Challenges of Teaching Genocide in Cambodian Secondary Schools

This paper examines the politics of teaching Khmer Rouge (KR) history from 1979 to 2012—the conditions of which fluctuated through the political regimes and atmospheres in Cambodia. The paper also briefly examines the background of the Cambodian education system since 1979, which has strong implications on the teaching of KR history. Past attempts at teaching KR history reveal a gradual transition from a politically-charged KR history curriculum to one that emphasizes an objectivity that is predicated on accuracy and the absence of political bias. Immediately after the collapse of the KR regime in 1979, KR history was taught as propaganda. The teaching of KR history disappeared during the 1990s as a compromise for national reconciliation, political stability, and peace. In the early 2000s, the teaching of KR history was marginalized by political conflicts. From 2007, the teaching of KR history has turned toward an emphasis on objectivity genocide education, in which the teaching of KR history emphasizes national reconciliation, peace building, and genocide prevention. This paper examines the social, economic, political, and pedagogical challenges to teaching genocide in Cambodia over the past three decades since the fall of the KR regime in 1979. It also explores how history, politics and political conflicts determine and/or influence how post-conflict countries like Cambodia teach genocide.