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Khmer Issarak
The Khmer Issarak (Khmer: ខ្មែរឥស្សរៈ, lit. 'Free Khmer' or 'Independent Khmer') was a "loosely structured" anti-French and anti-colonial movement of Cambodia. The movement has been labelled as “amorphous”. The Issarak was formed around 1945 and composed of several factions, each with its own leader. Originally a national unity movement, it was dominated by the communists under the Việt Minh-backed United Issarak Front (UIF) from 1950, especially with the establishment of the Communist Party of Kampuchea in 1951. It was one of three communist-led organizations fighting the French Union during the First Indochina War, alongside the Việt Minh and Pathet Lao.
Most of the Issarak factions fought actively between the end of the Second World War in 1945 and Cambodia’s independence in 1953. The initial objective of the Khmer Issarak was to fight against the French in order to gain independence, before later focusing on overthrowing the pro-French Kingdom of Cambodia. The term Issarak also originally referred to non-communist, but in the early 1950s the Việt Minh-guided guerrillas branded themselves Issaraks for the sake of unifying other non-communist forces. The Khmer Issarak government allowed the Viet Minh government to represent it at the 1954 Geneva Conference. Its anti-French role ended when the ceasefire under the Geneva Accords of July on Cambodia came into effect on August 7. A general election was scheduled to take place for Cambodia within the framework of the pro-French Kingdom of Cambodia of which the Khmer Issarak had no military assembly area but was a participating member. It would evolve into the Khmer Rouge.
Poc Khun, a highborn Khmer, founded a movement in Bangkok in 1944, and called it the Khmer Issarak for the first time on record. Some of the early Issarak members were backed by the Thai government. From the end of the Second World War through to 1948, the Thai government had a policy of supporting a large number of guerrilla forces, which operated along the Thai frontier and in the two Thai-ruled provinces, Battambang and Siem Reap. Among those groups aided by Thailand, some of the members later established right-wing and left-wing bands, including Son Ngoc Minh, Sieu Heng and Tou Samouth. These guerrillas formed a government in exile in Bangkok in 1945. After 1948, several of the Thai sponsored Issaraks dissolved or cooperated with the Phnom Penh government, led by Prince Sihanouk.
Soon afterwards, the Vietnamese guided-Issaraks formed the Khmer Issarak Association, continuing armed struggles against the Khmer and French authorities. In the 1950s, the Viet Minh controlled-Issarak groups eventually transformed into communist organizations: for instance, the Khmer People’s Revolution Party (KPRP). Several significant figures in the Khmer Rouge and Democratic Kampuchea who participated in the Cambodian Civil War were closely related to the Viet Minh influenced-Issaraks.
During the first decade of armed struggles, there was some coordination between factions, but in most cases, different bands fought independently. Even in 1953, the year Cambodia gained independence, the anti-French war was still led by disparate leaders, who were divided geographically and ideologically.
After the Geneva Conference in 1954, due to the terms of the "Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities in Vietnam", most Viet Minh guided-Issaraks were either exiled to the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) or went underground and formed communist organizations. At the same time, as Cambodia had already gained independence from the French, most nationalist Issaraks and some communist groups disarmed themselves. Several powerful Issarak leaders such as Dap Chhuon and Prince Norodom Chantaraingsey allied with the Sihanouk government in different periods of time. The Khmer Issarak movement then faded into history.
During the independence movement, non-communist Issaraks that were based in the northwest dominated the anti-French war which lasted for around 10 years. Those Issarak groups fought throughout the entire state. The non-communist guerrillas often coordinated battles with the Viet Minh-led Issarak forces. Among the non-communist bands, Poc Khun, Dap Chhuon, Prince Chantaraingsey’s were the most prominent.
Furthermore, short-term goal of the Thai-supported Issarak movement was to conduct propaganda against French colonialism in the ceded provinces, which under Thai control from 1941-1946. Nevertheless, the ultimate purpose of the movement was to gain full independence for the French Indochina colony. However, in the rightist military coup in Thailand in November 1947 the Pridi administration was overthrown, and the new Thai government reduced support its and forced the Issaraks to come back to Cambodia.
