Nong Samet Refugee Camp ( th, ค่ายผู้อพยพหนองเสม็ด, also known as 007, Rithisen or Rithysen), in Nong Samet Village,
Khok Sung District,
Sa Kaeo Province,
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
, was a
refugee
A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution. camp on the
Thai-Cambodian border and served as a power base for the
Khmer People's National Liberation Front (KPNLF) until its destruction by the
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...
ese military in late 1984.
Establishment of the camp
Refugees began entering Thailand in large numbers after Vietnam invaded
Kampuchea
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand ...
in December 1978 and forced the
Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge (; ; km, ខ្មែរក្រហម, ; ) is the name that was popularly given to members of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK) and by extension to the regime through which the CPK ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979. ...
out of power.
[Mason, Linda and Brown, Roger, ''Rice, Rivalry and Politics: Managing Cambodian Relief''. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1983, pp. 12-15.] A refugee settlement was established near the Thai village of Ban Nong Samet sometime in May 1979, and received its first shipment of food aid on 11 October.
The camp was originally referred to as ''Chumrum Thmei'' ('New Camp') to distinguish it from its neighbor and rival
Mak Mun Camp, which was also known as ''Chumrum Chas'' ('Old Camp'). Nong Samet was later renamed "007" "because of its many intrigues" and in August 1980 was christened ''Rithysen'', after a Khmer folk hero "who survived when his brothers and sisters were devoured through the machinations of a
cannibal
Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is well documented, b ...
ogress, and who then tricked the ogress' daughter."
Domination by Cambodian warlords
Nong Samet Refugee Camp was originally just inside the Thai border, about one kilometer northeast of Mak Mun and two kilometers northeast of
Nong Chan Refugee Camp
Nong Chan Refugee Camp, in Nong Chan Village, Khok Sung District, Sa Kaeo Province, Thailand, was one of the earliest organized refugee camps on the Thai-Cambodian border, where thousands of Khmer refugees sought food and health care after fleei ...
. Almost immediately all three camps were dominated by autonomous
warlord
A warlord is a person who exercises military, economic, and political control over a region in a country without a strong national government; largely because of coercive control over the armed forces. Warlords have existed throughout much of h ...
s who, with several hundred undisciplined and badly-equipped
guerrillas
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, raids, petty warfare, hit-and-run tact ...
, controlled commercial activities and managed
food distribution
Food distribution is the process where a general population is supplied with food. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) considers food distribution as a subset of the food system. The process and methodology behind food distribution varies ...
to the
civilian
Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not "combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant, ...
population.
The camp's first leader was Long Rithia, a former infantry captain in the
Khmer National Armed Forces
The Khmer National Armed Forces ( km, កងកម្លាំងប្រដាប់អាវុធជាតិខ្មែរ; french: Forces armées nationales khmères, FANK) were the official armed defense forces of the Khmer Republic, a s ...
(FANK) 7th Division who rallied several hundred soldiers from that unit and on 5 October established the Angkor National Liberation Movement (also referred to as ''Khmer Angkor'').
In December 1979, In-Sakhan, another former officer from FANK who had been living on the border since 1975, declared himself leader of Nong Samet. He quickly realized that the size of the camp's civilian population would determine his power base, and encouraged a thriving border
marketplace
A marketplace or market place is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a '' souk'' (from the Arabic), ' ...
from which
smugglers
Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations.
There are variou ...
brought high-demand commodities into deprived Kampuchea. Within a short time Nong Samet's market attracted thousands of traders and
black market
A black market, underground economy, or shadow economy is a clandestine market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality or is characterized by noncompliance with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the ...
eers, and the guides and guards needed to transport goods and cash in this nearly lawless region.
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a Brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, s ...
and
precious stones often substituted for currency on the border, and In-Sakhan's soldiers frequently served as security escorts.
In-Sakhan initially reported to
International Committee of the Red Cross
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; french: Comité international de la Croix-Rouge) is a humanitarian organization which is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and it is also a three-time Nobel Prize Laureate. State parties (signator ...
(ICRC) that the camp's population was at least 200,000 and
aid agencies
An aid agency, also known as development charity, is an organization dedicated to distributing aid. Many professional aid organisations exist, both within government, between governments as multilateral donors and as private voluntary organizatio ...
provided food and water for 180,000 people until December 1979 when
aid workers heard that much of the food was being hoarded by the warlord.
