May, 2015
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Political Paradigm of Pragmatism from the Khmer Youth part 19
This part, the author Mr. Sophan Seng, articulated on “Culture of Dialogue” that has been so popular in Cambodia politics at the present by exposing this new paradigm as realistic to the world’s changing and Cambodia modern geopolitics.
Thus, the culture of dialogue is in good timeframe to debate about healing processes of Khmer trauma by exposing more truth through talking and storytelling about it.
In conclusion, to end the culture of revenge, animosity and enmity among Cambodian people, the means to encourage communication must be incentivized, and culture of dialogue is the essential mean among them all.
វប្បធម៌សន្ទនាដោយសម្តេចសង្ឃដាឡៃឡាមម៉ា
In human societies there will always be differences of views and interests. But the reality today is that we are all interdependent and have to co-exist on this small planet. Therefore, the only sensible and intelligent way of resolving differences and clashes of interests, whether between individuals or nations, is through dialogue. The promotion of a culture of dialogue and non-violence for the future of mankind is thus an important task of the international community.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama
in a speech to the “Forum 2000″ Conference,
Prague, Czech Republic, 4 September 1997
ក្នុងសង្គមមនុស្សរមែងមានគំនិតយោបល់និងផលប្រយោជន៏ខុសគ្នា។ តែធាតុពិត សព្វថ្ងៃគឺយេីងទាំងអស់គ្នាអាស្រ័យគ្នាទៅវិញទៅមកនិងរស់នៅរួមគ្នាជាសហវិជ្ជមាននៅលេីផែនពស្តុធានេះ។ យ៉ាងនេះក៏ដោយ វិធីដ៏ឆ្លាតវាងវ័យនិងបង្ហាញ ផលជាក់ស្តែងក្នុងការដោះស្រាយភាពខុសគ្នានិងទំនាស់ខាងផលប្រយោជន៍ ទាំងរវាងបុគ្គលម្នាក់ៗឬរវាងជាតិ គឺតាមរយះការសន្ទនា។ ការលេីកតំកេីងវប្បធម៌សន្ទនានិងអហឹង្សាសំរាប់អនាគតនៃមនុស្សជាតិគឺជាកិច្ចការសំខាន់មួយសំរាប់ សហគមអន្តរជាតិ។ – ដោយសម្តេចសង្ឃដាលឡៃឡាម៉ា
Political Paradigm of Pragmatism from Khmer Youth part 18
This part, the author Mr. Sophan Seng, analysed the ineffective leadership of Pol Pot who has brought communism to change Cambodia political strand. 
Different from Russia, China, or Vietnam, Cambodia is not necessary to administer communism because Cambodia’s geography is easy to administer, Cambodia’s demography and ethnic groups are not a threat to country division, and Cambodian people are Buddhists who are inclined into freedom than oppression from the communist ideology. Pol Pot who was pursuing ultra-nationalism transformed his uneducated desire into tragedy. This backfire is part of his poor leadership and incompetency.
Thus, his effort was not solely naive and in vain but the foreign expansionist can easily infiltrate into his administrative rings and pushed his ultra-nationalism into the helm of death and sorrow. Not only failure to develop the country politically and economically, many well educated and human resource of Cambodia were facing death. This slaughtering machine resulted in handicap and disability for Cambodia as nation decades to come.
At the end, the author suggested Cambodian leaders to project long term plan by embracing political pragmatism. One of the urgent platforms is to strengthen national security by employing capable anti-terrorism forces as well as secrete agents to protect all unseen attempts aiming to provoke and to ruin the nation by the foreigners or ill-will individuals.
Culture of Dialogue vs Culture of MAD Politics
However, the two poles have come up with this new trend to maximize interests for Cambodian people but it doesn’t translate that each party has no hidden agenda to gain their own advantages.
For the CNRP, their advantages are to instill new paradigm of political pragmatism of democracy and sustainable development, but for the CPP is possibly to gear up split between the soft-liners and hard-liners among those CNRP’s supporters. The overwhelming supporters of the CNRP or those of more than half of the Cambodian population is a tasteful piece of cake but right now someone is trying to cut this one piece into several pieces or at least two pieces before the swallow into their throat.
On the other hand, Sam Rainsy has been regarded as the hero of the nation as he has always stood up to protest the hegemony and borderline trespassing of Vietnamese over Cambodia territory land, so his new approach to Culture of Dialogue has likely encouraged CPP’s politburo to do something to reduce his heroism and nationalism at the moment.
Lately, the development of “culture of dialogue” of the Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) and the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) has outreached to seven points of detente. Previously, each party issued guidance letter to their activists and grassroots levels. But this detente code of conduct for the two parties “Culture of Dialogue” might not be the last, or the beginning.
The Culture of Dialogue
As previously written, “Culture of Dialogue” is not new in the context of daily use for common communication. Humankind has communicated with each other at least since the birth of human social establishment. But when this term has developed and evolved itself into more professional level, the Culture of Dialogue ideally means a norm or guidance of a shared exploration towards greater understanding, connection and possibility.
The dialogue consists of formal and informal. The following is considered formal dialogue of democracy:
- public talk about social issues
- in communities (in homes, temples, cafes, schools),
- in the media (through journalism and some art, entertainment and advertising) and
- in academia (where experts generate knowledge and debate ideas via researches)
- governmental deliberations about social issues
- in legislatures
- in executive bureaucracies and
- in the judicial system
- Proxy discussion about social issues is the extent of political myth to develop democracy.
- in art and fiction (including novels, TV, movies, drama, etc.)
- in expressive forums (talk shows, letters to the editor, broadcast town meetings) in which ordinary people speak their minds on public issues and
- in facilitated dialogue among “representatives” of stakeholders or the general public, such as the citizen consensus councils used in Denmark, Canada and elsewhere.
- Political Debate is popularly practiced in democratic countries such as the United States, UK, Canada and elsewhere. In Canada, the debates among key political party leaders are included in federal, provincial and municipal (see this link as example of provincial election or local government for this 2015). In the UK, this 2015 national election has run through hot debate among those key political party leaders (see this link as for your example).
The Culture of MAD Politics
MAD is derived from “Mutually assured destruction, or mutual assured destruction” which has been likely extensively used by the military policy during the cold war and post-cold war. It has been theorized that a full-scale use of high-yielded weapons of mass destruction by two or more opposing rivals that would cause complete annihilation of both ie. the attacker and the defender, for instance, see pre-emptive nuclear strike and second strike.
In Cambodian context, this is in high alert of Lon Nol republican politics, Khmer Rouge revolutionary regime, and Vietnam socialist occupation over Cambodia.
The Seven Codes of Conduct for their Detente
According to the letter issuance signed by Hun Sen and Sam Rainsy, the seven codes are following: