Is there still a communist party in Cambodia?

Is there still a communist party in Cambodia? The short answer is no there is not, although the CPP/Cambodian Peoples Party is the successor party to the prior communist governing Kampuchean People’s Revolutionary Party.

Cambodian Peoples Party

In 2020 you will see signs dotted around the country celebrating 69 years of the CPP.

The CPP traces its origins to the Kampuchean People’s Revolutionary Party which was founded in 1951. This was predated by the Indochina Communist party which had been formed in 1930. In turn it became the Workers Party of Kampuchea, and lastly the Communist Party of Kampuchea, AKA the Khmer Rouge.

As per CPP history they do not associate themselves with the later Khmer Rouge organizations and government.

When the Khmer Rouge regime fell in 1979 the new government went by the name of the Kampuchean People’s Revolutionary Party. This was a Marxist-Leninist party built around the Soviet model.

State of Cambodia

With the dissimulating of the one party system the Kampuchean People’s Revolutionary Party became the Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP). Al lreferences to communism. The new constitution of what would become the Kingdom of Cambodia would even guarantee free market economics in one of its articles.

Is the CPP communist?

From 1979-1989 the government was communist, with the Soviets even stating that they had achieved socialism (the precursor to communism).

They have been in government since 1979 and have very much embraced the free market economy. It is hard to pinpoint an exact ideology for the CPP. In a sense it could be called a big tent party.

Are the Khmer Rouge still active?

The majority of the populations of Anlong Veng and Pailin are ex Khmer Rouge. Therefore many ex-KR hold positions of political power. They have largellyy been integrated into the CPP governing system.

Is there currently a communist part in Cambodia?

Not counting the CPP, who indeed are no longer communist there is now no Communist Party in Cambodia. In fact in the splintered opposition almost all parties espouse market economics, with none even using the word socialist. The one uniting factor of the opposition seems to be Anti-Vietnamese in nature.

Why is there no communist movement in Cambodia?

For a country with such abject poverty and wealth disparity you would expect there to be some kind of grassroots socialist movement, but Cambodia is a very different case. Everyone in Cambodia was either affected by the rule of the Khmer Rouge, or were raised by people that were. There is now extreme distrust for anything even resembling left-wing when it comes to politics in Cambodia. Ironically as well, the country looks up to the achievements of China and Vietnam, which whilst ran officially by communist governments have very much embraced the free-market economy.

And that is why there is no longer a communist movement in Cambodia.

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