Editing Khmer Rouge (section)

== Women’s Role in the Cambodian Genocide (1975–1979) ==
The Khmer Rouge regime, which ruled Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, presents a complex and often overlooked history regarding the role of women. While many women were victims of violence, persecution, and forced labor, others actively participated in the regime's policies, including as functionaries, guards, and even perpetrators of atrocities. This duality challenges the conventional view of women solely as passive victims and emphasizes their involvement in the genocide, both as enforcers and initiators of violence.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Roger W. |title=Women and Genocide: Notes on an Unwritten History |url=https://content.ebscohost.com/cds/retrieve?content=AQICAHjPtM4BHU3ZchRwgzYmadcigk49r9CVlbU7V5F6lgH7WwElggRZ0t0BYGIcto7r3ar4AAAA6TCB5gYJKoZIhvcNAQcGoIHYMIHVAgEAMIHPBgkqhkiG9w0BBwEwHgYJYIZIAWUDBAEuMBEEDATiTgeacDfRsOMQuAIBEICBoXZDB6luUUEdXmG0OaMRECLlFszkApbs5Mx117UrFoLv9jkFFwKn5gie94bGosOMA29hcrLwHGXU8_r0t345gp0fKp2Ogy_vz3UScxMXSjXruGNLvDjnGiC4dcZoOKQp3GP7nR1eBaf6d4bXY_aQySP6e-rqgvLk1cBfPH5BG_dMnaOjtRWAAj2j2X6hKGL2n9smKviKLwgOjOkWnxi_cE6g}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Timothy |last2=Jessee |first2=Erin |date=2024 |title=Perpetrators as Victims? Inclusivity and Proximity in Post-Genocide Cambodia and Rwanda |url=https://eprints.gla.ac.uk/337189/1/337189.pdf}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Rashid |first=Azra |date=2023 |title=Gender and Genocide in Cambodia |url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781003357926/gender-genocide-cambodia-azra-rashid}}</ref>

=== Women as Victims ===
Under the Khmer Rouge, women suffered significantly due to a variety of gender-specific atrocities. These included forced marriages, sexual violence, and the systematic separation of families.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=De Langis |first=Theresa |last2=Strasser |first2=Judith |last3=Kim |first3=Thida |last4=Taing |first4=Sopheap |date=October 2014 |title=Like Ghost Changes Body |url=https://kh.boell.org/sites/default/files/forced_marriage_study_report_tpo_october_2014.pdf}}</ref><ref name=":22">{{Cite web |last=Rashid |first=Azra |date=2023 |title=Gender and Genocide in Cambodia |url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781003357926/gender-genocide-cambodia-azra-rashid}}</ref> Women were often targeted not as individuals but due to their relationships with men who were considered enemies of the revolution.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Hinton |first=Alexander Laban |date=2005 |title=Why Did They Kill?: Cambodia in the Shadow of Genocide |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/j.ctt1pp9zp}}</ref><ref name=":22" />

