What We Owe to Southeast Asia ─ A Letter to America from a High School Sophomore
*Originally published February 03, 2021
For breakfast this morning, my mom served me porridge. In 1969, however, America served Cambodia bombs.
In 1969, the Kingdom of Cambodia was secretly bombed by America under the command of the newly sworn-in President Nixon and Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger. From March 18, 1969, to around May 26, 1970, a series of bombings destroyed Cambodia. Due to the nicknames of the series of bombings operations; breakfast, lunch, dinner, et cetera, the operation was coined ‘Operation Menu’. Operation Menu was a series of bombings conducted by the United States of America on Cambodia in efforts to eliminate Communist North Vietnamese bases.
The intentions were at best, impulsive and this operation subsequently led to the downfall of the already underdeveloped country of Cambodia.
On the night of March 18, 1969, breakfast was served. Forty-eight B-52 Stratofortress bombers raided the Vietnamese-Cambodian border, with the target of Base Area 353 in the Kampong Cham province in southeast Cambodia. More than 2,000 tons of bombs were dropped in this 4,549 km² province, an area slightly bigger than the American state of Rhode Island. In the eyes of the United States, these bombings were considered a great success and continued even after Operation Supper, the last operation under Operation Menu. They further expanded deeper into Cambodia, launching the beginning of the ironically titled Operation Freedom Deal, extending the raids for three additional years and to at least half of Cambodia.
Additionally, while these operations were taking place, America was also bombing the neighboring country of Laos, dropping about two million tons of bombs into a country only twice the size of Pennsylvania. More bombs were dropped in Laos than were dropped in Germany during WWII. About one-tenth of the entire Laotian population was killed by 1975, the effects of which are still prominent today. Since the bombings ended, an additional 20,000 civilians have been killed from the estimated remaining 80 million bombs that failed to explode when dropped.
Operation Menu and Operation Freedom Deal gave birth to what became the Cambodian Genocide, the systemic persecution and killings of Cambodians, under the Khmer Rouge, a brutal, communist regime that ruled Cambodia. By using the devastation and chaos caused by the US-led raids, the Khmer Rouge was able to take advantage of civil unrest and use it as recruitment propaganda and as an excuse for their radical communist policies. While the bombings were an attempt to stop communism from North Vietnam from spreading, America failed and allowed another authoritarian power to rise. It’s not completely understood how many civilian lives were lost from the raids, but an estimated two million Cambodian lives were lost from events that occurred as a result of these raids, and another two million fled Cambodia as refugees to countries foreign to them.
Even today, Cambodia is still struggling and unable to completely heal. As their home is an underdeveloped third-world country, Cambodians are subjected to poor education, a lack of decent healthcare, low-wage agricultural jobs, and many more disadvantages. Additionally, despite these bombings and America’s abandonment of Cambodia during the war, America is still holding Cambodia accountable for their war debts.
As a Thai/Cambodian-American, I was shocked that I’ve never heard about these atrocities before. These operations were kept secret from the public and even the US Congress by the Nixon administration to avoid criticism. When exposed by William Beecher in The New York Times in May 1969, the horrific discoveries were met with light shrugs from the public.
The American education system has failed to teach students about important matters like these. Throughout history, Western Countries, as a whole, have continuously let down Southeast Asian countries.
America’s failure to address its failed intervention and war-crimes in Southeast Asia has destabilized the region as a whole. We are seeing further destabilization even today. On February 01, 2021, State Counsellor of Myanmar, Aung San Suu Kyi, was detained by the Myanmar military in an attempt to overthrow the government. After only ten years of military-free rule, the Burmese are again fighting for their freedom.
Even on our home ground, Asian Americans are facing the consequences of America’s failures and disregard for human rights. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, racism towards East and Southeast Asians has skyrocketed. Politicians politicizing the pandemic, pointing fingers at Asia, further encouraged citizens to be ignorant and discriminative towards Asian Americans. Donald Trump calling COVID-19 the “Chinese virus” and “kung flu” are just a few examples of this. Since the start of 2021 alone, there have been several attacks on Asian Americans, mainly the elderly, but some even on children. This same disregard for sovereignty and human rights in Asia, apparent in Operation Menu and the Myanmar Coup attempt of 2021, could be seen in these attacks on Asian Americans today.
While we can’t go back to stop the bombings from the past and undo what America did to Asia, we can acknowledge our faults and work to do better. As citizens of a first-world country, it is our responsibility to educate ourselves and our youth on how we have impacted other, less fortunate countries. Many of these Southeast Asian countries are popular travel destinations, but tourists visit these countries not knowing the lasting damage that has been done to their citizens. If we want to continue enjoying these beautiful countries, it is our duty to be mindful of the history of these countries.
Moreover, we can do better at home as well. Speak up and stand up to racism, spread awareness, and report instances of Anti-Asian hate crimes. We must stand together for a better world.
