The Tale of Two Genocides: Cambodia and Bangladesh

A common tool utilized by empire in order to assert dominance over is violence. While some powers use this mean to overpower neighboring and less powerful nations in order to further their own thirst for supremacy, others use brutality in order to subdue and influence their own people in to obeying the often warped laws of the land that they wish to oppress civilians with. A powerful tool to subjugate people is genocide, "the deliberate and systematic destruction of a racial, political, or cultural group," (Merriam-Webster). Two little known historical massacres are the Cambodian Genocide (1975-1979) and the Bangladesh Genocide (March 25th, 1971-December 16th, 1971). Both events share characteristics of bloodshed and horror, yet differ in their objectives and onsets.

During Week 6, Professor Vo taught a lecture about the Cambodian Genocide, an atrocity that is unknown to most Americans due to the fact that it transpired during the same era as the Vietnam War, an infamous time in United States' history characterized by governmental lies and anti-war protests that ideologically tore the nation apart. In 1975, the Khmer Rouge, a Communist group, invaded Cambodia with the intention of purging the country of all Western influences that may have been taken up by the Cambodian people as a result of the United States' presence in the region along with establishing an agrarian utopia (Genocide in Cambodia) (Vo, 6a). The Khmer Rouge massacred intellectuals (school teachers, doctors, etc.) first, followed by their family members and anyone associated with private institutions of any kind (World Without Genocide). The regime then proceeded to execute members of their own group who were suspected of potentially being susceptible to committing treason, anyone who exhibited emotions, members of religious communities, and minorities. Even children, women, and expectant mothers were executed for their affiliation to possibly treasonous parents or extended family members. The mass slaughter created a refugee crisis and many Cambodians died on account of countries refusing to allow them refugee status. The horror of the Khmer Rouge ended finally with the Vietnamese's overthrow of them in 1979 (World Without Genocide). After all was said and done, it was calculated that approximately 3 million people were executed within the 4 year time span.

I was able to learn much about a similar atrocity, the Bangladesh Genocide, for my Oral History assignment. On March 25th, 1971, the military of West Pakistan, modern day Pakistan, opened fired on East Pakistani (modern day Bengali) citizens (Haque). This slaughter resulted from the outrage the East Pakistanis exhibited after President Yahya Khan, a West Pakistani military leader cancelled the election on March 1st following the victory of East Pakistani candidate, Sheikh Mujibur (Boissoneault). Unlike during the Cambodian Genocide, victims of the Bangladesh Genocide did not include women and children, but intellectuals and civilians, as well as members of the Freedom Fighters who battled in opposition. However, the highest estimate of casualties for a massacre that only lasted for nine months is equivalent to the four year Cambodian bloodbath. The Bangladesh Genocide did not end with a government overthrow, but with a military surrender invoked by the combined forces of the Indian Army and Freedom Fighters (Haque).

While both genocides have their share of differences, they both share the similarity of being largely unheard of by the American people. It is important to learn of imperial monstrosities such as the ones discussed above in order to recognize that the destruction of empire does not discriminate; the scope of its power can be used to destroy its own people rather than just, "barbarians."

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Sources

StartFragmentBoissoneault, Lorraine. "The Genocide the U.S. Can’t Remember, But Bangladesh Can’t

Forget." Smithsonian.com. Smithsonian Institution, 16 Dec. 2016. Web. 21 May 2017. EndFragment

Genocide in Cambodia. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2017.

Professor Vo, HumCore 1C Week 6 Lecture a

Haque, Mohammed, Oral History Interview, 12 May 2017

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