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This soldier of the Royal Thai Army (กองทัพบก  ) mans a post at the site of some 12th century Khmer ruins near Ban Ta Miang on the Cambodian border, which
lies a few hundred meters beyond the bunker. On July 2nd, 1997, when this photo was taken, tension was relatively high since nearby skirmishes
between Cambodian genocide engineer Pol Pot (hiding out in northern Cambodia) and the two-leader Cambodian government were escalating. There
were also rumors of defection and internal strife in Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge encampment, near Anlong Veng, Cambodia. This tension escalated
into a full-blown civil war a few weeks later when national warlord Hun Sen ousted his co-prime minister in a violent coup, accusing him
of negotiating with defecting Khmer Rouge parties. This unfortunate situation deterred foreign investment and generally doomed Cambodia's
future as a potential economic powerhouse in Southeast Asia.Pol Pot was responsible for the execution or death of approximately 1.5 million Cambodian citizens—one tenth of Cambodia's population—between 1975 and 1978. He died in April, 1998, a possible suicide, just prior to facing an international genocide tribunal. As in many other countries, males in Thailand are required to serve in the military for some time. Both of the soldiers I talked to here said they were from the Northeast part of Thailand; one had served about six months at this location, after transferring from another assignment. |