The commodification of death: Working of the genocide museum and the killing fields in the reconciliation process in Cambodia

Cambodia's reconciliation process following the genocide of 1975–1979, during which at least two million people perished, reveals a troubling trend: the commodification of death. Despite efforts to commemorate the tragedy through memorials like the Genocide Museum and Killing Fields, these sites have increasingly prioritized tourism over remembrance, turning collective memory into an economic commodity. The study highlights systemic issues such as limited prosecutions, reluctance in truth-seeking, and victims' ignorance about reparations, while also noting the government's role in facilitating this shift—licensing foreign corporations to manage tourism and preparing additional genocide sites for commercialization. This transformation undermines justice by subordinating the meaning of deaths to economic interests.

(Ed.). (2017). The commodification of death: Working of the genocide museum and the killing fields in the reconciliation process in Cambodia. Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences, 38(2). https://doi.org/10.34044/j.kjss.2017.38.2.01