When the Vietnam War spilled over into Cambodia in the late 1960s, this politically divided country was launched into decades of war and social upheaval. Its people experienced genocide, foreign occupation and a series of destructive interventions by the superpowers.
Accord 5 examines concerns around the signing of the 1991 Paris agreements that officially ended Cambodia’s long war, and the subsequent violent collapse of the country's governing coalition in July 1997.
The experiences suggest the need for rethinking international responses to Cambodia’s problems, with a greater emphasis on monitoring and supporting the functioning of its constitutionally-mandated political institutions.
The publication includes articles on elections and power-sharing, Buddhist activism, international disengagement and constitutional safeguards. It also provides a chronology of Cambodia’s political history, conflict and peace process, profiles of key people, parties and institutions, and full texts and commentary on the Paris agreements.
Selected Accord articles have been published in the Khmer language and distributed by the Khmer Institute of Democracy.
This issue of Accord was edited by Dylan Hendrickson.
The Accord publications are a very useful tool for our staff and our readers doing research on peace, development and democracy.
Dina Nay, the Khmer Institute for Democracy, Cambodia.
