Gaffar Peang-Meth ( Khmer. ហ្គា ហ្វា រ ពាង ម៉េ ត , English; Gaffar Peang-Meth ; April 25, 1944, Phnom Penh ) - Cambodian political activist, Republican , anti-communist . Ethnic Cham . In the first half of the 1970s - an employee of the embassy of the Khmer Republic in the United States . In the 1980s, he actively participated in the military-political struggle against the communist regime of the NRC . He was deputy chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the national liberation of the Khmer people , was in the leadership and was the press secretary of the National Front for the Liberation of the Khmer people . He emigrated to the USA , taught political science at the University of Guam .
| Gaffar Peang Met | |
|---|---|
| Khmer. ហ្គា ហ្វា រ ពាង ម៉េ ត English Gaffar peang-meth | |
| Birth name | Abdul Gaffar Peang-Met |
| Date of Birth | April 25, 1944 (75 years old) |
| Place of Birth | Phnom penh |
| Citizenship |  Cambodia  USA |
| Occupation | KPNLAF Deputy Chief of Staff, KPNLF Spokesperson; Lecturer , University of Guam , Ph.D. in Political Science |
| Academic degree | |
| The consignment | Khmer National Liberation Front ( KPNLF ) |
| Main ideas | republicanism , anti-communism |
Content
Origin and education
Born in the Phnom Penh district of Roussei Keo ( Khmer. ឬ ស្សី កែវ ) in a Cham family. At birth, received the name Abdul Gaffar Peang-Met . Abdul Ghaffar’s father, Peang Met, was an entrepreneur, a liberal politician, and an influential leader in the Democratic Party . From adolescence, Abdul Ghaffar was involved in political life.
Educated in the USA . According to his own recollections, at first he chose between studies in the USA and the USSR , because he was impressed with the launch of the Soviet satellite in 1957 . Regularly, even in the USA, he read the magazine Soviet Life .
In the quiet conservative town of Ohio, I must have looked like a communist. But no one pursued me for such views. On the contrary, history teachers encouraged them to express their opinions openly.
Gaffar Peang Met
In 1967 He received a bachelor 's degree in political science at Hiram Colledge ( Ohio ), since 1969 - a master's degree at Georgetown University ( Washington ). Since 1980 - Ph.D. in Political Science, University of Michigan . He defended his thesis Cambodia and the United Nations: Comparative Foreign Policies Under Four Regimes - Cambodia and the United Nations : A Comparison of Foreign Policy under Four Regimes .
In the United States, Abdul Gaffar Peang-Met (a convinced monarchist who worshiped Norodom Sihanouk in childhood and adolescence) was imbued with the ideas of the republic and democracy , he was a supporter of John F. Kennedy [1] .
Republican activist
In 1970, Peang Met supported the coup d'etat and the creation of the Khmer Republic . He met with Son Ngok Thanh shortly before his appointment as prime minister. In 1973 - 1975, Peang-Met was the press officer of the Khmer Republic Embassy in the United States. He believed that the regime of General Lon Nol defends the republican system and repels the communist forces - the Khmer Rouge and the Vietnamese intervention.
Perhaps this looked naive when Khmer David confronted the Vietnamese Goliath while the Americans preferred to trade in national sovereignty, as the political wind favored the communists. But the Khmers repulsed the Vietnamese occupying forces in the name of republican ideals.
Gaffar Peang-Met [2]
Abdul Gaffar Peang-Met was a determined opponent of the Polpot regime of Democratic Kampuchea . His father was shot by the Khmer Rouge, his mother starved to death in a labor camp. While in exile, Peang Met exposed the terror and genocide of the Khmer Rouge . He did not accept the NRC regime, led by Heng Samrin , established in January 1979 as a result of the Vietnamese intervention.
In anti-communist resistance
In 1980, Abdul Ghaffar Peang-Met arrived in Thailand and joined the National Khmer People Liberation Front ( KPNLF ), led by Son Sann . He participated in the creation of the Armed Forces of the National Liberation of the Khmer People ( KPNLAF ). He was enrolled in the political training department, was the deputy chief of staff of KPNLAF. Together with General Dien Del , he spent a long time in refugee camps. He helped form the armed detachments of the Cambodian anti-communists, participated in clashes [3] .
