Cambodia is a Southeast Asian country. Located on the Indochina peninsula, it covers an area of 181 040 km2. It is limited by Thailand, west and north; through Laos, to the northeast; Vietnam, east and south, and the Gulf of Thailand, southwest. The most important cities are Phnom Penh, the capital, with 1 206 800 residents (2004), Batdambang (219 700 residents) (2004), Kampong Cham (59 500 residents) And Pursat (46 800 residents) (2004).
The climate is tropical monsoon. The monsoon is felt from April to October and the average temperature in the capital is 27 o C.
Economy
Cambodia’s economy is still very dependent on agriculture, the production of which is mainly intended for local consumption. Rice is the main production. For export, there are crops of sugar cane and bananas, as well as plantations of ivy (natural rubber). About 80% of the active population is dedicated to agriculture. In terms of mineral resources, the country has reserves of iron, phosphates, coal and precious stones, but its exploration is still not very intensive. The industry, of an almost artisanal nature, is dedicated to the transformation of agricultural products. Cambodia’s main economic partners are Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and India.
Environmental indicator: the value of carbon dioxide emissions, per capita (metric tons, 1999), is 0.1.
Population
The population is 13 881 427 residents (est. 2006), which corresponds to a population density of 75.16 residents/km2. The birth and death rates are, respectively, 26.9% and 9.06%. Average life expectancy is 59.29 years. The value of the Human Development Index (HDI) is 0.556 and the value of the Gender-adjusted Development Index (IDG) is 0.551 (2001). Cambodian ethnicities are Khmer (90%), Vietnamese (5%) and Chinese (1%) and others (4%). The religion with the greatest expression is the Buddhist. The official language of the country is Khmer.
History
In 1864, Cambodia became a protectorate of France. During World War II, most of the territory was occupied by the Japanese army. In 1944 the country proclaimed independence, but it was only in 1953 that it came to conquer it definitively. He tried to maintain neutrality during the Vietnam War, but the Vietnamese used the neighboring territory to supply the forces operating in southern Vietnam. This forced Cambodia to become involved in the war. In 1970 the US bombed most of the country. Shortly afterwards, Prime Minister Sihanouk was deposed by General Lon Nol, supported by the Americans. For Cambodia democracy and rights, please check homeagerly.
This coup provoked discontent among the communists, the Khmer Rouge, led by Pol Pot. In 1976 the Democratic Republic of Cambodia was proclaimed. The following year, the Cambodian Communist Party was officially recognized as the country’s governing body. There followed a time of extreme misery. In 1979, disease and hunger, but also the regime’s systematic genocide, had already killed some 2,000,000 people. Meanwhile, the Khmer Rouge began to attack Vietnam and, in 1979, Cambodia was invaded by the neighboring country. The communist regime fell and Vietnamese forces established a socialist government. From that moment on, the Khmer Rouge guerrillas started to attack power successively.
In 1991, the various factions signed a peace agreement under the auspices of the UN. Two years later, the UN oversaw free elections and Sihanouk, who had returned to the country shortly before, formed a coalition government and later became king. However, the political situation in the country has not proved to be stable, however. The Khmer Rouge guerrillas continued their struggle. On the other hand, in 1997 there was a coup d’etat in which the co-Prime Minister Hun-Sen removed from power the other co-Prime Minister, Prince Ranariddh, son of King Sihanouk.
1UpTravel.com – Maps of Cambodia
Browse a collection of political and shaded relief maps of Cambodia, lying between Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos. Includes an Indochina ethnolinguistic groups map.
