IV 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 436 

Honoring the victims of the Cambodian genocide that took place from April 

1975 to January 1979. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 24, 2015 

Mr. LOWENTHAL (for himself, Ms. BORDALLO, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, 

Mr. COSTA, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. HAHN, Mr. HONDA, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. 

MCGOVERN, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. TAKANO, Ms. TSONGAS, and Mr. WELCH) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Honoring the victims of the Cambodian genocide that took 

place from April 1975 to January 1979. 

Whereas beginning in April 1975 and ending in January 

1979, at least 1,700,000 to 3,000,000 people were deliberately and systematically killed in Cambodia in one of 

the worst human tragedies of the modern era; 

Whereas in 1975, Pol Pot led the Communist guerilla group, 

the Khmer Rouge, in a large-scale insurgency in Cambodia that resulted in the removal of Cambodians from 

their homes and into labor camps in an attempt to restructure Khmer society; 

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•HRES 436 IH 

Whereas traditional Khmer culture and society were systematically destroyed, including the destruction of temples, 

schools, hospitals, and other buildings; 

Whereas families were separated in an attempt by the Khmer 

Rouge to prevent family formation, many individuals 

were punished or killed for education, wealth, or sophistication, and doctors, nurses, clergy, teachers, business 

owners, artisans, city dwellers, and even those individuals 

who wore glasses were singled out for execution since 

they were seen as bourgeois or contaminated with Western influence; 

Whereas the Khmer Rouge maintained control by mass public 

torture, executions, and dismantling of the social order; 

Whereas men, women, and children were sent to labor camps 

and forced to do strenuous farm work and famine and 

disease became epidemic while medicine and medical care 

were nonexistent; 

Whereas after the Khmer Rouge regime was overthrown in 

1979, thousands of Cambodians fled on foot to refugee 

camps in Thailand and many refugees were processed 

again in other camps in the Philippines and Indonesia; 

Whereas from these refugee camps hundreds of thousands of 

Cambodians made their way to the United States beginning in 1975; 

Whereas these Cambodians were subsequently resettled in 

communities across the United States; 

Whereas according to the 2010 United States Census, there 

are 276,677 people of Cambodian descent currently living 

in the United States; 

Whereas despite their tremendous loss, Cambodians and 

Cambodian-Americans have shown courage and resiliency; 

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•HRES 436 IH 

Whereas the memory of those Cambodians who were killed 

during the Cambodian genocide must never be forgotten 

and the survivors of the Cambodian genocide should be 

honored; 

Whereas the resettlement of Cambodians reflected the hard 

work of voluntary agencies through funding by the Federal Government, individual citizens, and Federal, State, 

and local governmental agencies, all working together to 

assist the new arrivals in adjusting to society in the 

United States; 

Whereas Cambodian refugees have done much to further successful resettlement in the United States, including 

through mutual assistance associations organized by previously resettled Southeast Asian refugees to help new 

refugees through the provision of essential social, psychological, cultural, educational, and economic services; and 

Whereas while remembering and honoring both their traditional culture and their traumatic past, the new generation of Cambodian-Americans is contributing to United 

States society in meaningful ways: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) honors the victims of the genocide in Cam3 bodia that took place beginning in April 1975 and 

4 ending in January 1979; and 

5 (2) continues to support efforts to pursue jus6 tice for the victims of the Cambodian genocide. 

Æ 

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