The Long-Run Impact of Forced Migration: Evidence from the Killing Fields

Abstract

This study examines the long-term effects of forced migration on economic and educational outcomes in a low-income country. We explore the Killing Fields in Cambodia, where the Khmer Rouge regime seized power in 1975 and compelled approximately one million people to relocate from urban to rural areas. We find that individuals forced to migrate during the Khmer Rouge regime were likely to eventually transition from the agricultural sector to the service sector. Younger cohorts who experienced forced migration and descendants of migrants who were displaced to the Killing Fields exhibited a decrease in years of schooling compared with those whose families were not forced to migrate. These findings suggest that the repercussions of the Khmer Rouge regime have had persistent impacts on individuals’ employment patterns and educational outcomes across generations.