeded out and eliminated. Anyone thought to be capitalist or intelectual was targeted for assasination, even eyeglasses could incriminate a person. People suffered as virtual slaves, forced to work in fields to grow rice to feed the government while little was returned to them. Most died of starvation and malnutrition. Executions continued, many just a blow with a hoe or shovel, many men were forced to dig their own graves, others were left as they lay. Not even babies were exempt from the murders.Over 1.7 million people died under the Khmer Rouge, until the Vietamese invasion of 1978 forced the Khmer Rouge into the jungles. After the fall of the Khmer Rouge, the genocides stopped. Small international relief efforts were made, but the Cambodians were generaly left to their own device; and many viewed the Vietnamese as aggressors and the Khmer Rouge the legitimate government in Cambodia. The situation cannot be good for Cambodians, but it is still better than being killed without trial for being a free thinker. The socialist experiment in Cambodia was the least successful, most tragic, social experiment ever attempted and I would find it very hard to believe that anyone would ever try something this radical again. media type="youtube" key="PkBnfocePXI" height="344" width="425"This video adds dimensions of humanity to the events that occured during the Cambodian holocaust. It shows just how deeply people were effected and just how horrible the whole thing was. When history is remembered with human emotion, than it is far more likely to be taken seriously and remembered, so as not to repeat it. This image shows the Khmer Rouge leading a prisoner away. It shows the brutality of the regime and the innocence of the victims. It makes the whole situation more memorable more notable so civilization is not doomed to repeat it.