Border Conflict Victims Spotlighted in Francophonie Exhibition

Résumé détaillé

PHNOM PENH – French freelance journalist Jean-Luc Moreau Deleris, who has extensively documented the Cambodia–Thailand border conflict through ...

PHNOM PENH – French freelance journalist Jean-Luc Moreau Deleris, who has extensively documented the Cambodia–Thailand border conflict through writing and photography, is set to unveil a photo exhibition in Phnom Penh at the Francophonie Summit.

His goal is to bring the voices of Cambodian victims of what he calls Thai aggression directly to leaders of the French-speaking world.

In a written interview with Ky Soklim of Angkorinfo.com (our French-language edition), Moreau Deleris reflects on his coverage of the conflict and his mission in bringing this exhibition to the summit.

Ky Soklim: Last year, you published articles in the French press and staged a photography exhibition in France featuring victims of the conflict. What reactions did they spark?

Jean-Luc Moreau Deleris: In France, where I published a lengthy feature in Le Figaro Magazine — which reaches 22 million readers across its platforms — and exhibited my photographs at the international photojournalism festival Visa pour l’Image, the public’s immediate reaction was: "Oh! We didn't know."

That shows just how underreported the conflict has been by the media, which has often merely echoed Thai propaganda talking points — including the derogatory label "Scambodia." I believe I modestly helped restore balance by showing the reality on the ground in Cambodia.

Naturally, I received an avalanche of insults from Thailand, but also an outpouring of support from Cambodia and from Cambodian diaspora communities across Europe, the United States and Canada.

Ky Soklim: You are in Cambodia today for the Francophonie Summit to present a similar exhibition. Why did you choose this venue and occasion?

Jean-Luc Moreau Deleris: I want to continue bearing witness to the reality of this aggression by reaching the widest possible international audience, and I thank the Ministry of Information for giving me the opportunity to do so. In every war, there is an aggressor and a victim.

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