A Moment of Border Dispute with the Neighbor: Cambodian Identity in 2010

Abstract

Cambodia is famous for two things: the Angkor Wat temple and the killing fields. These two elements emerge as dominant discourses of national identity both among the elite and the masses in 2010. While the Angkor Wat is associated with a broader nationalist imagination cultivated during French colonial rule (1863-1953) symbolizing the most successful chapter of national history, the killing fields symbolize the darkest moment in which the Khmer Rouge government (1975-1979) took over the country and turned it into a place of massacres, torture, and starvation. In 2010, Cambodian national identity was largely described with reference to these key aspects, alongside many other themes including the civil wars, Liberation Day, peace and social order, economic development, democracy, the justice system, deforestation, corruption, education, national culture, national pride, monarchy, and land issues. Given the context of the outbreak of military confrontations with Thailand over the territorial dispute of the Preah Vihear border between June 2008 and December 2011, border issues are the most predominant factor influencing discourses on identity among the rest of the clusters.