The regime’s ideology viewed women primarily through their reproductive roles, leading to the killing of pregnant women and the forced arrangement of marriages.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":22" /> Forced marriages were used as a political tool to control reproduction and enforce loyalty to the regime, often involving rape under the guise of marital duty.<ref name=":3" /> These acts of violence were not only rooted in the Khmer Rouge’s radical political ideals but also intersected with traditional gender roles, which are depicted in Cambodian genocide memorials, such as the Well of Shadows at Wat Samrong Knong.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Gill |first=Fiona |title=Depicting atrocity: The experiences of women under the Khmer Rouge |url=https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/271772/1-s2.0-S0277539521X00039/1-s2.0-S0277539521000649/main.pdf?X-Amz-Security-Token=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjELL%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FwEaCXVzLWVhc3QtMSJGMEQCIG8zp5WF0%2BZ6cRTKv2eXEr5JP%2B4BTVeVN1%2FqtfcoYEe3AiBw%2BfqwVV6SvpwMvmzkjZPZjh0lpgtQrNSACa7vYyKP8iqxBQgaEAUaDDA1OTAwMzU0Njg2NSIMp1RkLKvhQVe1U3SHKo4F2aFF%2BnFBRFS0ss1Ngul%2BouokB88cQJiUYpkp36pNwRL4%2Fo2Uzspc7a1sNeTvbHLqodU%2Bi%2B%2B0%2Fc0YdJrD5StlKaGF9YcOIL0x957rHv4s8ksBfolvqpfziROKvxuM3JeJyN6Zq5kdfrB8NnCKJHda0r%2BuzMfQLcAAPvkzb3ltlKmYxrlA3QfsAohIAIj%2FWMX8GDopWi4hS%2Bx%2BB0a7%2BUZHg4uwQkvIHQdpAuYKArjZ98JCjvUcJzjnEdatXhwVetfnWPombC6JEUZV2gGiRn5eTkJWORI0drRlZCI8%2Bx9MwEI3XhORHya88Pb0Ucntx4UVJXiGd%2F9R7gtPCoPZEiiiG6p3qsMIrmZELll5Tf3iTey9M3x3obUlZ15hMtpmC8qAc7BrdSNVEuKphXdw8h7xT%2FM3o9%2FPLuKqur5SNdhpC%2BLMbGaEZdUkudMoJaoNplY9KGvT2L%2FkUN0OhTHy5bcGvAp2walHOhsMvbNI%2FapYmSqKDmBuk0GnvgRI74rQI4msTeMUgbSm%2F%2BH3z4XUT3YEvr%2FxhA7sukDbOSjOr34ddWVMquM3xZtPLW2wkCd2OOjUMKt7Yp1tXS82bigeRkN17R113Jjg3mLYHc3UJdBT%2BGh9ivXpNv0bMyIrWSRH2mnmiRe%2B%2FEOACE0vuy6tGHUJzCgUPgRjksFk73vKhhsvxScZm0aZldv3EsZOTxJofI23V3saffWNyinPmoc%2BctvH2yK0Y9GjMe%2FdJ4KqyMu7hyF417XwKPdM847GetU3rEc0WUG7d52HUsmAZB2YFvkILkVL5sDnR3L450TzbrQFR2ePUlZ%2BvhdVb%2F%2BTfSHlMaViKP3ZO2%2F1fP77S%2B93TMc1y%2BSEWIIsO%2BaFg6w5gKH8MNDKi78GOrIBWJqo6vXvXwhCZ7BmFVWRFnINjfW9eA9x9DU01ElRFIwZ6kO6fohwegeQQOGb0lN4kwqUYIeV46j3jIvvrRX0fGxSM5d9hHi3noUlB0QKVImhlyuIEzDyXij1zdcVeCWUhhhTXKneva%2Bnf3smcjp7bZzgzx1b60oVuKzgFKtbdNwTcJqGfGOlApljBOFg0Xv6s7hkGB5AeiScacMMENEBL0p98l%2FnAla8sipcGb97iiJvfA%3D%3D&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20250325T183653Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=300&X-Amz-Credential=ASIAQ3PHCVTY64PVJHIX%2F20250325%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=f5b34043e3b5e9d922ba8f3949c117d21cadf0ddbca9ffc8aeea1afb770f7553&hash=e45c4212ff7e71f719a99a0559880ff1c6e1174c13da0f36cb06648edd203bf8&host=68042c943591013ac2b2430a89b270f6af2c76d8dfd086a07176afe7c76c2c61&pii=S0277539521000649&tid=spdf-31408745-895c-404c-8bcb-dd5dd947a334&sid=2ed7e3ee6c0c934e0b5a9b7452442c9ed182gxrqb&type=client&tsoh=d3d3LXNjaWVuY2VkaXJlY3QtY29tLmV6cHJveHkudW5pdi1jYXRob2xpbGxlLmZy&rh=d3d3LXNjaWVuY2VkaXJlY3QtY29tLmV6cHJveHkudW5pdi1jYXRob2xpbGxlLmZy&ua=1c14575156505a55575756&rr=926084312d513740&cc=fr&kca=eyJrZXkiOiJGY2hmZFpROXVwbGZkVHBod3pJaWIwWEd5aXRnM1BEdGZpeGxJNDI3Uzh0dTU2akhxU2Qxd2tJSWJPQTM2d1RWNWxBanZLSEtpZWZUY2RPUTNTOG96K0pWMDdoWFlmRzlNN3R5bjI4SmtJSUUyS2RYSGYzWnRUVFlVWFREeThDR0RvU2loRnBKR3U1SWxnZlNHenFubzJEdGNQdjNucHVab2ZzbVE5K2JheDhvZHRIMGR3PT0iLCJpdiI6IjMwNGIyNDI4ZGNlYTc1NjY5NzQwYTRlNTg0MmZiOTkwIn0=_1742927821082}}</ref>

