‘YOU HAVE TO BE EMOTIONALLY TOUGH BECAUSE THEY CAN CRUSH YOU, EVEN IF YOU’RE RIGHT’
In the mid-nineties, Patrick Alley and a couple of friends got together in a draughty flat in Lancaster Gate, London, and hatched a plan to take down the Khmer Rouge. They had no money, no connections and zero experience of doing battle with brutal, jungle-based guerrilla armies. But they were fascinated by the delicate political situation in Cambodia and passionate about stopping the violent communist cadres of the Khmer Rouge from taking back control of the country.
Travelling to Cambodia and posing as traders, they soon discovered that the Thai government had been funding the Khmer Rouge via the illegal timber trade. This exposé by three daring Brits would eventually lead to the demise of that corrupt relationship and the restoration of peace in Cambodia. Alley and his cohorts were inspired to continue their investigative work in other corners of
