In this article, the author Pierre-Yves Clais delivers a poignant and unflinching testimony of a recent trip to the Cambodian border. Between the duty of remembrance, compassion for war victims, and denunciation of Thai arrogance, he crafts a "geopolitical" narrative doubled with an intimate reflection on the resilience of a people being humiliated and dispossessed.

In the shadow of the temporary shelters lining Cambodia's northwest border, hundreds of displaced families wait—sometimes for months—to return to their homes. According to them, their lands and homes, occupied by Thai forces following sporadic but recurring clashes, have become the epicenter of a humanitarian crisis compounded by a persistent diplomatic dispute.