Pailin (Khmer: ប៉ៃលិន, Pailĭn [ˈpajlɨn]) is a province in western Cambodia at the northern edge of the Cardamom Mountains near the border of Thailand.

Once a part of the powerful Khmer Empire, Pailin was conquered in 1558 by the Burmese under Bayinnaung[5] and later ruled by the Siamese (Thai) until 1907 and from 1941 to 1946 when it was returned to Cambodia.

On 22 December 2008, King Norodom Sihamoni signed a Royal Decree that changed the municipalities of Kep, Pailin and Sihanoukville into provinces, as well as adjusting several provincial borders.

It continued its role as a centre of trade and commerce under French colonial rule which saw the establishment of French-operated stores and plantations.

[10] In the early 1970s, Pailin was a prosperous town stemming from the extensive gem deposits in the surrounding countryside.

The city offered no resistance and the Khmer Rouge soldiers were greeted as liberators as they marched into town.

At this point, the deposed prince Norodom Sihanouk had allied himself with the Khmer Rouge and most residents believed that they were fighting to restore him to power.

The Khmer Rouge used proceeds from mining in the Pailin area to fund their offensive and later their government once they gained national power.

When the invading People's Army of Vietnam ousted them from power, they retreated to Pailin, where many former Khmer Rouge leaders remain today.

[11] As of September 2007, Pailin's remaining Khmer Rouge leaders were being rounded up to face justice by an international tribunal, including Khieu Samphan and Nuon Chea.

However, the now politically stable area is seeing a new wave of tourism focused on its ancient temples, natural forests and wildlife, and especially the precious gem market.

The current governor of Pailin province is Ban Sreymom, appointed by royal decree on 18 December 2020.

[14] Sreymom is a member of the ruling Cambodian People's Party and previously represented Pailin constituency in the National Assembly.

[15] When Khmer Rouge forces surrendered in the late 1990s, the Cambodian government headed by Hun Sen allowed former members to manage modern-day Pailin as a special administrative area to facilitate and maintain peace.

[17] code According to the National Institute of Statistics of the Ministry of Planning, the total population of the province in 2013 was 65,792 which grew to 67,166 in 2014.

[22] The surrounding area was rich in a variety of gemstones which were mined almost clean to support the Khmer Rouge.

[26] Chinese demand for Pailin longans then rose, with China becoming the largest export market in the first half of 2023.

[33] On the walls of the enclosure surrounding the pagoda is a bas-relief depicting the Hindu saga of the churning of the Ocean of Milk.

Before the Khmer Rouge period, Pailin's culture was predominantly Shan Burmese, and has much in common with that of the country of Thailand and Burma.

Kola men wear ankle-length patterns of checks, plaids or stripes "Longyi" in any kinds of color.

They put the gaung baung turban on their head and on their feet wear simple rubber or velvet slippers.

The local strain of malaria parasites may have some special properties, or the ecology of the region may have features that boost the rise of resistance.