“Ci sono delle cambogiane che sposano gli uomini vietnamiti. I loro figli otterranno la cittadinanza cambogiana, ma saranno vietnamiti nei loro cuori e nelle loro menti.”

Origine: Dall'intervista di Paolo Guzzanti, La Stampa, 6 febbraio 1991; citato in Achille, te lo sei voluto, ma ora io ti salverò http://www.radioradicale.it/exagora/achille-te-lo-sei-voluto-ma-ora-io-ti-salvero, RadioRadicale.it.

When the Vietnamese liberated Cambodia from Pol Pot, it was all right. But now many Cambodians don't like the Vietnamese, because step by step, little by little, we are losing our national identity, our soul.
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Variante: Quando i vietnamiti liberarono la Cambogia da Pol Pot, andava bene. Ma ora a molti cambogiani non piaciono i vietnamiti, siccome, passo dopo passo, gradualmente, stiamo perdendo la nostra identità nazionale, la nostra anima.

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The Vietnamese proclaim throughout the world that they are very popular in Cambodia, but why do they fear general elections? If they are, as they pretend to be, so popular, they would win an election. But the Vietnamese know that they'd be sure to lose now, because the majority of Cambodians would choose the Khmer Rouge as the lesser of two evils.
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Variante: I vietnamiti proclamano in tutto il mondo che sono molto popolari in Cambogia, ma perché allora temono le elezioni generali? Se sono, come dicono loro, così popolari, potrebbero vincere una elezione. Ma i vietnamiti sanno che sarebbero certi di perdere ormai, perché la maggioranza dei cambogiani preferirebbero i Khmer Rossi come il male minore.

When the Vietnamese army threw out the Khmer Rouges, they rescued this country for whatever reason from slavery and possible extinction. Western governments may not want to recognise that fact, but nothing is more obvious to the Cambodian people.

The Vietnamese have rewritten the history of Cambodia. What they now teach the students and children is this: Sihanouk was a bad leader; Lon Nol was worse than Sihanouk; and Pol Pot was worse than Lon Nol. Vietnam helped the Cambodian people and, because of this, Cambodia is now happy.
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Variante: I vietnamiti hanno riscritto la storia di Cambogia. Nelle scuole, quello che ora insegnano ai bambini è questo: Sihanouk era un pessimo leader, Lon Nol era peggio di Sihanouk, e Pol Pot era peggio di Lon Nol. Il Vietnam aiutò il popolo cambogiano e, grazie a questo, la Cambogia è ora felice.

The Vietnamese are condemned for driving out the Khmer Rouge killers. Were the Tanzanians condemned for throwing out the hideous Idi Amin? Of course not! It should be explained why the Vietnamese came here to Cambodia: after 1975, Vietnam was under constant attack by the Khmer Rouges, who massacred Vietnamese border villages and were supported by 10,000 Chinese. An unholy trinity of Pol Pot, China and America say that Vietnam is an agent of Russia. Anyone who knows the fiercely nationalistic Vietnamese, who have stood virtually alone against invaders for thirty years, knows this to be laughably untrue. But the Chinese threat and the present denial of aid is pushing both Vietnam and Cambodia deeper into the waiting arms of the Soviet Union. Both the Cambodians and the Vietnamese are fighting for their survival as never before.

Pol Pot is a very, very good military leader and strategist. He has succeeded in making his troops the best guerrillas in the world - even better than the Vietnamese. You know, as a Cambodian, I am proud of them, if I may say so. Not proud of their communism but proud of their military capability, their dedication, their toughness, their skill on the battlefield. The Vietnamese fear them so much. That is why they have set as a condition for withdrawing their troops from Cambodia the liquidation of the Khmer Rouge--not just Pol Pot but the Khmer Rouge--as a military and political force.
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