Kampiichean people begin guerrilla

NEWSPAPER OF IHt Lt'AOUf. OF HE VUlU I ION AH V SI RUOOI f iM I I

war against Soviet-backed invasion

Tlic Viclnaincse forces occupying Kampii-chca (Canihodia) arc couiimiiiig (o cncoiiiiiers(ilT resistance from the Kampiichean Revolutionary Army aiicl tlie Kampiichean people.Viet Nam has been imabic to cstablisl i firmcontrol in a number of areas, even lliough itlias seiil more than 100,001) troops into thecountry, in addition to suffering some seriouslosses in the battlefield, the Soviet-backed invaders arc facing growing internationalc o n d e m n a t i o n .

Fierce battles have been waged almost continuously in Takco Province, in the easternpart of llie country. The provincial capital wasretaken by the Kampuchcan forces on .lanuary21. Heavy fighting continues for control of (hecity, while the western part of the province hasbeen completely liberated from the invaders.Vietnamese forces in the eastern part of theprovince have been pushed steadily away fromthe capital, past Chrei So and Cham HapM o u n t a i n s .

The Vietnamese invaders in the importantport city of Kompong Som arc surrounded liyKampuchcan units and have had to rely on airborne food drops. Kampiichean naval forcesoperating in the coastal areas have made itdifficult for the aggressors to receive supplies

by sea. Kampuchean gunboats have also attacked Vietnamese forces on several islandsnear Koh Kong Island.

In other parts of the country, including Pur-sat and Siem Reap, Vietnamese forces are having difficulty keeping supply lines open andhave had to be supplied by air. Even in theheavily fortified capital of Phnom Penh, Vietnamese forces have been dependent on airliftsof food because they are unable to count onreceiving supplies by land.

In Battambang Province in western Kampuchea, the cities of Thma Kor, Mongkol Borei,and Sisophon are surrounded by Kampucheanforces, and several Vietnamese units in theseareas are on the verge of being wiped out. OnJanuary 24, the Kampuchean forces regainedcontrol of Highway No. 4, killing 200 Vietnamese soldiers and capturing four tanks.

Two central command headquarters havebeen set up inside Kampuchea to coordinatethe resistance, and have been able to establishradio contact with Kampuchean Army units indifferent parts of the country.

Because of the continuing fighting, VictNam has sent thousands of additional troopsinto Kampuchea and the occupying forcegrows larger day by day. Vietnamese planescontinue to fly scores of bombing raids on adaily basis to try to subdue the country.

Puppet governincnl wins little supportThe puppet "National Front" government

installed in Phnom Penh by Hanoi withMoscow's blessing has bad little success ingaining significant international support. Theonly countries which have recognized the newregime are the Soviet Union and 13 countrieswhich are themselves under Soviet dominationand military occupation: the Eastern Europeanbloc (except Romania), Cuba, Viet Nam, Laos,Angola, Afghanistan, Mongolia, SouthYemen and Ethiopia.

At the same time, more and more countrieshave issued statements in defense of the independence and sovereignty of DemocraticKampuchea. The United Nations continues torecognize the Pol Pot government as the solelegitimate government of Kampuchea, and has

rejected the Soviet Union's demand that the"National Front" regime be seated in the UN.

The non-aligned countries have also giventheir support to Democratic Kampuchea. At ameeting of the Coordinating Bureau of theNon-Aligned Countries in Mozambique onJanuary 26, Viet Nam and Cuba tried to blockthe participation of the delegation fromDemocratic Kampuchea. But by an over-wlielming majority, the non-aligned countriesrejected this demand and allowed DemocraticKampuchea's delegation, headed by SamdechPenn Nouth, to attend.

Viet Nam, backed by the U.S.S.R. hadhoped for an easy victory in Kampuchea as partof its drive to take control of all of Indochina.Moscow was also hopeful of a quick victorybecause of its own ambitions to spread its influence in Asia and worldwide.

But Hanoi and Moscow have found themselves diplomatically isolated as a result of theinvasion, and arc now caught up in a protracted people's war with no clear victory in.sight. Vict Nam and the Soviet Union are having to pay dearly for their aggression againstKampuchea.

Vol. 2, No. 3, February 9-22, 1979

flflEKiLRN people I

I n I h e w e e k s t a l l o w i n g l i t e o c c u p a l i o n o l P h n o mPenh, 900 people aemonslraled In eight U.S. cities Insupport of Demoeratle Kampuchea. Above, a HewYork Cltf rallf ol 250 people at the United Nations onJanua ry 1Z

Vietnamese invaders unable tocrush Kampuchean resistance

On January 7, the Vietnamese Army, backedby the Soviet Union, seized Phnom Penh, thecapital or Kampuchea, and installed a puppetgovernment there. The seizure of Phnom Penhwas the culmination of a two week, all-outmilitary assault against Kampuchea by VietNam. It was one of the shortest and most overwhelming military invasions in history,reminiscent of the Nazi blitzkrieg.

Starting on Christmas Day, over 100,000Vietnamese troops invaded Kampuchea at ahalf-dozen points along the border. They camewith heavy artillery, tanks and Soviet-madeMIG 19 and 21 planes which bombed cities inadvance of ground troops.

