Cambodia—Profile

(2001 est. 11.4 million). Cambodia occupies 181,040 square kilometers of peninsular Southeast Asia. Modern Cambodia is bordered by Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, and the Gulf of Thailand, which is a part of the South China Sea. It is all that remains of the once-powerful Khmer empire that flourished in the ninth through the twelfth centuries and dominated much of mainland Southeast Asia.

The frequency with which the official name of the country has changed is emblematic of the many political and social changes that have characterized modern Cambodia. Cambodia's current official title, the Kingdom of Cambodia, marks a return to name it had in the years immediately following independence, granted by the French in 1953. It has also been known officially as the Khmer Republic (1970–1975), Democratic Kampuchea (1975–1979), the People's Republic of Kampuchea (1979–1989), and the State of Cambodia (1989–1993).

Cambodia could be compared to a saucepan, or to a bowl. In the center of the country is a lowland plain, which is bordered by the Dangrek Mountains along the Thai border, the Cardamom Mountains to the south, and the Elephant Mountains even further south. There are also mountain ranges in the east. The country's highest peak is Mount Aural, which rises 1,813 meters (5,948 feet) above sea level.

The most significant geographical feature of Cambodia is the Tonle Sap. Tonle Sap is the name given to a river that is a tributary of the Mekong River, which flows through China, Myanmar (Burma), Laos, and Thailand, before running for more than 500 kilometers (more than 300 miles) through Cambodia, into Vietnam, and then to the South China Sea. Tonle Sap is also the name of a lake, into and from which the Tonle Sap River flows.

The Tonle Sap is remarkable because its flow reverses with the seasons. During the dry season (Novemberto April), the Tonle Sap River flows south from the lake into the Mekong River. During this period, the lake remains narrow and long, covering about 5 percent of Cambodia. During the wet season (May to October), the Mekong River rises, and the Tonle Sap River can no longer flow into it. The Tonle Sap river reverses its direction, flowing north into the Tonle Sap lake. The lake swells and overflows, covering almost 15 percent of the country. When the Tonle Sap flows into the Mekong, it leaves behind a layer of soil rich in nutrients. Rice farmers capitalize on this soil to grow their crops, and in the lake, the nutrients are eaten by fish. Together, fish and rice form the staple of the Cambodian diet.

Politics in Cambodia reflects the country's turbulent modern history. Having passed through a series of revolutionary changes since independence, the most radical and infamous of which was the rule of the Khmer Rouge between 1975 and 1979, the current system of government is officially a multiparty liberal democracy under a constitutional monarchy. This system was formed after warring factions in Cambodia agreed, in 1991, to conduct national elections under the direct supervision of the United Nations.

In 2001, the head of the government was Prime Minister Hun Sen (b. 1952), a former low-ranking officer of the Khmer Rouge who quickly rose through the ranks of the Khmer Rouge's Vietnamese-backed successor regime, the People's Republic of Kampuchea. Hun Sen was appointed prime minister after national elections conducted in 1998 delivered a majority of seats to his Cambodian People's Party (CPP), which governed in coalition with the royalist FUNCINPEC (Front Uni National pour un Cambodge Indépendant, Neutre, Pacifique, et Coopératif; National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia) party, led by Prince Norodom Ranariddh. The prince is a son of Cambodia's King Sihanouk (b. 1922), who remains the country's most enduring political figure.

More than 75 percent of Cambodia's workforce is employed in agriculture. The primary agricultural crop is rice. Other crops include corn, rubber, sugarcane, and vegetables. Many Cambodians earn a living fishing from the Tonle Sap, while others grow a variety of fruit—among them being bananas, durian, mango, and papaya. Set against the agriculture sector is a steady growth in the industry sector, primarily fueled by the establishment of foreign-owned garment factories, which capitalize on Cambodia's cheap labor. The garment industry employs more than 100,000 people, and accounts for almost $700 million per year in exports.

A major feature of the economic system is its dependence on international assistance. During the 1980s, it was the assistance of Vietnam and the Soviet-led international socialist bloc that prevented the Cambodian economy from collapse. In the last decade of the twentieth century, the international community supported the Cambodian budget, and provided the funds for most capital investment, with China emerging as a major donor to the government. While self-sustainability is a long-term goal of the Cambodian government, this remains elusive.

Unlike many of its Southeast Asian neighbors, Cambodia is relatively ethnically homogenous. The dominant ethnic group is the Khmer, whose language (Khmer) is the national language of Cambodia, and whose religion, Theravada Buddhism, is also the national religion. The largest ethnic minority groups in Cambodia are the Chinese and the Vietnamese, many of whom have lived in the country for several generations. While relations between the Khmer and Chinese normally are quite amicable, and often feature intermarriage, relations between the Khmer and Vietnamese are often characterized by suspicion and animosity that are rooted in history and stem from the Khmer perception that the Vietnamese desire to "swallow up" Cambodian territory. The Chams, descendants of the former kingdom of Champa, now central Vietnam, are the third most populous ethnic minority. While the majority of the people of Cambodia are Buddhists, most Chams are Muslim.

In addition to the Khmer and these three dominant ethnic minorities, there are other less populous ethnic groups in Cambodia. Referred to as Khmer Leou (highland Khmer), these ethnic groups live in the mountainous regions of Cambodia. They include the Brao, Kuy, Saoch, and Pear ethnic groups, as well as ethnic Thai and Lao minorities. Each of these groups has its own language and customs.

Cambodia remains one of the poorest countries in the world, and is faced with a raft of significant social and political challenges. Paramount among these is the alleviation of poverty, especially in rural Cambodia, where more than 80 percent of the population lives. Rates of infant mortality are among the highest in Asia, while the access of the majority of the population to education, health care, and a sanitary water supply remains at critically low levels. In recent years, the popular belief that the majority of rural Cambodians owned the land they lived on has been undermined, and rural landlessness has emerged as a major factor in explaining the incidence of poverty. This problem has been exacerbated by land-grabbing by government officials and high-ranking members of the armed forces, who are able to take advantage of a poorly developed legal system and a culture of impunity among those exercising political power.

Apart from poverty, another challenge facing contemporary Cambodia is how the country will reconcile calls for more vibrant democracy and a more active role for civil society with a hierarchical political culture firmly grounded in centuries of tradition. A proliferation of local nongovernmental organizations and the establishment of a fledgling trade union movement provide evidence of an emerging civil society. Drawing on the traditions of a hierarchical political culture that inhibits popular participation and a dialogue over the formulation of policy, the government continues to struggle with how it should integrate these new democratic institutions into the broader political system.

David M. Ayres

Chandler, David. (1991) The Tragedy of Cambodian History: Politics, War, and Revolution since 1945. Bangkok, Thailand: Silkworm Press.

Chandler, David. (1993) A History of Cambodia. Sydney: Allen and Unwin.

Hoskin, John. (1992) Cambodia: A Portrait. Hong Kong, China: Elsworth Books.

Kamm, Henry. (1998) Cambodia: Report from a Stricken Land. New York: Arcade Publishing.

Mabbett, Ian, and David Chandler. (1995). The Khmers. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers.