Vance, Stuart

Collection relating to the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) service of Stuart Vance, District Electoral Supervisor, 1992-1993.

Wallet 1 of 1 - Consists of 11 letters and one postcard Vance wrote to family and friends while serving as a District Electoral Supervisor with UNTAC from July 1992 to May 1993. He writes of his journey to Cambodia, the living conditions and hygiene standards in Phnom Penh, his accommodation, food, learning Khmer, visiting Siem Reap and Angkor Wat, teaching English to a group of locals, and the dangers posed by land mines. He also delves into detail on his work with the local governor and chiefs in Bavel in the Battambang Province to register voters and prepare for the Cambodian general election in May 1993, the difficulties posed by UNTAC bureaucracy, and the political, military and economic situation in Cambodia. The letters also describe Vance's efforts to recruit local electoral staff, tensions between UNTAC and the Khmer Rouge, a strike organised by the District Electoral Supervisors over the non-payment of local staff, coming under shell fire in Bavel and of increasing fighting in the district and efforts by the Khmer Rouge to subvert the election.