Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Op-Ed by Jayakhmer
On the web at http://www.modernprogressivekhmer.blogspot.com
It is quite intriguing to see Samdech Prime Minister reacted to those who did not see January 7th as a day of liberation. He said, "If you ignorant persons and extremists do not dare acknowledge the truth [of January 7, 1979], you are not humans, you are truly animals."
That includes your truly here. I see January 7th as a day of invasion.
I am sure that Samdech Prime Minister is entitled to his opinion. Like all of us, he is free to opine on any matter. On this particular issue, I simply want to offer a different opinion.
Before getting into the substance of the matter, I want to acknowledge all Cambodians who were members of the United Front for National Salvation of Kampuchea (UFNSK) who participate in the invasion. I am grateful for their efforts for doing their very best under the circumstance to dismantle the Khmer Rouge regime. That was a noble deed.
January 7th did in fact stop the killing, but Cambodia was not free. Vietnam occupied Cambodia; therefore, by definition Cambodia was not liberated. This is why the word "liberation" has a major semantic problem. One cannot call oneself a liberated being if one is not free to determine one's destiny. Liberation could not be further from the truth. The world knows that Cambodia was under Vietnam's control from the day it invaded Cambodia until it was pressured to withdraw.
To form a more perfect union with all Cambodians and all political factions, Cambodia should abandon January 7th as "liberation" day.
I am quite sure that every Cambodian can embrace January 7th as a major turning point. It was pivotal in a sense that January 7th allowed Cambodia to temporarily escape from the yoke of the Khmer Rouge regime; it was also the day Cambodia went into another bondage of foreign occupation.
I wish that Samdech Prime Minister views those of us who hold a different opinion another patriots who love the country as much as he does. Imagine if everyone agrees with Pol Pot, we would not have January 7th.
Jayakhmer
That includes your truly here. I see January 7th as a day of invasion.
I am sure that Samdech Prime Minister is entitled to his opinion. Like all of us, he is free to opine on any matter. On this particular issue, I simply want to offer a different opinion.
Before getting into the substance of the matter, I want to acknowledge all Cambodians who were members of the United Front for National Salvation of Kampuchea (UFNSK) who participate in the invasion. I am grateful for their efforts for doing their very best under the circumstance to dismantle the Khmer Rouge regime. That was a noble deed.
January 7th did in fact stop the killing, but Cambodia was not free. Vietnam occupied Cambodia; therefore, by definition Cambodia was not liberated. This is why the word "liberation" has a major semantic problem. One cannot call oneself a liberated being if one is not free to determine one's destiny. Liberation could not be further from the truth. The world knows that Cambodia was under Vietnam's control from the day it invaded Cambodia until it was pressured to withdraw.
To form a more perfect union with all Cambodians and all political factions, Cambodia should abandon January 7th as "liberation" day.
I am quite sure that every Cambodian can embrace January 7th as a major turning point. It was pivotal in a sense that January 7th allowed Cambodia to temporarily escape from the yoke of the Khmer Rouge regime; it was also the day Cambodia went into another bondage of foreign occupation.
I wish that Samdech Prime Minister views those of us who hold a different opinion another patriots who love the country as much as he does. Imagine if everyone agrees with Pol Pot, we would not have January 7th.
Jayakhmer
1 comment:
I support your idea.
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