Philippine E-Journals

Domestic Political Change and Ethnic Minorities – A Case Study of the Ethnic Vietnamese in Cambodia

Ramses Amer

Discipline: Social Science, Political Science

 

Abstract:

The study analyzes the impact of domestic political change on ethnic minorities through a case study of the ethnic Vietnamese in Cambodia. The study examines the major political developments and changes in Cambodia since the 1950s and their impact on the situation of the ethnic Vietnamese in the country. Anti-Vietnamese sentiments have not only been regularly displayed by the Cambodian elite but also reflected in the policies of the Cambodian authorities. The roots of these attitudes and their effects on policies are explored in the study. The domestic political discourse in Cambodia has displayed anti-Vietnamese rhetoric directed not only at Vietnam but also at the ethnic Vietnamese in Cambodia. The continuity and/or change in such discourse and its implications are explored in the study.