ABSTRACT
One of the spin-offs of the refugee operations, however, has been a revelation that much of the rural Thai population normally lives in conditions approximating those the Cambodian refugees wished to escape. A more controversial assertion that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Cambodian refugee program was politically used was made by journalist John Pilger, who claimed that the refugee system was manipulated for the destabilization of Cambodia and Vietnam. UNHCR also realized that part of the reluctance of refugees to consider repatriation was a nearly total lack of information about changing conditions within the country. The refugees were no longer allowed to move around freely, and their condition was more like that of prisoners. Up to January 1979 the total number of Khmer who had fled to Thailand was about 35,000. With the destruction of Democratic Kampuchea in early 1979 and the ensuing freedom of movement, many people began moving toward the border.