[UNICEF Monitoring Report, 6 March 1980.] At this time the situation on the border was still too chaotic to do a proper
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...
or to challenge In-Sakhan.
Rivalry with neighboring camps
Rivalry with neighboring camps Nong Chan and Mak Mun led to frequent armed violence. In-Sakhan also had to defend the camp against the Khmer Rouge, who launched an attack on 4 January 1980 from nearby Phnom Chat. The camp was evacuated but the refugees quickly returned.
In late January 1980, ICRC and
UNICEF
UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to ...
attempted to bypass In-Sakhan and distribute food directly to Nong Samet's population (which they now estimated at 60,000), however without the warlord's cooperation this proved nearly impossible.
In addition, it appeared that many Nong Samet residents were forced to go to Nong Chan to receive food because their rations were being
confiscate
Confiscation (from the Latin ''confiscatio'' "to consign to the ''fiscus'', i.e. transfer to the treasury") is a legal form of seizure by a government or other public authority. The word is also used, popularly, of spoliation under legal forms, ...
d by In-Sakhan's troops.
Accordingly, in late February 1980 aid agencies stopped distributing food in Nong Samet altogether. Two weeks later, UNICEF conducted a
nutrition
Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficient ...
survey and found widespread levels of
malnutrition
Malnutrition occurs when an organism gets too few or too many nutrients, resulting in health problems. Specifically, it is "a deficiency, excess, or imbalance of energy, protein and other nutrients" which adversely affects the body's tissues ...
,
stunting and hunger in the camp population.
ICRC decided to try direct distribution to locked warehouses inside the camp, and to allow section leaders to distribute rice to the population. A crude "hut census" of the camp was attempted, but an attack on Mak Mun Camp in late March forced several thousand refugees to flee to Nong Samet, invalidating the census.
Two days later, forces commanded by the Mak Mun warlord, Van Saren, attacked Nong Samet in retaliation. In a counterattack on 22 March, Van Saren was killed, possibly by the
Thai military, and Mak Mun was closed on 11 April by the
Thai government in an attempt to consolidate the population, most of which had already relocated to Nong Chan and Nong Samet.
In late May 1980 Nong Samet was moved to a site adjacent to the Prasaht
Sdok Kok Thom, in an area with poor drainage and
landmines
A land mine is an explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically detonated automatic ...
left over from a previous conflict.
Incorporation into the KPNLF
On July 12, 1980, troops commanded by Ung Chan Don, In-Sakhan's former ally, attacked Nong Samet and drove In-Sakhan to
Aranyaprathet
Aranyaprathet (Thai: อรัญประเทศ) is a town (''thesaban mueang'') in Sa Kaeo province in eastern Thailand . It covers the entire ''tambon'' of Aranyaprathet, in Aranyaprathet district. As of 2005, the town has 16,937 inhabitan ...
, where "on a calm Sunday evening, In-Sakhan surrendered to the Thai Third Infantry Battalion." He later joined Prince
Norodom Sihanouk
Norodom Sihanouk (; km, នរោត្តម សីហនុ, ; 31 October 192215 October 2012) was a Cambodian statesman, Sangkum and FUNCINPEC politician, film director, and composer who led Cambodia in various capacities throughout his ...
's
Armée Nationale Sihanoukiste (ANS) forces. In-Sakhan was replaced by Om Luot (also known as Ta Luot or Siem Sam On) with Thou Thon acting as civilian administrator. Om Luot had declared his loyalty to the KPNLF in February 1979, but tensions with General
Dien Del and General
Sak Sutsakhan
General Sak Sutsakhan ( km, សក់ ស៊ុតសាខន; 8 February 1928Some sources give 2 August. – 29 April 1994) was a Cambodian politician and soldier who had a long career in the country's politics. He was the last Head of State of ...
eventually led to Om Luot's murder on October 11, 1982. After this, Thou Thon became chief administrator of the camp. Nong Samet Camp soon became a primary recruiting location for
Khmer People's National Liberation Armed Forces troops.
