Monarchy or Democracy – Pol Pot (Khmer Deum, 1952)

On June 15, 1952, S.M. Norodom Sihanouk dissolved the government and, at the same time, threatened to dissolve
the People’s Assembly if it opposed the takeover. This royal coup stirred the whole country and makes us, the citizens,
think about its causes. Certainly, the constitution gives the King the power to dissolve the government, but this coup
is an act of injustice because the King flouted democratic rights and committed an act of contempt for the elected
assembly which legally represents the people. If the King really cares about the interests of the nation, the security
of the people, as he often says in his speeches, he should not carry out this royal coup by force. You should have
brought the government together to find the best means of driving out the French army and the accomplices of the
French, in order to achieve direct independence for the country. The King should have allied with the Assembly. Why?
History shows us that only the Assembly and democratic rights can grant a few breaths of freedom to the Khmer
people, like, for example, at the time of Prince Youthevong. When there is no longer the Assembly, the country will
immediately be bound. In 1949, the reigning King allied with Yem Sambaur and our country was, at that time, bound
by a treaty with France which will continue to remain for a very long time in Cambodia. The Khmer people remember
this story and do not forget it; only those who think only of their personal interests can forget it. This coup d’etat of
June 15 shows us that we are not at all under the reign of a constitutional monarchy, but rather under a regime of
absolute monarchy. The King is absolute; he seeks to destroy the interests of the people when they are in a position
of weakness; he is concerned that the more educated a people, the easier it becomes to see the faults of kings.
The absolute king uses good words, but his heart remains wicked; he uses demagoguery to deceive the people.
I. What is a monarchy?

It is a doctrine that entrusts power to a small group of individuals who have high professional situations, so that
they can exploit the majority of other social classes. Monarchy is an unjust doctrine, as infectious as a putrid
plague. Humanity must abolish it. The monarchy is an absolute doctrine which exists only through nepotism. Its
faults are numerous. 1. The monarchy is the enemy of the people. History shows us that since our country has
existed, we have always been dominated and exploited by the monarchy. The condition of the people is degraded
to that of the animal; the people, who are considered a herd of slaves, are forced to work tirelessly, night and day,
to feed the absolute monarchy and its harem of courtiers. 2. The monarchy is the enemy of religion. The people
believe that religion is their friend, that is why they have respect and place it above Man. But since ancient times,
the monarchy uses demagoguery by making the people believe that it also represents religion, that it respects
the Ten Royal Virtues. To convince the people and exploit them more easily, the monarchy had the poets compose
the legend of Preah Leak Chinavong, according to which the king always had the right to life and death over the
people. But the enlightened monks have always understood the nature of the monarchy very well and have found
ways to explain to the people that it should not be trusted. They composed the story of Themh Chey to show that
a child of the people, Them Chay, can defeat an ignorant king; Themh Chay dares to oppose the crown. The
monarchy destroyed the Buddhist religion by other means, for example by dividing the monks into several groups,
creating a higher rank, that of the Samdech (Lord). 3. The monarchy is a friend of colonialism. The history that
we look at, since our country has been under French domination, the Khmer kings are moving away more and
more from the Khmer people. Their designation, to access the throne, falls under French authority.

Thus, the reigning king is only a pawn of the colonialists, allying with them to preserve his crown and the monarchy.
There are always struggles for the throne. Prince Youkanthor was created by the French who entrusted the throne
to H.M. Sisowath; There are many struggles of this kind. 4. The monarchy is the enemy of knowledge. She uses
all means so that people are uneducated so as to believe that the King is the Supreme Being. When a people is
educated, it becomes the virulent enemy of the monarchy and it desperately wants its abolition. Here are some
examples: – Our great master Buddha was very educated; he soon realized that his father, King Suthotana (Sanskrit:
Soddhodana) was unjustly enriched, leaving the people to languish in ignorance, disease, famine, homeless,
without schools, without hospitals. Buddha then decided to abandon the monarchy to become the friend of
Man and people, by teaching men to love each other. – Prince Youthevong, very educated, also abandoned
the monarchists to instill democracy in the Khmer people. II. What is a democracy? It is a regime that entrusts
power to a majority from the people. Thus, democracy is totally contrary to the monarchy. These two regimes
are enemies and cannot coexist, as the royal coup of June 15 proves. History shows that these two regimes
always oppose each other, and that peace cannot be established until the monarchy is gone. The 1789 revolution
in France, under the leadership of Robespierre and Danton, dissolved the monarchy and executed King Louis
XVI. The 1917 revolution in Russia, with Lenin and Stalin as guides, completely abolished the monarchy. The
revolution of 1924 in China, the people being under the direction of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, abolished the monarchy
and the whole imperial family. The monarchy is a regime that the peoples of all countries now adopt; it is as
precious as diamonds and cannot be compared to any other regime. This is why the Khmer people sing:

