Lately, I’ve found it hard to sleep. Not because of explosions outside my window, but because of something heavier: the sound of people cheering for war. Not from Cambodia, but from across our border. From Thailand. From the voices on their television, their social media, their public pages — laughing, mocking, celebrating destruction as if it were entertainment.
As a Cambodian, I am devastated. I see what’s unfolding, and my heart breaks — not just for my country, but for what’s happening between two peoples who share so much history, and yet today seem so far apart in spirit.
When Thai forces invaded our land — when their jets, including American F-16s and Swedish-made Gripens, struck near our homes, our temples and our heritage — we responded with heartbreak. We didn’t flood social media with revenge. We didn’t cheer for flames. We didn’t mock anyone’s suffering.
Instead, we begged for peace.
From Phnom Penh to Paris, from South Korea and Japan to the US, Cambodians everywhere — every age, every background raised one voice: stop this war. We called for calm. We called for truth. We asked the world to see what was really happening. We turned to our government’s official channels for verified updates, not rumours. We stood behind our nation not with weapons in hand, but with hope in our hearts that peace is still possible.
What we saw from many Thai citizens broke that hope.
We saw netizens laughing at our soldiers. Proudly posting photos of jets, tanks, drones. We saw them mocking Cambodian people — calling us poor, calling us beggars, calling us slaves. Their pride swelled not in diplomacy or compassion, but in intimidation and threats.
And we asked ourselves: What did we do to deserve this?
Is peace something to be mocked now? Is suffering something to be celebrated? Are human lives — Cambodian lives — worth so little?
This is not about politics. This is not about borders or governments. This is about humanity — or the loss of it.
Thai people are not our enemy. War is. Hatred is. Arrogance is.
And still, I want to believe — I need to believe that there are Thai people who feel the same pain we do. Who don’t want to see another child’s body carried through dust. Who don’t want to see ancient stones burned black with ash. I want to believe that behind the noise, there are still hearts that care.
Because in Cambodia, that’s all we want: to be heard, to be seen, and to be allowed to live in peace.
We don’t take pride in our weapons. We take pride in our patience. In our unity. In our dignity. We are a people who have rebuilt after genocide. Who have stood up again and again and still, we choose peace.
But we cannot keep choosing peace alone.
When one side calls for war and the other calls for peace, the world must pay attention. The world must not stay neutral in the face of injustice, of violence disguised as pride.
Cambodians are suffering. Families are displaced. Our land is scarred. But we are not weak. Our strength does not come from firepower, it comes from our hearts.
So to anyone reading this, anywhere in the world: please listen. Please look. Please speak.
Not just for Cambodia — but for what is right.
Because if we let those who laugh at war win, then peace was never real to begin with.
And I still believe peace is worth standing for with truth, not with bombs.
Neang Sopheap is a Phnom Penh-based independent journalist. The views and opinions expressed are his own.
