8 stages of Genocide
Overview
The Cambodian genocide occurred on April 17, 1975 when Pol Pot led the communist forces of the Khmer Rouge into the capital city of Phnom Penh and it ended when Vietnam did a full invasion on Cambodia and on January 7, 1979. Phnom Penh fell and Pol Pot was deposed of power.
Stage 1: Classification.
Categorization is unavailable as people naturally distinguish themselves along race, nation, and religion. In bipolar societies in which the diversity is limited to two main groups there is more of a predisposition to genocide.
The Khmer Rouge’s ideas led to an us against them mentality, normalizing the idea of the base people vs. the new people by separating the country into the people of the cities and the people that they brought with them.
Stage 2: Symbolization.
The Khmer Rouge force the people of the of the eastern zone of Cambodia to wear the blue scarf (that would be equal to the star on the jew’s clothes) to distinguish them from other.
Stage 3: Dehumanization.
Anyone who had mixed blood, associate themselves with a religion, spoke multiple languages, or held any occupation in any field besides agriculture was considered impure.
Stage 4: Organization.
They made killing of impure people legal, as well they made the base people work in inhuman conditions.
Stage 5: Polarization.
The country was separated into regions where you would fit depending on the religion that you believe and country that you were born or blood line.
Stage 7: Extermination.
On the time that the Khmer Rouge control the country from 1975-1979. 21% of the population of Cambodia lost their lives.
Stage 8: Denial
Even after the end of the Khmer Rouge’s terrible regime, it was hard for Cambodia to ask for help from other countries because the Khmer Rouge remained the only form of representation Cambodia had in the United Nations. That didn’t change until the 1990s. It wasn’t until recently that leaders of the Khmer Rouge were convicted of their inhumane crimes committed forty years ago.