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  • Essay / The use of terror by the Khmers - 3397

    Ngor states that "the greatest strength of the Khmers was propaganda" because "they knew that a little lie can be caught but a big lie is more easy to escape.” This further supports the idea that social destruction and reconstruction is one of their most important factors; they created a regime so radical that the Cambodian people did not know how to oppose it, thus strengthening the power of the Khmers. Their propaganda has spread throughout the country, even existing in songs in which Ung states that "all the songs are about worshiping the powerful Angkar leader Pol Pot, the glory of the Angkar society and the soldiers unbeatable Khmers. » The chants replaced those of ancient Cambodian society, stating how the Khmers were trying to replace ancient Cambodian society with one that worshiped the Angka and the Khmer Rouge. The success of these methods is directly linked to social deconstruction and reconstruction, with propaganda attempting to encourage the societal norms of the new Khmer Cambodia. Therefore, it can be said that the success of the propaganda at the time of the overthrow of the Khmer regime was limited, but if it had been in place longer, a younger generation would demonstrate its impact by allowing themselves to be indoctrinated by the Khmers.