"Genocide and Democracy in Cambodia" is an insightful and illuminating look at the real facts behind the emergence of the Khmer Rouge, their atrocities, their defeat at the hands of the Vietnamese and their subsequent supporters in the international community UNSC).

Kiernan reveals, with abundent documentation, how, after Cambodia was liberated from the genocidal Khmer Rouge, the US refused to normalize relations with Cambodia as long as a Vietnamese-backed Government resisted a negotiated settlement to its civil war (civil war being a euphamism for the conflict with the Khmer Rouge, supplied by China, Thailand and,indirectly, the US and its allies).

"Genocide and Democracy in Cambodia" illustrates how the Carter Administration chose not to accept the Vietnamese offer to reestablish relations due to its early 1978 "tilt towards China" and, accordingly, toward China's Khmer Rouge ally, well before Vietnam invaded Cambodia. "Genocide and Democracy in Cambodia" reveals how Pol Pot proceeded to carry out the worst atrocities of his reign (concealed by the CIA in its later demographic study) presumably because of the US connection. Unlike many European countries, the US did not abstain at the UN on the "legitimate" government of Cambodia after the Khmer Rouge were expelled by the Vietnamese, but supported the Khmer Rouge along with China. The US backed China's invasion to discipline Vietnam and turned to supporting the Thai-based coalition in which the Khmer Rouge was the major military element. US President Carter's National Security Adviser, Zbigniew Brzezinski has revealed that the US encouraged the Chinese to support Pol Pot.

"Genocide and Democracy in Cambodia" reveals how, after helping to reconstruct Pol Pot's shattered forces, the US-China-Thailand coalition lent its diplomatic support to Pol Pot; imposed an embargo on Cambodia and blocked aid from other sources, including humanitarian aid; and undermined any moves toward a negotiated settlement that did not offer the Khmer Rouge an influential role. The US even threatened Thailand with loss of trade privileges if it refused to support the Khmer Rouge.

It was under the pressure of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council that "the Cambodians were forced...to accept the return of the Khmer Rouge," Sihanouk pointed out in his first speech after his return to Cambodia in November 1991. In 1990 he had stated that "To save Cambodia...all (the US) had to do was to let Pol Pot die. Pol Pot was dying and you brought him back to life."

"Genocide and Democracy in Cambodia" is a spetacular academic achievement in modern history and one which clearly reveals the behind-the-scenes powerplay in the "New World Order".

This is THE book on the history of Cambodia in that era and the Khmer Rouge. There are very few Western scholars who know the Khmer language and are therefore able to do serious research. Ben Kiernan is one of those few. His book is well documented, an excellent introduction with many suggestions for further reading.

The three stars are awarded for the detailed content of the book- it's only good point. The style is very academic, lacking life and fails to captivate. Despite the book being named after him, Pol Pot is hardly mentioned in it's 465 pages. Furthermore the book isn't self contained- if you want to know how Pol Pot came to power, you'll have to read another of Kiernans books. Here he paints an incomplete picture, merely informing us of US governments prominent role (surprise, surprise..), whereby Nixon had 150,000 civilians killed in illegal bombings, which were capitalised on by the Khmer Rouge to get mass support. The book also basically ignores what happened after Pol Pots fall, thus leaving it seemingly incomplete. Also, you'll need to know about the Vietnam war and Mao's China, as Kiernan doesn't bother to briefly explain either, despite them being pivotal in this context.

What the book does excel at is it's main focus- the role of racism in Pol Pots exceedingly bizarre, deranged and horrific strain of communism, which consisted of an intense xenophobia, especially focused against other communist countries. Still, this doesn't make up for the stale writing style. Overall, this book is not for the casual reader, and is more suited to those who know a fair amount about Cambodia in this era.

A follow-on to the author's "How Pol Pot Came to Power". Provides numerous leads for any student of Cambodia to pursue in field research on the history of Modern Cambodia. Ben Kiernan reaches many sources not easily accessed by others.

A brilliant indictment of Pol Pot and a highly readable account of the Killing Fields. The focus on ethnic cleansing provides a new way of understanding the horrors of the Khmer Rouge.

This is a good introduction for anyone who wants to learn about life under the Khmer Rouge. The stories may be different, but they all provide a vivid detail of children struggling to survive Pol Pot's regime.

I read a lot of books Cambodia. This is yet another collection of stories about people who survived the holocaust. My heart is always touched by such stories. These types of books are always similar even though the stories are specific to individuals there are common themes. If you are interested in more personal accounts there are 2 others which I would recommend. "When Broken Glass Floats," and "First They Killed My Father."

These are the collected accounts of children who suffered untold atrocities under the Pol Pot regime such as torture, rape, starvation, beating, and killing. People were buried alive or thrown into a pot and cooked like fish or poultry. Others had their gallbladders and liver removed to serve as meals for the Khmer Rouge.

This is the story of a revolution going haywire and of ruthless men who, in the name of distorted and senseless ideologies, inflicted pain, fear, terror, and death on their countrymen.

Power not backed by strong moral values could only lead to barbarism.