First They Killed My Father

by

Loung Ung

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on First They Killed My Father makes teaching easy.
A Cambodian general who led the overthrow of the monarchy in 1970 and ruled until the Khmer Rouge takeover in 1975. Pa is conscripted into working as a military police captain for the Lon Nol government, which was viewed by many as deeply autocratic and corrupt.
Get the entire First They Killed My Father LitChart as a printable PDF.
First They Killed My Father PDF

Lon Nol Term Timeline in First They Killed My Father

The timeline below shows where the term Lon Nol appears in First They Killed My Father. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2: The Ung Family, April 1975
Genocide, Racism, and Propaganda Theme Icon
...when the Cambodian government fell in 1970 he was conscripted by the new government of Lon Nol . He had to comply or would have been branded a traitor. Loung asks if... (full context)
Chapter 5: Seven-Day Walk, April 1975
Genocide, Racism, and Propaganda Theme Icon
...the new government. Cambodia was a monarchy until a military coup in 1970 by the Lon Nol democratic government, which had been at war with the Khmer Rouge ever since. (full context)
The Price of Survival  Theme Icon
Genocide, Racism, and Propaganda Theme Icon
...he should speak. Loung watches the soldiers empty a man’s bag, and, upon discovering a Lon Nol army uniform, push him away with the butt of a rifle. After many hours the... (full context)
Chapter 6: Krang Truop, April 1975
Genocide, Racism, and Propaganda Theme Icon
...villages and increasing peasant support for the Communist Khmer Rouge. Backed by the U.S., general Lon Nol overthrew Prince Sihanouk in 1970, but the Khmer Rouge easily defeated the new, weak government. (full context)
Chapter 10: Ro Labor Camps, January 1976
The Price of Survival  Theme Icon
Genocide, Racism, and Propaganda Theme Icon
The Unbreakable Bonds of Family Theme Icon
...explains to Loung that if the Khmer Rouge ever discover that Pa worked for the Lon Nol government, they will not be able to punish the whole family. (full context)
Chapter 13: Pa, December 1976
The Price of Survival  Theme Icon
Genocide, Racism, and Propaganda Theme Icon
The Unbreakable Bonds of Family Theme Icon
...family is still starving and lives in fear of being outed as supporters of the Lon Nol government. One night Pa whispers to Ma that “they know,” and that they must send... (full context)