ABSTRACT
In order to understand the dynamics of interaction between civil society actors and the Cambodian state, it is essential to provide some context into Cambodian history and politics. Examining the relationships that have developed between government and NGO representatives enables the analysis in subsequent chapters, which look at specific areas of state intervention. The present chapter also demonstrates the complexities of societies that are subject to peacebuilding and argues that these show the limitations of the application of policies derived from the universalization of Northern norms of political organization. Peacebuilding is intended to transform the patterns of politics within a state through the re/imposition of the characteristics of ‘normal’ politics, including democratic governance, liberal markets and the creation of civil society. Peacebuilding practices, however, are not applied on a tabula rasa; rather, the peoples that occupy the country have histories of their own, with particular social dynamics. To understand the ways in which Cambodia has experienced peacebuilding it is not only necessary to look at the peacebuilding policies implemented by the United Nations, and subsequently by the donor community, but we also need an understanding of the history of democracy and civil society within the country.
