Knowra Year Zero Year Zero Year Zero describes the Khmer Rouge’s effort to erase Cambodia’s existing society and begin anew after seizing power in 1975, through radical social transformation and mass violence.
Cambodian genocide : Mass killings, forced labor, starvation, and persecution carried out by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979. Year Zero’s social rupture was enforced through violence that killed roughly 1.7 million people.
Khmer Rouge : The Cambodian communist movement that ruled Cambodia from 1975 to 1979 under Pol Pot. The movement carried out the attempt to remake the country described as Year Zero.
Nuon Chea : A senior Khmer Rouge leader and chief ideologue who served as deputy secretary of the Communist Party of Kampuchea. His role in the party leadership connected him to the design and defense of revolutionary policies.
Cambodian diaspora : Communities of Cambodian origin living outside Cambodia, formed in large part through war, persecution, and migration. Mass death and displacement helped create diaspora communities across the world.
Evacuation of Phnom Penh : The Khmer Rouge’s forced removal of Phnom Penh’s population to the countryside beginning on April 17, 1975. Emptying the capital made the regime’s attack on urban life immediate and visible.
Pol Pot : The Cambodian communist leader who headed the Khmer Rouge government during Democratic Kampuchea. His leadership shaped the regime’s agrarian revolution and rejection of existing institutions.
Ieng Sary : A Khmer Rouge leader who served as foreign minister of Democratic Kampuchea. He represented the regime abroad while its program transformed life inside Cambodia.
Cambodian refugee crisis : The flight of Cambodians from war, Khmer Rouge rule, and its aftermath, especially to neighboring countries and refugee camps. The regime’s upheaval drove people from the country during and after its rule.
Democratic Kampuchea : The official name of Cambodia under Khmer Rouge rule from 1975 to 1979. The regime’s new state gave institutional form to its project of remaking society.
Cambodian Civil War : The conflict from 1970 to 1975 between the Khmer Republic and communist insurgents, including the Khmer Rouge. War and state collapse preceded the Khmer Rouge takeover that made Year Zero possible.
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