Indochina Tourism

Geography Cambodia is a small, unique kingdom with a land area of 181.035 square. kilometers, making it about the same size as the State of Washington or as England and Wales. The Mekong River is the lifeline of Cambodia and it cuts a path for about 500 kilometers dividing the country into the north and the south. The Tonlé Sap Lake is the largest fresh water lake in SouthEast Asia. During the monsoon season between June and October the Tonlé Sap River reverses its flow and runs in the opposite direction, filling the Tonlé Sap Lake. The Tonlé Sap River is the only river in the world that flows in both directions. The central plains account for two-thirds of the country and are mainly agricultural areas that become flooded in the monsoon season. Most of the population lives on the fertile flood plains, which are very important for the country’s agricultural production, especially of rice. The plains are sparsely forested, whereas all other parts of the landscape are composed of densely forested hills.
Climate Two monsoons set the rhythm of rural life in Cambodia. The cool, dry, northeastern monsoon blows from about November to March and brings little rain. From May to early October, the south-western monsoon picks up moist air from over the Indian Ocean, bringing strong winds, high humidity, and heavy rains throughout the country. The weather is transitional between the seasons, but even during the wet season it rarely rains in the morning. Most of the rain comes in afternoon downpours. Visitors should be warned that roads in the northeastern regions in particular, can become flooded during the rains. Travel in these areas should be avoided during the peak of the wet seasons.
Agriculture The monsoon with its cycles of dry and wet seasons builds the rhythm of the Cambodian people and agriculture. The wet season (May – October) transforms the plains into fertile arable land. The pattern of expansion and contraction of the Tonlé Sap Lake is the backbone of Cambodian production of fast growing deep-water rice. The annual flooding covers the surrounding countryside with a nutrient rich layer. The Cambodian fishing industry also relies on the Tonlé Sap. In the dry season there is large-scale commercial fishing and with the annual replenishment of the waters of the Great Lake with the nutrient-rich waters of the Mekong, fish yields are some of the highest in the world.
History According to legend, during the first century AD, Kaundinya, an Indian Brahmin priest following a dream came to Cambodia's Great Lake to find his fortune. He met and married a local princess, Soma, daughter of the Naga king, and founded the first kingdom called the Phnom, introducing Hindu customs, legal traditions and the Sanskrit language. Modern historians refer to it as Funan, the first Khmer kingdom and the oldest Indianized state in the Southeast Asian region, which became a dominant power in the region for more than 600 years. Jayavarman II, a Khmer king, united all the Khmer people under his leadership in approximately 800 AD. Establishing his capital in the north-western part of Cambodia, north of the Tonlé Sap Lake, Jayavarman II was crowned as King of Kampuchea and adopted the Hindu religion. With a succession of capitals located in and around the Siem Reap province, the Khmer kings exhibited an enormous talent for marshalling the genius of their people. Although Cambodia had a rich and powerful past under the Hindu state of Funan and the Kingdom of Angkor, by the mid-19th century the country was on the verge of dissolution. After repeated requests for French assistance a protectorate was established in 1863. By 1884, Cambodia was a virtual colony. France continued to control the country even after the start of World War II through its Vichy government. Full independence came on 9 November 1953, but the situation remained unsettled until a 1954 conference was held in Geneva to settle the French-Indochina war. The Cambodian delegation agreed to the neutrality of the three Indochina states but insisted on a provision in the ceasefire agreement that left the Cambodian government free to call for outside military assistance should the Viet Minh or others threaten its territory. In February 1969 a new chapter in Cambodian history was opened as the Vietnam war spilled into Cambodia. On 30 April 1970 American and South Vietnamese government troops invaded southeast Cambodia.

As Vietnamese troops retreated deeper into Cambodia the Khmer Rouge grew in strength. As the Khmer Rouge grew, they became increasingly independent of their Vietnamese allies. While the Vietnamese and the Americans signed the Paris Peace agreement in 1973, the Khmer Rouge continued to make gains on the battlefields of Cambodia. Soon the territory held by the weak Republic was reduced to little more than a handful of enclaves around the major cities.

On the same day that Lon Nol fled the country the Khmer Rouge marched into Phnom Penh. Pol Pot's goal was to transform Cambodia in a completely self-sufficient agrarian communist state. The revolution justified everything; human life was expendable. Until 1979 the Khmer Rouge terrorized the country and more than a million people were killed during their reign. The Khmer Rouge have therefore been accused of genocide - holding an unchallenged record in percentage of the population killed by a revolutionary movement. On Christmas Day 1978, an invasion force of 90,000 Vietnamese and 18,000 dissident Cambodians poured across the border into Cambodia. The defense of Pol Pot's regime was confronted by a much better-equipped, brilliantly led invasion force. Within a few days the Vietnamese had captured Phnom Penh. The battered remnants of the Khmer Rouge retreated into the mountains and jungles along the Thai border.

A different kind of war began: the Khmer Rouge stepped up guerrilla attacks against the Vietnamese. As the months passed the Vietnamese consolidated their hold on Cambodia and soon a new Cambodian government was formed under Vietnamese supervision. In June 1988 the Vietnamese announced plans to begin a gradual troop withdrawal. In early 1990 the negotiating process continued. A formal ceasefire was finally adopted in May 1991. On 23 October 1991 a peace agreement was at least signed and formally accepted by all sides.

After the free elections of 1993 Cambodia had a parliamentary system, Sihanouk's nephew, Prince Ranariddh and Hun Sen were appointed deputy premiers under the leadership of Sihanouk. A new constitution was adopted and in 1993, King Norodom Sihanouk resumed the throne, 52 years after first being crowned king. In July 1997, Hun Sen and the Cambodian People’s Party ousted Prince Ranariddh and took full control of the government. Since then, Cambodia has joined ASEAN, entering the new millennium as an internationally recognized constitutional monarchy.