Thou Thon's leadership
Thou Thon was a model of strong yet considerate civilian leadership at a time when warlords controlled most of the border refugee population. According to Linda Mason and Roger Brown, who knew him in 1980:
The Khmer refugees in Nong Samet Camp owed much to him. He had organized the camp—building roads, digging ditches, cleaning up. He had eliminated much of the thievery that had kept the refugees nervous and frightened. He had helped organize an efficient distribution system so that everyone received rice… He was a hard worker… When he had organized the building of the feeding center, he did not just tell people what to do, he climbed up on the roof and started nailing down the lattice work on which the thatch would be placed. When ditches were dug, he was there with a hoe.
Thou Thon's brother Colonel Thou Thip had co-founded the KPNLF in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
in 1978, together with
Son Sann and
Dien Del among others. Thou Thon also had a brother and a sister in
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country ...
but he refused to accept their sponsorship offers. Unlike Thou Thip, Thou Thon maintained at best only a lukewarm relationship with Son Sann.
In 1983, at a time when Nong Samet was being terrorized nightly by violent acts of banditry, local policing was so ineffective that the bandits could brag about their exploits in the marketplace. Finally, after a particularly blatant act of violence, three bandits who had identified themselves in the market the day before were found with their throats cut at the edge of the camp. Banditry decreased significantly in camp after this. Thou Thon thus demonstrated his willingness to use
summary execution
A summary execution is an execution in which a person is accused of a crime and immediately killed without the benefit of a full and fair trial. Executions as the result of summary justice (such as a drumhead court-martial) are sometimes inclu ...
as a means of maintaining order. This sent a message to the camp population as much as it did to would-be bandits, that security was a priority and that it would be enforced.
Thou Thon continued to administer Nong Samet after the camp was incorporated into
Site Two in 1985.
Camp relocation in 1983
The entire camp was moved again in January 1983 to somewhat higher ground just east of the village of Ban Nong Samet, on land considered to be on the Cambodian side of the border. This move was precipitated by accusations that Thailand was harboring anti-communist guerrillas on its territory, thereby aggravating the already complex political situation.
Camp population
Nong Samet's official population estimate in 1979 was over 100,000, a figure that
William Shawcross
William Hartley Hume Shawcross (born 28 May 1946, in Sussex, England) is a British writer and commentator, and a former Chairman of the Charity Commission for England and Wales.
Education
Shawcross was educated at St Aubyns Preparatory School ...
gives credence to, but Mason and Brown calculate that it probably fluctuated between 48,000
and 60,000.
The
American Refugee Committee's 1983 Annual Report numbered the population at "between 45,000 and 70,000," based on
food distribution
Food distribution is the process where a general population is supplied with food. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) considers food distribution as a subset of the food system. The process and methodology behind food distribution varies ...
statistics
Statistics (from German: ''Statistik'', "description of a state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a scientific, indust ...
,
immunization
Immunization, or immunisation, is the process by which an individual's immune system becomes fortified against an infectious agent (known as the immunogen).
When this system is exposed to molecules that are foreign to the body, called ''non-s ...
records, and birth and death tallies, however this did not include KPNLF troops, who were exempt from aid, and may have constituted an additional 8,000 men.
Vietnamese refugees at NW82
As of December 18, 1981, Nong Samet became home to about 700 Vietnamese refugees who were transferred from a special camp for "land refugees" who had crossed Cambodia from Vietnam and entered Thailand. They had been transferred from the nearby camp of NW9 and were housed in a separate section known a
NW82or 'the platform' because of a wooden platform built to keep the population off the swampy ground. By September 1982 there were more than 1,800 refugees in the crowded and unsanitary camp. Initially Thailand prevented foreign embassies from interviewing these refugees, however after repeated requests by the ICRC, this policy was reversed. The
Intergovernmental Committee for Migration conducted preliminary screening of the 1,804 NW82 Vietnamese and coordinated efforts of the 15 countries willing to offer resettlement to the refugees. By January 28, 1983, when the first round of processing was completed, 1,713 of the refugees had received resettlement offers. The
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
accepted just over 60 percent.
On February 9, 1983, NW82 was closed, and the remaining 122 occupants without resettlement offers were transferred temporarily to the
Khao-I-Dang Holding Center.
Camp services
Food distribution problems had been resolved by the aid agencies in 1980 and Nong Samet became a model camp for its organization and the quality of its
health care services, which included a
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in w ...
treatment program, established in spite of claims that the situation was still too unstable to permit long-term treatment. A 100-bed hospital with
pediatrics
Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until th ...