“The democratic regime in today’s world is like a river that descends from the mountains, following plants, that no
one obstruct …”. The democratic regime is part of Buddhist morality, because our great master Buddha was the
first to have taught it. Thus, only the democratic regime can safeguard the deep value of Buddhism. III. The royal
coup It is not the first time that H.M. Norodom Sihanouk has abused the will of the Khmer people. We can see
that, when the people are weak and let themselves go, the King takes the opportunity to scorn the constitution,
as happened in 1949 when he tried to camouflage his absolutism. But, no longer able to camouflage himself, he
took, on June 15, the unjust decision to carry out a coup, in defiance even of his monarchist friends, some of
whom are in prison. The question that arises is what force does the king rely on to carry out the coup? 1. This
coup is the result of French colonial power. The proof is found in the royal speech of June 4, at the meeting of the
Council of the Kingdom. We note the following passages: “I (the king) recently met Mr. Vincent Auriol, he entrusted
me with the affairs of H.E. Son Ngoc Thanh… Recently also, Mr. Letourneau shared my opinion and told me has
promised to lighten certain clauses if a future government (Khmer) was ready to repress the resistance fighters
(Issarak) and to soften these clauses once the war has ended.” In the royal message to the people, the king
declared that “we can count on the help that our French and American allies bring to us.” All this clearly proves
that this coup was supported by French colonialism. 2. The coup is the work of the monarchy. Other evidence
can be found in the royal messages: “Having inherited this monarchy which dates from sixteen centuries, to
govern the people …”. (Message to students). “By my duties as king, by my responsibility before the fatherland,
before the people, before history and before my ancestors who bequeathed me this national monarchy …”.
(Message to the nation). “Even if I have to become a simple citizen, I will always defend the monarchy”.

(King’s speech to students in Paris). All these King’s speeches prove that the coup was solely in the royal interest.
IV. The government S.M. Norodom Sihanouk is the head of the government resulting from the coup. The other
ministers are courtiers who know nothing about politics and ignore the misfortunes of the people. Everyone must
think carefully about the fate of the Khmer people who no longer even have the freedom to hold a meeting of
more than four people. V. The government program The speeches of the king clearly show that the program of
the new government for the period of three years when the king will hold absolute power, is divided into two parts:
1. In the first two years, wage war against the insurgents (the national patriots). 2. In the third year, negotiate with
France, which promises to grant full independence. Such a program aims only to gag the people, to arrest and
expel those who dare to oppose the policy of the King. Second, it aims to dissolve political parties that oppose
the interests of the throne, because political parties do not remain silent. Finally, the king’s policy is to provoke
a civil war which will burn everything, even the pagodas. The monks, the people, the civil servants will experience
painful family separations, they will see their parents, their wives and their children crushed by the tanks, burned
by napalm; the crops will be destroyed. The colonialist army, which the absolute monarchy has already called
to the rescue, has already committed acts of looting and violence against women … In the administration, the
colonialists will be the masters, as before. The question then arises of who will be the winner of the first two years
of this destructive war. Supposing that the monarchy succeeds in suppressing the national patriots, the question
is whether, in the third year, Cambodia appeals for help from Siam, it will have to pay homage to Siam, and if the
King, who appeals for help from France, will have to pay homage to France. Thus, King Norodom Sihanouk who
appealed to France, must let the colonialists link Cambodia to France by treaties which will allow them to dominate
Cambodia forever.