Bad Lieutenants: The Khmer Rouge, United Front, and Class Struggle, 1970-1997

by Andrew Mertha

Overview

Bad Lieutenants is a riveting account of how the Khmer Rouge remained a force to be reckoned with even after the fall of Democratic Kampuchea—and of the men behind the movement's strange durability.

In 1979, the Vietnamese army seized Phnom Penh, toppling Pol Pot's notoriously brutal regime. Yet the Khmer Rouge did not disintegrate. Instead, the movement continued to rule over swathes of Cambodia for almost another two decades even as it failed to become a legitimate governing organization.

Andrew Mertha argues that the Khmer Rouge's successes and failures were both driven by a refusal to dilute its revolutionary vision. Rather than take the moderate tack required for viable governance, it pivoted between only two political strategies: united front and class struggle. Through the stories of three key leaders—Ieng Sary, Son Sen, and Ta Mok—Mertha tracks the movement's shifting from one strategy to the other until its dissolution in the 1990s.

Vividly written and deeply researched, Bad Lieutenants reveals the powerful grip political ideology can have over the survival of insurgent movements.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781501780998
Publisher:	Cornell University Press
Publication date:	05/15/2025
Pages:	276
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Andrew Mertha is the George and Sadie Hyman Professor of China Studies and Director of the School of Advanced International Studies China Research Center at Johns Hopkins University.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Political Cycles: United Front and Class Struggle
1. The First United Front: Colonizing the Movement from Within, 1970–1972
2. Before and After Year Zero: A World of Class Struggle, 1973–1978
3. Dusting Off United Front Doctrine, 1979–1984
4. Command and Control in the Shadows and on the Periphery, 1985–1989
5. An Unattainable Political Space, 1990–1993
6. Back to Basics: Scorched-Earth Class Struggle, 1994–1997
Conclusion: "Pure Socialism"

What People are Saying About This

Erik W. Davis

Bad Lieutenants offers a clear and convincing examination of Cambodia's notorious Khmer Rouge, identifying Pol Pot's core 'lieutenants' and their roles in the revolution. Mertha's spotlight reveals the lieutenants' changing pressures, motivations, vulnerabilities, and alliances, adding a much-needed dimension to the existing history.

John D. Ciorciari

A book as readable as it is insightful and illuminating. In charting the twists and turns of the Khmer Rouge movement, Mertha explains something rare in politics: how a revolutionary movement could shift from a united front strategy to unbridled violent struggle, and then repeat the same cycle after losing power. Outstanding.

Sos Kem

Shocking, riveting, inspiring. The culmination of over a decade of patient, determined research, Bad Lieutenants is a vivid account of the Khmer Rouge that delves into the intricacies of the organization to reveal new facets of its leadership.

Eric Tagliacozzo

A riveting account not only of the rise and height of the Khmer Rouge, but importantly, of what happened next—where, when, and how. This book is totally fascinating.

Elizabeth Becker

Offering the first finely detailed examination of the inner workings of the Khmer Rouge post-1979, Bad Lieutenants is an essential addition to our understanding of this genocidal regime.

Craig Etcheson

Highly revealing and original. Where most studies of the Khmer Rouge have focused on Pol Pot and Nuon Chea, Mertha goes a step deeper, examining three top leaders through the lens of their varying understandings and implementations of communist doctrine. A significant contribution.