By January 1, the Vietnamese invaders hadcrossed the Mekong River and besieged anumber of provincial capitals in northeastKampuchea. In the next week they continuedto bomb cities and cut off highways leading tothe capital from the south, east, northeast andnorthwest. The Vietnamese killed hundreds ofKampuchean troops and civilians.

The Kampuchean troops and people put up acourageous resistance against the larger andbetter-equipped Vietnamese Army. TheKampucheans killed or wounded I,(MX)enemyinvaders from December 25 to 28 alone.

Following the seizure of Phnom Penh, heavyfighting continued in many parts of the country, particularly in western Kampuchea. Vietnamese air-strikes continued against the manyareas of resistance. On Janua^ 8, Viet Namalso carried out bombing raids inside Thailandagainst the refugees who were forced to flee thec o u n t r y.

The Kampuchean people have vowed to keepfighting the Vietnamese and their puppets, andhave taken up guerrilla war in the countryside.Premier Pol Pot stated on January 5, "Thefighting will go on for eternity if necessary, until the aggressors have been completely

d e f e a t e d . "

Phony "liberation front" can*( hide aggressionThe Vietnamese authorities and their Soviet

backers try to mask their aggression by promoting a phony "liberation front," the so-called "Kampuchean National United Frontfor National Salvation." Despite the Vietnamese authorities' claims that the situation inKampuchea is an "internal matter," the "national front" is clearly directed from Hanoiand i ts members are a l l Vie tnamese wi th a few

Kampuchean puppets.The Vie tnamese au thor i t i es a re ben t on

bringing down the Kampuchean governmentso as to establish their own regional hegemonyin Southeast Asia. Kampuchea has longresisted Vietnamese attempts to force Kampuchea into a so-called Indochina Federation,headed and controlled by Viet Nam.

The Vietnamese have not acted alone, however. In fact, they would not be as brazen intheir aggression without moral and materiala s s i s t a n c e f r o m t h e S o v i e t U n i o n .

It is the Soviet superpower which stands togain the most out of the situation. The world'sbiggest hegemonist is utilizing the lesser Vietnamese hegemonists to do their dirty work forthem. The Soviets are using Viet Nam as the"Cuba in Asia" as part of its bid for worldd o m i n a t i o n . I t w a n t s t o s e c u r e c o n t r o l o fSoutheast Asia as its central means towardsedging the U.S. out of the Asian continent, laying a strategic line from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean, and linking up with positions it hassecured in Africa. It is also part of the SovietUnion's aim to encircle China. This is all partof the Kremlin's global strategy to outflankEurope and gain world domination.

But Kampuchea, which has always held afirm policy of non-alignment, stands in the wayof the Soviets' plans. The Soviet Union has

always hated Kampuchea because of its opposition to Soviet imperialism. The Soviets refused to support the Kampuchean people's warof liberation against U.S. imperialism. Insteadthe Soviet Union supported the U.S.-backedLon Nol government and attacked the fightagainst the puppet dictator as "fratricide."

Now the Soviet Union is using Viet Nam asits hatchet man in Asia and has gone all out tosubvert Kampuchea's independence and sovereignty. The Soviet Union's aggression againstKampuchea and their support for the Vietnamese author i t ies ' e ffor ts to const ruct an"Indochina Federation" is similar to the German fascists. In 1938, the fascists invaded,overran and annexed Austria as part of theNazi plan for an all-German union.

Kampuchea asks for Inlcrnationat supportOn January 3 the Kampuchean government

sent a message to the United Nations, appealing to "all countries and world organizationsto immediately oppose the acts of aggression ofViet Nam and the Soviet Union against Democratic Kampuchea." Foreign Minister lengSary asked the UN Security Council to takesteps to halt the aggression, a move which theSoviet Union was trying to block.

On January 9, former head of state PrinceNorodom Sihanouk arrived in New York to appeal to the United Nations for internationalsupport. He was greeted at the airport by 100people, who turned out in support of Kampuchea. At a press conference in New York,Sihanouk stated: "We are a victim of aggression, a brutal invasion coming from VietNam." En route to the UN, Sihanouk spoke in

Peking, where he stated that Kampuchea "willnever submit to the criminal aggression by VietN a m . "

The blatant military campaign against Kampuchea is not only an attack on Kampuchea'sindependence, but is also a threat to SoutheastAsia and the world. Thailand expressed concern at Viet Nam's expansionism. Followingthe occupation of Phnom Penh, Thailandestablished a military alert along the Thai-Kampuchean border. Sihanouk commented"the more the Russians and Vietnamese eat,the better their appetite. (Next they will be) attracted by seductions of Thailand, and thenSingapore."

Chinese Deputy Premier Teng Hsiao-pingstated on January 7 that China would continueto extend assistance to the Kampuchean people, and denounced the Vietnamese authorities' hegemonism. Teng stated, "Havingbrought Laos under their control by force ofarms (Viet Nam has 40,000 troops stationed inLaos — ed.) they further attempt with Sovietbacking to annex Kampuchea and establish acolonial empire under their complete domination called the 'Indochina Federation.' "

The wanton Soviet-backed invasion by VietNam will not succeed in crushing DemocraticKampuchea. The Kampuchean people have along history of fighting foreign aggressors andhave already launched their war of resistanceagainst the occupying army. The seizure ofPhnom Penh did not represent the end of thewar in Kampuchea. The war has just begun.

Vol. 2, No. 1, January 12-25, 1979

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