The psychological and emotional trauma of these experiences has had long-lasting effects, including social stigma, mental health issues, and difficulties in post-genocide reconciliation and healing processes.<ref name=":3" />

=== Women as Perpetrators ===
While women’s victimization has been widely acknowledged, their role as perpetrators within the Khmer Rouge regime is less frequently discussed.<ref name=":12">{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Roger W. |title=Women and Genocide: Notes on an Unwritten History |url=https://content.ebscohost.com/cds/retrieve?content=AQICAHjPtM4BHU3ZchRwgzYmadcigk49r9CVlbU7V5F6lgH7WwElggRZ0t0BYGIcto7r3ar4AAAA6TCB5gYJKoZIhvcNAQcGoIHYMIHVAgEAMIHPBgkqhkiG9w0BBwEwHgYJYIZIAWUDBAEuMBEEDATiTgeacDfRsOMQuAIBEICBoXZDB6luUUEdXmG0OaMRECLlFszkApbs5Mx117UrFoLv9jkFFwKn5gie94bGosOMA29hcrLwHGXU8_r0t345gp0fKp2Ogy_vz3UScxMXSjXruGNLvDjnGiC4dcZoOKQp3GP7nR1eBaf6d4bXY_aQySP6e-rqgvLk1cBfPH5BG_dMnaOjtRWAAj2j2X6hKGL2n9smKviKLwgOjOkWnxi_cE6g}}</ref><ref name=":02">{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Timothy |last2=Jessee |first2=Erin |date=2024 |title=Perpetrators as Victims? Inclusivity and Proximity in Post-Genocide Cambodia and Rwanda |url=https://eprints.gla.ac.uk/337189/1/337189.pdf}}</ref> Women served as Mekongs (leaders) and Yotears (guards) in labor camps, where they oversaw forced labor, surveillance, and brutal punishments.<ref name=":42">{{Cite web |last=Hinton |first=Alexander Laban |date=2005 |title=Why Did They Kill?: Cambodia in the Shadow of Genocide |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/j.ctt1pp9zp}}</ref><ref name=":6">{{Cite web |last=Gottesman |first=Evan |date=2003 |title=Cambodia After the Khmer Rouge, Inside the Politics of Nation Building |url=https://takkagri.weebly.com/uploads/3/0/3/1/30319257/cambodia_after_khmer_rouge.pdf}}</ref> These women were deeply committed to the regime's ideals, motivated by a desire for security and a belief in the promise of an independent, purified Cambodia.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":23">{{Cite web |last=Rashid |first=Azra |date=2023 |title=Gender and Genocide in Cambodia |url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781003357926/gender-genocide-cambodia-azra-rashid}}</ref>

The Khmer Rouge’s appeal to rural populations, particularly the young, was based on the promise of a society free from the influence of Vietnam and the West, providing a sense of purpose and belonging.<ref name=":42" /><ref name=":7">{{Cite web |last=Lapidus |first=David |date=1998 |title=The Lesser Evil: Rethinking the Khmer Rouge |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/42763678}}</ref> However, this commitment often lacked a full ideological understanding. Many rank-and-file members, including women, obeyed orders without question, caught in a dynamic where proximity to violence and survival were deeply entangled.<ref name=":02" />

The Khmer Rouge ideology, encapsulated by the Organization (Angka), demanded absolute loyalty and obedience, and women were integral to its operations.<ref name=":42" /><ref name=":8">{{Cite web |last=Chandler |first=David |date=1999 |title=Voices from S-21: Terror and History in Pol Pot's Secret Prison |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25798519?seq=1}}</ref> Once the Khmer Rouge took control of Phnom Penh in April 1975, they transformed Cambodia into a vast labor camp, dismantling social institutions and enforcing policies of extreme surveillance, forced labor, and brutality.<ref name=":42" /><ref name=":6" /><ref name=":9">{{Cite web |last=Clayton |first=David |date=1998 |title=Building the New Cambodia: Educational Destruction and Construction under the Khmer Rouge, 1975-1979 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/369662?searchText=khmer+rouge&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dkhmer%2Brouge%26so%3Drel&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3Ab298aca433174517c6dbbb4b1aa0f6f4&seq=1}}</ref>

Women in leadership positions were particularly notorious for their ruthlessness, showing no regard for the health or emotional state of the prisoners. They subjected them to grueling work, starvation, and death, using whips and carrying out executions by pickaxe, often alongside their male counterparts.<ref name=":8" />

