Part 6: Bright truth

PANO - Eloquent realities have proved the genuine truth that eliminating the Pol Pot genocidal regime, protecting the national sovereignty and assisting Cambodia to revive is the noble international cause of the Vietnamese people and an important contribution to the progress of the mankind.

Former State President Le Duc Anh, who used to be the Commander of Vietnamese volunteer troops in Cambodia, recalled that in the fight to wipe out the genocidal regime, Vietnamese volunteer troops had undertaken the missions to assist the Cambodian patriots. After breaking the so called communes created by the Pol Pot clique, the Vietnamese volunteer soldiers again continue assisting Cambodian civilians to return to their communes and villages and stabilize their life and resume production.

Former State President Le Duc Anh in an interview given to reporter Bao Trung of the Vietnam People's Army Newspaper

Former State President Le Duc Anh recalled that after returning to their communes and villages, Cambodians were assisted by Vietnamese volunteer soldiers to rebuild houses and create means of production for survival. Their Vietnamese troops had helped taken good care of the Cambodian civilians especially children and even shared their food rations and belongings with them. This touched the hearts of a number of Pol Pot’s troops and they automatically deserted from the army and left home. What the Vietnamese volunteer troops had done for the Cambodians were just natural acts resulting from their kind heart and true love for the human kind and not from the orders from senior levels.

Mr. Le Duc Anh also recalled one of his unforgetable memory in that magnanimous period that the Cambodians themselves had destroyed the most dangerous killing device ever-known in the history of the mankind and stressed that the Vietnamese people should also thank and be grateful to the Cambodians, but not only the Cambodians’ thanks to the Vietnamese.

Despite this fact, some people had deliberately mixed up these values, opposed and isolated Vietnam and branded what Vietnam had done for Cambodians as an act of invasion.

Vietnamese soldier-volunteers bath Cambodian children

This slanderous allegation had indignated Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and he himself had stated that at that time, no countries in the world, except Vietnam, had helped the Cambodians liberate themselves from genocide and prevent the regime of Pol Pot from returning. Once Cambodia was stronger enough, the Vietnamese troops had immediately withdrawn from Cambodia and since 1989, not a single Vietnamese troop has been seen in Cambodia.

Thus, Prime Minister Hun Sen could not accept such slanderous allegations against Vietnam’s assistance and questioned why Cambodia, a nation which was on the verge of genocide could not be supported by Vietnamese troops?

Cambodian PM Hun Sen affirmed that the UN special court to try the Khmer Rouge is the strong confirmation that justice belongs to the Vietnamese volunteer soldiers who had come for the rescue of Cambodia.

It was undeniable that Cambodia had been subjected to genocide and Cambodia’s military forces had been supported by Vietnam to fight against that regime and Vietnamese military forces’ presence in Cambodia was to meet Cambodians’ appeals, Cambodian PM emphasized.

The Great Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia Tep Vong also asserted that there had never been Vietnam’s invasion against Cambodia and if Vietnam had come to Cambodia with dark plot, the country could never have had great achievements as seen nowadays. Whoever thought bad of Vietnam they must be bad people, the Great Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia Tep Vong stressed.

For his part, Cambodian NA Chairman Heng Samrin said, after the collapse of the Pol Pot genocidal regime on January 7th, 1979, Cambodians could enjoy peace, stability and support to recover their country. However, it was unfair to see the Pol Pot’s forces to be welcomed by some forces with velvet carpet.

“That was unjust for Cambodians. We have not requested forces in support of Pol Pot genocidal regime to make an apology and those who had dropped millions of tones of bombs over Cambodia to compensate for what they had done because we think that these issues belonged to the history but the crimes of genocidal regime have been exposed to the whole Cambodians and people all over the world” said Cambodian NA Chairman Heng Samrin.

Great historic truth is always invaluable. Yet, there remains an argument that Vietnam’s support to Cambodia was necessary but what Vietnam had to pay too much for that.

Commenting on that argument, in an interview to the reporter of the People’s Army Newspaper, former State President Le Duc Anh stressed that in such an international situation, it was not necessary to mention whether what Vietnam had to sacrifice was high or low. In fact, some big countries had collided to oppose Vietnam. That was a lesson that Vietnamese people should bear in mind.

It is history that has created the great friendship between Vietnam and Cambodia. In the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, Vietnamese General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni, on behalf of the two countries’ people, reaffirmed their determination to consolidate and further boost good neighborhood, long-lasting friendship, comprehensive cooperation and long-term sustainability between Vietnam and Cambodia, considering it invaluable common treasure of the two peoples and one of elements that creates strength of the two countries and ensures peace and happiness for the next generations.

Reported by Bao Trung

Translated by Mai Huong

Vietnam-Cambodia: A great friendship
Vietnam-Cambodia: A great friendship (Part 2)
Vietnam-Cambodia: A great friendship (Part 3)
Vietnam-Cambodia: A great friendship (Part 4)

Vietnam-Cambodia: A great friendship (Part 5)