The international community has invested well over $5 billion in Cambodia since 1992 in a flawed attempt to nurture a democratic system. Following elections in 1993, the power elite in Cambodia reverted to sordid aspects of traditional political culture, promoting modernization within an authoritarian model. At a time when some promote democracy as a panacea for the world’s ills, Cambodia offers object lessons in the pitfalls to be overcome to implant a democratic system in less-developed political economies.