In post-genocide Cambodia, the line between victim and perpetrator often blurred. Many low-level female cadres, while enforcing the regime's brutal policies, also suffered under its oppressive system.<ref name=":02" /> Their dual roles complicate the narrative, highlighting the intricate dynamics of coercion, survival, and complicity.<ref name=":12" /><ref name=":02" /><ref name=":23" />

=== Women as Initiators of Genocide ===
In addition to women in rank-and-file positions, several key women played significant roles in the initiation and execution of the genocide. Among them were Khieu Ponnary, the wife of Pol Pot; Yun Yat, the wife of Son Sen; and Ieng Thirith, the wife of Ieng Sary.<ref name=":24">{{Cite web |last=Rashid |first=Azra |date=2023 |title=Gender and Genocide in Cambodia |url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781003357926/gender-genocide-cambodia-azra-rashid}}</ref> These women were not merely consorts of powerful men but were politically active and influential within the Khmer Rouge. Ieng Thirith, in particular, held the position of minister of social action and was deeply involved in  policies that led to widespread starvation, forced labor, and the destruction of Cambodia's social fabric.<ref name=":24" /> Her role extended beyond administration, as she actively justified and perpetuated the regime’s brutality by attributing suffering to sabotage rather than policy failure.<ref name=":24" />

Ieng Thirith's role highlights the troubling reality that women were not only involved in carrying out violence but also in justifying and perpetuating it. Her response to the disastrous conditions she witnessed in the Northwestern Zone in 1976, where people were living in squalor and forced labor was taking a severe toll on their health, was to identify supposed saboteurs rather than address the regime’s failures. This mindset contributed to a sweeping purge of party officials and civilians alike, reinforcing the regime’s paranoid search for "enemies of the revolution."<ref name=":24" />

