Cambodia is a constitutional monarchy in Southeast Asia with a
population of over 13 million people, most of whom are Theravada
Buddhists of Khmer origin. The country is bordered to the west by
Thailand, to the north by Laos, to the east by Vietnam and to the
south by the Gulf of Thailand. Its geography is dominated by the
Mekong river and the Tonle Sap, a lake whose fish account for 60% of
the nation's protein intake. The capital is Phnom Penh. There are
three main political parties, of which the Cambodian People's Party is
the current ruling party. From the 9th century to the 15th century
Cambodia was the centre of the Khmer Empire, which for most of this
period was based at Angkor. Angkor Wat, the empire's main temple,
remains a symbol of the country and its greatest tourist attraction.
Cambodia was a protectorate of France from 1863 until independence in
1953. During the 1970s and 1980s the country suffered from civil war
and the Khmer Rouge autogenocide. Many people were killed or tortured,
or fled abroad as refugees. In the 1990s, however, Cambodia has gained
some stability and has begun rebuilding the infrastructure that was
lost during those years.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodia
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1413:
Henry V became King of England.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_V_of_England)
1602:
The Dutch East India Company was established.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_East_India_Company)
1933:
The construction of the first Nazi German concentration camp at Dachau
was completed.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dachau_concentration_camp)
1987:
The antiretroviral drug AZT became the first antiviral medication
approved for use against HIV and AIDS.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AZT)
1995:
The Aum Shinrikyo sect carried out a poison gas attack on the Tokyo
subway system, killing 12 people and injuring more than 6,000 with
sarin.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarin_gas_attack_on_the_Tokyo_subway)
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Wikiquote of the day:
"Everything comes gradually and at its appointed hour." -- Ovid
(
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ovid)