Democratic Kampuchea History Textbook Distribution The Textbook Distribution allows the Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) to build on its momentum in the genocide prevention education project in Cambodia—a project which uses the history of Democratic Kampuchea (DK) to discuss not only ideas on right from wrong, humanity from inhumanity, but also the importance of human rights, democracy, and critical inquiry. We believe that the sustainable progress and success of teaching Democratic Kampuchea (DK) history in school stems not only from the official integration of the textbook within the school curriculum, but also from the contribution of the communities and the villagers who are survivors and who serve as living documents on DK history. A platform where survivors and Cambodia’s younger generations can discuss and exchange knowledge on DK history is tremendously important for the success of the teaching of this history in the classrooms.

The textbook was first published in 2007 and has been endorsed by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport as the core material for teaching KR history at the secondary-school level nationwide. In addition, DC-Cam has published and distributed over 400,000 Khmer-language copies and seeks to publish an additional 600,000 copies so that all 1,000,000 secondary students will have access to the text.

In June 2009, DC-Cam, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, began distributing the textbook to over 1,700 lower and upper secondary schools across Cambodia. Many distributions were large ceremonies presided over by representatives of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport and the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia. Copies of the textbook have also been distributed to interested individuals, government institutions, and non-governmental organizations, foreign embassies in Phnom Penh and university libraries. Because the number of copies available for distribution is limited until funding can be secured for a new printing, DC-Cam seeks to target the remote communities where the material can have the most impact.