Accord Cambodia project
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.
Safeguarding peace: Cambodia’s constitutional challenge (Accord issue 5, 1998) examines the issues 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 the key people, parties and institutions, and full texts and commentary on the Paris agreements.
Dina Nay, the Khmer Institute for Democracy, Cambodia.