=== Depictions in Memorials ===
The role of women under the Khmer Rouge is often explored in the visual and artistic depictions found in genocide memorials. Traditionally, women were primarily represented as victims of the regime’s atrocities. However, more recent memorials, such as those at Wat Samrong Knong, acknowledge the complex roles that women played in both perpetrating and enduring violence.<ref name=":52">{{Cite web |last=Gill |first=Fiona |title=Depicting atrocity: The experiences of women under the Khmer Rouge |url=https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/271772/1-s2.0-S0277539521X00039/1-s2.0-S0277539521000649/main.pdf?X-Amz-Security-Token=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjELL%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FwEaCXVzLWVhc3QtMSJGMEQCIG8zp5WF0%2BZ6cRTKv2eXEr5JP%2B4BTVeVN1%2FqtfcoYEe3AiBw%2BfqwVV6SvpwMvmzkjZPZjh0lpgtQrNSACa7vYyKP8iqxBQgaEAUaDDA1OTAwMzU0Njg2NSIMp1RkLKvhQVe1U3SHKo4F2aFF%2BnFBRFS0ss1Ngul%2BouokB88cQJiUYpkp36pNwRL4%2Fo2Uzspc7a1sNeTvbHLqodU%2Bi%2B%2B0%2Fc0YdJrD5StlKaGF9YcOIL0x957rHv4s8ksBfolvqpfziROKvxuM3JeJyN6Zq5kdfrB8NnCKJHda0r%2BuzMfQLcAAPvkzb3ltlKmYxrlA3QfsAohIAIj%2FWMX8GDopWi4hS%2Bx%2BB0a7%2BUZHg4uwQkvIHQdpAuYKArjZ98JCjvUcJzjnEdatXhwVetfnWPombC6JEUZV2gGiRn5eTkJWORI0drRlZCI8%2Bx9MwEI3XhORHya88Pb0Ucntx4UVJXiGd%2F9R7gtPCoPZEiiiG6p3qsMIrmZELll5Tf3iTey9M3x3obUlZ15hMtpmC8qAc7BrdSNVEuKphXdw8h7xT%2FM3o9%2FPLuKqur5SNdhpC%2BLMbGaEZdUkudMoJaoNplY9KGvT2L%2FkUN0OhTHy5bcGvAp2walHOhsMvbNI%2FapYmSqKDmBuk0GnvgRI74rQI4msTeMUgbSm%2F%2BH3z4XUT3YEvr%2FxhA7sukDbOSjOr34ddWVMquM3xZtPLW2wkCd2OOjUMKt7Yp1tXS82bigeRkN17R113Jjg3mLYHc3UJdBT%2BGh9ivXpNv0bMyIrWSRH2mnmiRe%2B%2FEOACE0vuy6tGHUJzCgUPgRjksFk73vKhhsvxScZm0aZldv3EsZOTxJofI23V3saffWNyinPmoc%2BctvH2yK0Y9GjMe%2FdJ4KqyMu7hyF417XwKPdM847GetU3rEc0WUG7d52HUsmAZB2YFvkILkVL5sDnR3L450TzbrQFR2ePUlZ%2BvhdVb%2F%2BTfSHlMaViKP3ZO2%2F1fP77S%2B93TMc1y%2BSEWIIsO%2BaFg6w5gKH8MNDKi78GOrIBWJqo6vXvXwhCZ7BmFVWRFnINjfW9eA9x9DU01ElRFIwZ6kO6fohwegeQQOGb0lN4kwqUYIeV46j3jIvvrRX0fGxSM5d9hHi3noUlB0QKVImhlyuIEzDyXij1zdcVeCWUhhhTXKneva%2Bnf3smcjp7bZzgzx1b60oVuKzgFKtbdNwTcJqGfGOlApljBOFg0Xv6s7hkGB5AeiScacMMENEBL0p98l%2FnAla8sipcGb97iiJvfA%3D%3D&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20250325T183653Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=300&X-Amz-Credential=ASIAQ3PHCVTY64PVJHIX%2F20250325%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=f5b34043e3b5e9d922ba8f3949c117d21cadf0ddbca9ffc8aeea1afb770f7553&hash=e45c4212ff7e71f719a99a0559880ff1c6e1174c13da0f36cb06648edd203bf8&host=68042c943591013ac2b2430a89b270f6af2c76d8dfd086a07176afe7c76c2c61&pii=S0277539521000649&tid=spdf-31408745-895c-404c-8bcb-dd5dd947a334&sid=2ed7e3ee6c0c934e0b5a9b7452442c9ed182gxrqb&type=client&tsoh=d3d3LXNjaWVuY2VkaXJlY3QtY29tLmV6cHJveHkudW5pdi1jYXRob2xpbGxlLmZy&rh=d3d3LXNjaWVuY2VkaXJlY3QtY29tLmV6cHJveHkudW5pdi1jYXRob2xpbGxlLmZy&ua=1c14575156505a55575756&rr=926084312d513740&cc=fr&kca=eyJrZXkiOiJGY2hmZFpROXVwbGZkVHBod3pJaWIwWEd5aXRnM1BEdGZpeGxJNDI3Uzh0dTU2akhxU2Qxd2tJSWJPQTM2d1RWNWxBanZLSEtpZWZUY2RPUTNTOG96K0pWMDdoWFlmRzlNN3R5bjI4SmtJSUUyS2RYSGYzWnRUVFlVWFREeThDR0RvU2loRnBKR3U1SWxnZlNHenFubzJEdGNQdjNucHVab2ZzbVE5K2JheDhvZHRIMGR3PT0iLCJpdiI6IjMwNGIyNDI4ZGNlYTc1NjY5NzQwYTRlNTg0MmZiOTkwIn0=_1742927821082}}</ref>

These memorials are part of a broader movement to include women’s diverse experiences in the historical record and to challenge simplified gender binaries in discussions of genocide.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Roger W. |title=Women and Genocide: Notes on an Unwritten History |url=https://content.ebscohost.com/cds/retrieve?content=AQICAHjPtM4BHU3ZchRwgzYmadcigk49r9CVlbU7V5F6lgH7WwElggRZ0t0BYGIcto7r3ar4AAAA6TCB5gYJKoZIhvcNAQcGoIHYMIHVAgEAMIHPBgkqhkiG9w0BBwEwHgYJYIZIAWUDBAEuMBEEDATiTgeacDfRsOMQuAIBEICBoXZDB6luUUEdXmG0OaMRECLlFszkApbs5Mx117UrFoLv9jkFFwKn5gie94bGosOMA29hcrLwHGXU8_r0t345gp0fKp2Ogy_vz3UScxMXSjXruGNLvDjnGiC4dcZoOKQp3GP7nR1eBaf6d4bXY_aQySP6e-rqgvLk1cBfPH5BG_dMnaOjtRWAAj2j2X6hKGL2n9smKviKLwgOjOkWnxi_cE6g}}</ref>