One year has passed since the first Cambodian rocket landed in Kantharalak district, Si Sa Ket province. It remains one of the hardest-hit areas by the armed conflict along the Thailand-Cambodian border, which has forced nearly 200,000 people across seven border provinces to flee their homes and seek safety in temporary shelters.
The ceasefire brokered in December ended the exchange of rockets and artillery fire, damaged homes have gradually been repaired, and daily life appears to have returned to normal. But beneath this sense of normalcy lies a more difficult question: What does recovery mean for communities that lived through the conflict?
For people living along the border, recovery cannot be measured only by reconstructed buildings or reopened roads. It must also be measured by whether children feel safe returning to school, whether families have been able to regain their livelihoods, whether those who experienced trauma receive support, and whether communities are better prepared should violence erupt again.
