Phatry Derek Pan

Phatry Derek Pan (1979- ) is a Cambodian American writer, entrepreneur, lecturer, and blogger based in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In 2005, he relocated from Seattle, Washington, to Phnom Penh, where he garnered attention as an arts and culture writer for the Phnom Penh Post.

Pan is widely known for his commentary on "The Khmerican Experience," referring to the collective coming-of-age of young Cambodian Americans who were typically born in or spent time in refugee camps following the Khmer Rouge genocide, moved to the U.S. at a young age, and are now returning to Cambodia in their 20s and 30s. He posits the current wave of Khmerican returnees, with Western ideological leanings, will significantly alter the political and demographic landscape of Cambodia.

While a student at the University of Washington in the late 1990s, he campaigned alongside Cambodian author Loung Ung for wider U.S. recognition of the atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge regime. He was key in founding Khmer cultural organizations such as the Rajana Society and the KhmerConnection website. In 2000, he appeared on ABC's Nightline to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the fall of Phnom Penh to the Khmer Rouge Regime, in observation of the 1.7 million who soon perished.

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