,
maternity
]
A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of gestati ...
and surgical facilities and two outpatient clinics were operated by the
American Refugee Committee, which trained 150 Khmer
medic
A medic is a person involved in medicine such as a medical doctor, medical student, paramedic or an emergency medical responder.
Among physicians in the UK, the term "medic" indicates someone who has followed a "medical" career path in postgr ...
s,
midwives
A midwife is a health professional who cares for mothers and newborns around childbirth, a specialization known as midwifery.
The education and training for a midwife concentrates extensively on the care of women throughout their lifespan; con ...
,
pharmacist
A pharmacist, also known as a chemist ( Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instruc ...
s and
nurse
Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health ...
s. ARC also operated a
traditional medicine
Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...
clinic.
Food and some water were provided by the
World Food Program
The World Food Programme; it, Programma alimentare mondiale; es, Programa Mundial de Alimentos; ar, برنامج الأغذية العالمي, translit=barnamaj al'aghdhiat alealami; russian: Всемирная продовольствен� ...
under the supervision of the
United Nations Border Relief Operation (UNBRO). Deep wells also provided potable water for much of the camp.
Other services fluctuated over the years, but in September 1983 supplementary feeding was being handled by
Catholic Relief Services
Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is the international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. Founded in 1943 by the Bishops of the United States, the agency provides assistance to 130 million people in more than 110 ...
(CRS),
sanitation
Sanitation refers to public health conditions related to clean drinking water and treatment and disposal of human excreta and sewage. Preventing human contact with feces is part of sanitation, as is hand washing with soap. Sanitation system ...
and maternal-child health by
World Concern,
physical rehabilitation by
Handicap International
Humanity & Inclusion (formerly Handicap InternationalOn January 24th 2018, the global Handicap International network changed its name and became Humanity & Inclusion. This was done "to communicate more effectively on the diversity of its activiti ...
, and security by UNBRO. CRS also operated a mobile dental team and the
Japan International Volunteer Center (JVC) provided a weekly
X-ray
An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10 picometers to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30  ...
service.
Aid worker recollections
Several aid workers have described their experiences at Nong Samet Camp, including Dr. Louis Braile:
There was really a palpable difference between Nong Samet and KID ( Khao-I-Dang Holding Center). Perhaps it arose from the wilderness atmosphere. Perhaps it was the presence of the ancient ruins, or perhaps it was the fact that these people, unlike the KID residents, had little hope of expatriating.
Dr.
Steven H. Miles, medical director for the American Refugee Committee, wrote:
Relief at the end of the Khmer Rouge has been replaced by fear of the present. There is a hard hopelessness here, much more so than in the past. Escape is not possible. Violence and corruption are pervasive. War is certain. Fear, a sense of extreme vulnerability, is the omnipresent emotion. My experience of Nong Samet in 1983 was overwhelmingly, searingly sad.
Robert C. Porter Jr. of the
US Embassy in Bangkok wrote:
The Khmer camp at Nong Samet...always held the most exotic fascination and excitement for me.... A tall forest provided welcome shade. The stone ruins of an old Angkor
Angkor ( km, អង្គរ , 'Capital city'), also known as Yasodharapura ( km, យសោធរបុរៈ; sa, यशोधरपुर),Headly, Robert K.; Chhor, Kylin; Lim, Lam Kheng; Kheang, Lim Hak; Chun, Chen. 1977. ''Cambodian-Engl ...
-style Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
temple gave it a particularly Khmer air. While its early military leadership was among the more corrupt, disruptive and despicable, the camp was unusually well organized and tightly run.... It had an interesting population and a lively market. For a time in 1979 and 1980 it was the most populous Cambodian city on earth, far surpassing the then reawakening but still tiny Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh (; km, ភ្នំពេញ, ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Cambodia, most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since the French protectorate of Cambodia and has grown to become ...
.
The Vietnamese dry-season offensive of 1984
In April 1984 the Vietnamese began preparing the
K-5 border barrier and launched an
attack on Ampil Camp to the northeast of Nong Samet, however the KPNLAF held firm, bringing in reinforcements and inflicting heavy casualties. The Vietnamese even left 200 of their own men to bleed to death on the slopes around the camp.