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Khmer Issarak
The Khmer Issarak (Khmer: ខ្មែរឥស្សរៈ, lit. 'Free Khmer' or 'Independent Khmer') was a "loosely structured" anti-French and anti-colonial movement of Cambodia. The movement has been labelled as “amorphous”. The Issarak was formed around 1945 and composed of several factions, each with its own leader. Originally a national unity movement, it was dominated by the communists under the Việt Minh-backed United Issarak Front (UIF) from 1950, especially with the establishment of the Communist Party of Kampuchea in 1951. It was one of three communist-led organizations fighting the French Union during the First Indochina War, alongside the Việt Minh and Pathet Lao.
Most of the Issarak factions fought actively between the end of the Second World War in 1945 and Cambodia’s independence in 1953. The initial objective of the Khmer Issarak was to fight against the French in order to gain independence, before later focusing on overthrowing the pro-French Kingdom of Cambodia. The term Issarak also originally referred to non-communist, but in the early 1950s the Việt Minh-guided guerrillas branded themselves Issaraks for the sake of unifying other non-communist forces. The Khmer Issarak government allowed the Viet Minh government to represent it at the 1954 Geneva Conference. Its anti-French role ended when the ceasefire under the Geneva Accords of July on Cambodia came into effect on August 7. A general election was scheduled to take place for Cambodia within the framework of the pro-French Kingdom of Cambodia of which the Khmer Issarak had no military assembly area but was a participating member. It would evolve into the Khmer Rouge.
Poc Khun, a highborn Khmer, founded a movement in Bangkok in 1944, and called it the Khmer Issarak for the first time on record. Some of the early Issarak members were backed by the Thai government. From the end of the Second World War through to 1948, the Thai government had a policy of supporting a large number of guerrilla forces, which operated along the Thai frontier and in the two Thai-ruled provinces, Battambang and Siem Reap. Among those groups aided by Thailand, some of the members later established right-wing and left-wing bands, including Son Ngoc Minh, Sieu Heng and Tou Samouth. These guerrillas formed a government in exile in Bangkok in 1945. After 1948, several of the Thai sponsored Issaraks dissolved or cooperated with the Phnom Penh government, led by Prince Sihanouk.
Soon afterwards, the Vietnamese guided-Issaraks formed the Khmer Issarak Association, continuing armed struggles against the Khmer and French authorities. In the 1950s, the Viet Minh controlled-Issarak groups eventually transformed into communist organizations: for instance, the Khmer People’s Revolution Party (KPRP). Several significant figures in the Khmer Rouge and Democratic Kampuchea who participated in the Cambodian Civil War were closely related to the Viet Minh influenced-Issaraks.
During the first decade of armed struggles, there was some coordination between factions, but in most cases, different bands fought independently. Even in 1953, the year Cambodia gained independence, the anti-French war was still led by disparate leaders, who were divided geographically and ideologically.
After the Geneva Conference in 1954, due to the terms of the "Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities in Vietnam", most Viet Minh guided-Issaraks were either exiled to the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) or went underground and formed communist organizations. At the same time, as Cambodia had already gained independence from the French, most nationalist Issaraks and some communist groups disarmed themselves. Several powerful Issarak leaders such as Dap Chhuon and Prince Norodom Chantaraingsey allied with the Sihanouk government in different periods of time. The Khmer Issarak movement then faded into history.
During the independence movement, non-communist Issaraks that were based in the northwest dominated the anti-French war which lasted for around 10 years. Those Issarak groups fought throughout the entire state. The non-communist guerrillas often coordinated battles with the Viet Minh-led Issarak forces. Among the non-communist bands, Poc Khun, Dap Chhuon, Prince Chantaraingsey’s were the most prominent.
Furthermore, short-term goal of the Thai-supported Issarak movement was to conduct propaganda against French colonialism in the ceded provinces, which under Thai control from 1941-1946. Nevertheless, the ultimate purpose of the movement was to gain full independence for the French Indochina colony. However, in the rightist military coup in Thailand in November 1947 the Pridi administration was overthrown, and the new Thai government reduced support its and forced the Issaraks to come back to Cambodia.