April 17th, 1975 marked a day of infamy for Cambodia. Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge evacuated Phnom Penh and forced its residents to move to the countryside where they were forced into slave labor working in the rice fields and similar jobs. Cambodians were tortured, starved and murdered during his reign and women, children even babies were no exception. It was a genocide that claimed the lives of an estimated 1.7 million people, that's 1 out of 4 Cambodians died due to this mad man. His scheme made no sense either. He wanted to bring Cambodia back to its roots and eliminate all western influence or any other outside influence for that matter and lead a nation of forced slaved labor. I wonder how a person with this much power could be so incredibly stupid. How could a person influence an army that was destined for failure. If you had an education you were viewed as a traitor and a threat to Pol Pot and needed to be eliminated. But not until you were interrogated, beaten and tortured.
I had a tough time believing that this all happened. How could something so evil exist and strike down on some many innocent lives. But the most breathtaking disturbing evidence would soon present itself and show me that all of this is true and that it was worse than I thought.
There are not many old people in Cambodia. It was something I had heard from other backpackers and it was devastating to find that it true. The poverty level also indicates that Cambodia is still healing from that experience and despite all that they haven't and won't give up on their country. They continue to work hard to catch up with their neighboring countries.
Outside the chambers of S.21
We arrived in Phnom Penh in the afternoon and visited the Tuol Sleng (also called S.21) Genocide Museum. The site was originally a school but when the Khmer Rouge took control of Phnom Penh they converted it to a prison designed for detention, interrogation and torture. Walking through the prison left you feeling empty inside. The rooms where prisoners were kept open and you could roam throughout freely. As you entered the rooms you stepped on the yellow and white checkered tile stained of whatever your imagination came up with and spotted with mold. We found the metal bed frames, shackles and a few torture tools left in the same place as they were they were found. The walls, made of concrete, displayed a single picture showing what the room looked like while it was occupied. Every picture showed a victim starving, beaten and near death if not already dead. In other sections of the prison they displayed pictures and written confessions (most of which lies in hopes the torture would soon end if they told them what they wanted to hear) of all the residents trapped in this hell hole and, in the last part, skulls of a few victims were displayed showing small blows to the head that decided their fate. It sent chills through your body and left us speechless. I don't think Annie and I had said more than just a few words to each other during our visit and it took a while to start talking again after.
We arrived in Phnom Penh in the afternoon and visited the Tuol Sleng (also called S.21) Genocide Museum. The site was originally a school but when the Khmer Rouge took control of Phnom Penh they converted it to a prison designed for detention, interrogation and torture. Walking through the prison left you feeling empty inside. The rooms where prisoners were kept open and you could roam throughout freely. As you entered the rooms you stepped on the yellow and white checkered tile stained of whatever your imagination came up with and spotted with mold. We found the metal bed frames, shackles and a few torture tools left in the same place as they were they were found. The walls, made of concrete, displayed a single picture showing what the room looked like while it was occupied. Every picture showed a victim starving, beaten and near death if not already dead. In other sections of the prison they displayed pictures and written confessions (most of which lies in hopes the torture would soon end if they told them what they wanted to hear) of all the residents trapped in this hell hole and, in the last part, skulls of a few victims were displayed showing small blows to the head that decided their fate. It sent chills through your body and left us speechless. I don't think Annie and I had said more than just a few words to each other during our visit and it took a while to start talking again after.
The Khmer Rouge wouldn't kill their victims at the prison. They would gather about 50 to 75 of "confessed traitors" and tell them they were moving them to another location when in fact they were taking them to the "Killing Fields", a mass grave where they would violently meet their fate and be thrown into communal pits to be buried. We would visit this horrific place in the morning.
The next day came and I had an empty feeling in my stomach. I wasn't sure what we would be in store for. We hopped in a tuk-tuk and took the 30 minute drive to our destination. I couldn't help but feel for all those who lives ended at the end of the of this road we were on. We finally arrived and it was quiet. No one spoke to each other. There were signs stating "Please No Talking" but they were unnecessary. No one wanted to converse in a place like this. I don't think anyone could find the words.
We received a headset for an audio tour and listened to a survivor of the genocide tell us of what happened where. He told us of his story and the stories of other survivors. Sadness completely took over me until rage consumed it all when a soldiers story came through the headphones. He spoke of transporting the prisoners from S.21 to the killing fields. The sound of his voice gave made me shiver on the hot afternoon. It was like listening to the devil himself speak aloud. I wondered why this man speaking was alive. How come he wasn't executed for his crimes against so many innocent lives. The truth is, a lot of the soldiers and the top officials of Pol Pot's Regime walked free after the genocide for many years including Pol Pot himself. It wasn't until the past 10 years or so that they have been arrested. Comrade Duch, the top official at S.21 was arrested in 2002 and was found guilty to numerous war crimes and admitted to being responsible for the deaths of 20,000 Cambodians. He was sentenced to 35 years in prison and soon after reduced to 19 years after officials say he was detained illegally. The Khmer Rouge held a seat in the UN until 1992, that's not a typo...until 19 fucking 92 (sorry for the language). Pol Pot was sentenced to house arrest in 1998 and died of heart failure serving only one year. I can't understand the level of injustice for the victims families and for the people who some how survived this horrific ordeal.
After discovering the mass grave they dug up over 20,000 corpses and built a memorial in the center to house the remains. Empty pits covered with green grass now mark the spots of the where all the victims had been murdered by various objects such as axes, hoes, picks, machetes and hammers. They never shot their victims because bullets were too expensive so a quick and easy death was out of the question. Babies and small children met their demise by being smashed against a large tree trunk and thrown into a grave while their mothers watched. After being raped they would soon join their children in the communal grave now covered in flowers and small handmade bracelets.
Due to the rains and weather, clothes and more remains of the victims will appear from the soil. They are soon collected by the keepers of the site and then added to the collection they compiled at the memorial. So as our tour drew to a close the audio played some of the revolutionary music the Khmer Rouge played while executing their victims. The music played through the loud speakers that were powered by loud generators and that sound effect was not absent in the recording we heard. While listening to the recording it was then that we discovered some bones and a few teeth protruding from the ground on the edge of the path. We decided to leave after the discovery but for as long I as I live I will always keep this experience in the back of my mind and for this experience alone I have changed the way I look at the world for better and for worse.
Due to the rains and weather, clothes and more remains of the victims will appear from the soil. They are soon collected by the keepers of the site and then added to the collection they compiled at the memorial. So as our tour drew to a close the audio played some of the revolutionary music the Khmer Rouge played while executing their victims. The music played through the loud speakers that were powered by loud generators and that sound effect was not absent in the recording we heard. While listening to the recording it was then that we discovered some bones and a few teeth protruding from the ground on the edge of the path. We decided to leave after the discovery but for as long I as I live I will always keep this experience in the back of my mind and for this experience alone I have changed the way I look at the world for better and for worse.
