The Long-Term Legacy of the Khmer Rouge Period in Cambodia
The author studies the long-term impact of genocide during the period of the Khmer Rouge (1975-79) in Cambodia and contributes to the literature on the economic analysis of conflict. Using mortality data for siblings from the Cambodia Demographic a...
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| Format: | Policy Research Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, D.C.
2013
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2004/11/5498271/long-term-legacy-khmer-rouge-period-cambodia http://hdl.handle.net/10986/14200 |
| Summary: | The author studies the long-term impact
of genocide during the period of the Khmer Rouge (1975-79)
in Cambodia and contributes to the literature on the
economic analysis of conflict. Using mortality data for
siblings from the Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey in
2000, he shows that excess mortality was extremely high and
heavily concentrated during 1974-80. Adult males had been
the most likely to die, indicating that violent death played
a major role. Individuals with an urban or educated
background were more likely to die. Infant mortality was
also at very high levels during the period, and disability
rates from landmines or other weapons were high for males
who, given their birth cohort, were exposed to this risk.
The very high and selective mortality had a major impact on
the population structure of Cambodia. Fertility and marriage
rates were very low under the Khmer Rouge but rebounded
immediately after the regime's collapse. Because of the
shortage of eligible males, the age and education
differences between partners tended to decline. The period
had a lasting impact on the educational attainment of the
population. The education system collapsed during the
period, so individuals-especially males-who were of
schooling age during this interval had a lower educational
attainment than the preceding and subsequent birth cohorts. |
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