Guerrilla Democracy

CAN A DEMOCRACY BE BORN WHILE BULLETS ARE flying? Cambodia may find out May 23-25, the date set for U.N.-sponsored elections for a national assembly. The Vietnam-installed government and three guerrilla groups, including the Khmer Rouge, agreed to the timetable, but there was no guarantee that the warring factions would put aside their ethnic hatred long enough to vote. Both the government and the Khmer Rouge have been accused of killing off enemies in a series of massacres. According to U.N. peacekeepers, a Khmer Rouge soldier confessed that he and other guerrillas slaughtered a group of 15 Vietnamese living in Cambodia.

The Khmer Rouge's acceptance of the May election date seems meaningless, since the group still insists that it will not participate in the voting. Many observers believe the U.N., which is spending more than $2 billion to bring peace to Cambodia, will hold the elections regardless of the situation -- so that it can declare victory and leave.