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Khmer Rouge
A Cambodian general who led the overthrow of the monarchy in 1970 and ruled until the Khmer Rouge takeover in 1975. Pa is conscripted into working as a military police captain for the Lon Nol government, which was viewed by many as deeply autocratic and corrupt.
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Lon Nol Term Timeline in First They Killed My Father
The timeline below shows where the term Lon Nol appears in First They Killed My Father. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2: The Ung Family, April 1975
...when the Cambodian government fell in 1970 he was conscripted by the new government of Lon Nol . He had to comply or would have been branded a traitor. Loung asks if...
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Chapter 5: Seven-Day Walk, April 1975
...the new government. Cambodia was a monarchy until a military coup in 1970 by the Lon Nol democratic government, which had been at war with the Khmer Rouge ever since.
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...he should speak. Loung watches the soldiers empty a man’s bag, and, upon discovering a Lon Nol army uniform, push him away with the butt of a rifle. After many hours the...
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Chapter 6: Krang Truop, April 1975
...villages and increasing peasant support for the Communist Khmer Rouge. Backed by the U.S., general Lon Nol overthrew Prince Sihanouk in 1970, but the Khmer Rouge easily defeated the new, weak government.
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Chapter 10: Ro Labor Camps, January 1976
...explains to Loung that if the Khmer Rouge ever discover that Pa worked for the Lon Nol government, they will not be able to punish the whole family.
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Chapter 13: Pa, December 1976
...family is still starving and lives in fear of being outed as supporters of the Lon Nol government. One night Pa whispers to Ma that “they know,” and that they must send...
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