There was a strict rule for every volunteer, which did not seem particularly wise to me: “Eyes are given to see; ears are given to hear - so look and listen! Keep your mouth closed, you can speak only after you have seen and heard enough for a true thought. Then you can open your mouth, but before you say something, ask a question. ” Imagine what it was like for me. With a doctorate in political science. But: “Take the order, then they’ll take to the front” - this was the law for all volunteers.
I was appointed deputy front secretary general. I became a member of the seven-person executive committee that managed the KPNLF. He was responsible for external relations. He was one of three representatives of the KPNLF in tripartite negotiations - KPNLF, Khmer Rouge, Sihanoukists - on the creation of the Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea .
Within the framework of the CGDK, there were two tripartite meetings: political and military. At a political meeting, President Sihanouk, Prime Minister Son Sann, and Foreign Minister Khieu Samphan discussed a common strategy for fighting Vietnam. The military meeting was attended by General Sak Sutsakan (or I) from KPNLAF, General Theap Ben from ANS and Son Sen from the Khmer Rouge.
Gaffar Peang Met
He advocated active offensive actions:
The situation in Cambodia is ripening for rebellion. We must advance as many troops as possible.
Abdul Ghaffar Peang-Met, January 1986 [4]
At the beginning of 1986, Peang-Met joined a group of field commanders led by Sak Sutsakan, who made claims to Song Sann, blaming the political leader for the military defeats of the previous period. Son Sann was accused of incompetent interference in military matters, unwillingness to coordinate attacks on the enemy with Sihanouk and his supporters, as well as an authoritarian style of leadership. Peang-Met proposed distributing American aid among all non-communist resistance organizations [5] .
Post-war period
In 1989 , when the withdrawal of Vietnamese troops from Cambodia and the process of political settlement began, Peang Met returned to the United States. After the free elections in 1993 and the restoration of the Kingdom of Cambodia, Peang Met did not accept a new regime. The reason was that former communists, led by Hong Sen, retained strong positions in power.
He taught political science at Johns Hopkins University ( 1990 ), then at the University of Guam ( 1991 - 2004 ). Since 2004, retired. It bears the name Gaffar Peang-Met .
He publishes works on Cambodian history of the last third of the 20th century, in which he is a supporter of the Khmer Republic. It characterizes the events of 1970 as “the revolt of the Khmer people” [6] . At the same time, he criticizes Sihanouk and strongly condemns the Khmer Rouge.
Gaffar Peang-Met sharply criticizes the Hong Kong Cambodian authorities for authoritarianism, distortions of history, economic incompetence, corruption, secret conspiracies with former polpotsev, social injustice [7] . He supported the protests in Cambodia 2013-2014 and called on the democratic opposition to nominate new leaders and formulate a national construction program [8] . He speaks from the position of republican democracy.
And today there is Khmer youth who believes in the republic, remembers and appreciates those who died in the name of humanism and republicanism. Some young Khmers have raised the republican flag and are moving forward. I am committed to republican ideals to this day.
Gaffar Peang Met
In October 2015, Gaffar Peang-Met attended a conference of the Cambodian opposition movement Khmer M'Chas Srok ( Khmers are the masters of their country , KMS ).
Public Speaking
In 2011, a professor at Clermont University ( California ), Sovatana Sokom, published a study of Gaffar Peang-Met. What Is Your Ten Minutes Worth? Selected Political Writings of Professor Gaffar Peang-Meth . The proceeds from the sale of the book are aimed at developing the social sciences in Cambodia - “in the interests of peace, security, democracy and the economic recovery of the Khmer homeland.” [9] .
Gaffar Peang-Met is often published in specialized publications, posting video materials. In June 2016, Peang-Met gave an extensive interview to the St. Petersburg editorial office of the Russian Novaya Gazeta [10] .
Family
Gaffar Peang-Met is married with three sons and seven grandchildren. Currently resides in the USA.
Notes
- ↑ “Failure is not an option” - A story for Cambodian civil rights fighters
- ↑ A view from the outside
- ↑ Gen. Dien Del gave his all for Khmer
- ↑ CAMBODIANS AT ODDS
- ↑ Solarz meets the Khmer resistance
- ↑ Khmer people's 1970 revolt
- ↑ Educated are Cambodia's 'critical mass'
- ↑ CAMBODIA: democrats must build new leaders and focus on nation-building
- ↑ What Is Your Ten Minutes Worth? Selected Political Writings of Professor Gaffar Peang-Meth. By Sovathana Sokhom
- ↑ Gaffar Peang-Met: “New people will create a republic”