Landmines in Cambodia: Past, Present, and Future By Wade C. Rober ...

(demonic) nature of the Khmer Rouge leaders. A summary of the population lost during the Khmer Rouge Genocide is provided in Table 1.1.

Figure 1.2 reflects population figures between 1863 and 2008. Population growth rates were very low between 1863 and 1942. Midway through the 20th century, population growth rates increased, averaging 3.9% between 1959 and 1962.³⁰ Projecting this growth rate forward gives an estimation of 9.4 million people when the capital fell to the Khmer Rouge in 1975. No census took place in Cambodia between 1962 and 1998. The Vietnamese, however, estimated the population of Cambodia in 1980 at 7.2 million. When a formal population census took place in 1998, it was revealed that Cambodia had 11.4 million people. In order for a population of 7.2 million in 1980 to reach 11.4 million by 1998, an average annual population growth rate of 2.53% was necessary.

Making note of the growth rates of the early 1960s, this figure is not unrealistic. The recent completion of the 2008 General Census of Cambodia discovered a total of 13.4 million, revealing a 1.7% growth rate between 1998 and 2008. The difference between the 1975 population of 9.4 million and the 1980 population of 7.2 million equals

TABLE 1.1. Estimations of Population Lost During the Khmer Rouge Genocide (1975–1979).

Notes. Deaths from landmines during this period only represent 1/380 deaths. In accordance with the range of estimations, landmine incidents during this time range between 2,105 and 8,157. My estimation suggests 5,789 landmine-specific incidents during this time.