[Conboy KJ, Bowra K. ''The NVA and Viet Cong''. London: Osprey, 1991](_blank)
/ref> Ampil Camp was destroyed in the fighting, forcing the KPNLF to relocate its headquarters. The Vietnamese assaulted Nong Chan Camp on November 21 and had occupied most of the deserted, burned-out camp by November 23. Sporadic fighting continued until the 30th when the KPNLAF withdrew most of its troops to Prey Chan (Site 6).
Nong Samet Camp was attacked and destroyed by the Vietnamese on Christmas Day
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...
, 1984. The attack began with shelling at 5:25 a.m., according to Soth Sour, the guard at the TB Clinic near section 2.[Maat R.B. "The Major Disruption at Samet, Christmas, 1984." Occasional Paper No. 1. Washington, D.C.: Jesuit Refugee Service, 1985.](_blank)
KPNLAF troops held portions of the camp for about a week after this, but in the end it was abandoned. News reports initially claimed that around 100 civilians had been killed, but this was later changed to 55 resistance fighters and 63 civilians.
Kenneth Conboy surmises that the Vietnamese were anxious to make up for their embarrassing defeat at Ampil in early 1984, and that this led them to commit the entire 9th Division plus part of another: over 4,000 men, 18 artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sie ...
pieces and 27 T-54 tanks and armored personnel carrier
An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world.
Ac ...
s participated in this assault.
Numerous KPNLF soldiers and officers, including General Dien Del, reported that during fighting at Nong Samet on December 27 the Vietnamese used a green-colored "nonlethal but powerful battlefield gas" which stunned its victims and caused nausea and frothing at the mouth.
Camp relocation to Site Two
On the day of the attack, Nong Samet's population of 60,000 fled to the Red Hill evacuation site and was transported by bus on 20–22 January 1985 to Site 7 (Bang Poo or Bang Phu, 'Crab village'), a new camp created next to Khao-I-Dang Holding Center. On 29 September the population was transported to Site Two Refugee Camp in Ta Phraya.
At Site Two, Nong Samet's population maintained a separate section and its own identity, with many services and much of its administration unchanged.French, Lindsey Cole. ''Enduring Holocaust, Surviving History: Displaced Cambodians on the Thai-Cambodian Border, 1989-1991'' Harvard University, 1994
/ref>
See also
* Cambodian humanitarian crisis
* Indochina refugee crisis
The Indochina refugee crisis was the large outflow of people from the former French colonies of Indochina, comprising the countries of Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, after communist governments were established in 1975. Over the next 25 years ...
* Nong Chan Refugee Camp
Nong Chan Refugee Camp, in Nong Chan Village, Khok Sung District, Sa Kaeo Province, Thailand, was one of the earliest organized refugee camps on the Thai-Cambodian border, where thousands of Khmer refugees sought food and health care after fleei ...
* Sa Kaeo Refugee Camp
References
Further reading
Levy, B. S. and D. C. Susott (1987). ''Years of horror, days of hope: responding to the Cambodian refugee crisis''. Millwood, N.Y., Associated Faculty Press.
Braile, L. E. (2005). ''We Shared the Peeled Orange: The Letters of "Papa Louis" from the Thai-Cambodian Border Refugee Camps, 1981-1993''. Saint Paul, Syren Book Co.
Allegra, D. T., Nieburg, P. and Grabe, M. (eds.) ''Emergency Refugee Health Care: A Chronicle of the Khmer Refugee Assistance Operation, 1979-1980''. Atlanta, Ga.: Centers for Disease Control, 1984.
Robinson C. ''Terms of Refuge: the Indochinese Exodus & the International Response''. London ; New York, New York: Zed Books; Distributed in the USA by St. Martin's Press, 1998.
Riverbooks 2010.
* [http://www.readings.com.au/products/19213976/the-talisman-child-part-i-of-the-golden-child-trilogy Macauley, C. ''The Talisman Child,'' (2014) a novel which gives a first-person account of life at Rithysen Refugee Camp, and its destruction by Vietnamese tanks.]
External links
Thai-Cambodian Border Camps
Columbia University's Forced Migration Website
Vietnamese Refugees at Nong Samet Camp
Coordinates
(As of May 1980)
{{coord, 13, 49, 55.00, N, 102, 44, 00.86, E (As of January 1983)
Former refugee camps in Thailand
Cambodia–Vietnam relations
Cambodia–Thailand border
1979 establishments in Thailand
1984 disestablishments in Thailand
Refugee camps in Asia