Blog 8

The Cambodian Khmer Rouge is responsible for one of the worst genocides in the history of the world. It is estimated that during the years of 1975-1979 the Khmer Rouge was responsible for the deaths of over two million of their citizens. But what is genocide? What differentiates genocide from different forms of murder? Genocide is defined by Samuels as “a coordinated plan seeking to eliminate all members of particular ethnic, religious, or national groups through mass murder” (Samuels 379). This definition does hold true when defining a majority of genocides but does not fully describe the Cambodian Genocide. In this paper I will provide a description of the elements of the Cambodian Genocide, and then look to better describe and define genocide. The Khmer Rouge was a communist government that ruled with an iron fist. They took power in the 1970’s and began one of the bloodiest regimes this world has ever seen. The Khmer Rouge persecuted and eventually executed anyone who: had involvement with the previous government, had an education, was ethnic Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai, or most any other type of minority, was Catholic, Muslim, or Buddhist, and those who were not contributing to the economic success of Cambodia (Chandler 2011). The list of those the Khmer Rouge decided to murder is a fairly inclusive list, however: the definition provided us by Samuels is not. When we break down the categories of those murdered into 4 groups: ethnic, religious, national, and societal. The Khmer Rouge murdered ethnic minorities, those of particular religious persuasions, those affiliated with the previous government (national groups), but where Samuels’ definition fails us is in explaining the murder of those with high education and low economic status. To more properly describe genocide we will need a new definition. A slightly broader definition would be required in order to aptly describe the Cambodian Genocide. I would define genocide as: The mass murder of a particular group of people tied together by cultural, economic, educational, religious, ethnic, or national ties. This definition is very similar to Samuels’ definition, however: it broadens the definition sufficiently to explain the Cambodian Genocide. Essentially genocide is a mass murder of any large group of people who are affiliated in anyway. The list provided may be added to as new categories and situations arise. Genocide is a horrific act of extreme violence. Defining genocide must be broad enough to cover the many situations that arise, yet still be narrow enough to provide specific information. I believe Samuels’ definition was partially correct but not sufficiently broad as to explain the variety of situations that have arisen in history. The weakness in the Samuels’ definition does require us to explore other avenues to better describe and understand genocide.


REFERENCES

 Chandler, D. (2011). The killing fields. Retrieved from http://www.cybercambodia.com/dachs/

Samuels, David J. Comparative Politics. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education, 2012. Print.