Cambodia Watching Down Under: A Critical View Of Western Scholarship And Journalism On Cambodia Since 1975

The Cambodian problem remains unresolved. Internal factional struggles and external military involvement remain an integral part of the Cambodian suffering. Many foreign observers find it opportunistic to fish in this troubled water. They ascend from obscurity to champion the cause of human rights and thus make themselves known to the public. Some others claim to be Cambodian experts. In fact, many of them are unable even to distinguish fact from fiction nor can they dissociate human rights from external aggression. More adventurous ones get fame out of a myriad of exaggerations of falsehoods: producing films, articles, pamphlets etc. Out of sincere ignorance or ulterior motives, they have effectively complicated the conflict, deceived the people, diverted the real issues and, consequently, prolonged the war. The state of war in Cambodia has - in turn - served to legitimize this handful of activists, and the certain relief organizations behind them, by allowing them to continue their self-proclaimed role as saviours -- but at the expense of more Cambodian lives. Critical View Of Western Scholarship And Journalism On Cambodia Since 1975. Geoffrey C. Gunn, Jefferson Lee. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 325-328).