~ AN ENGLISHMAN’S IMPRESSION  ~

Brian E Swinyard MA ARPS EFIAP/b DPAGB BPE3* PPSA

Much has been said, books written and films made about ‘The Killing Fields’ of Cambodia, but nothing prepared me for my first visit to Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (Former Khmer Rouge S-21 Prison) and Choeng Ek (Killing Fields) near Phnom Penh.

On 17 April, 1975, the Khmer Rouge guerrillas filed into Phnom Penh, signalling the start of a reign of terror which would devastate an ancient culture and cause the death of over 2 million Cambodians in just 3 years. The figures speak for themselves: killing sites (343), mass graves (19,440), genocide memorials (77), security prisons (167). Although in many ways thought-provoking and disturbing places to visit, S-21 and Choeng Ek are a must on every conscientious traveller’s itinerary, and in my opinion, not to be missed.

S-21

The sheer suburban ordinariness of what was Tuol Svay Prey High School in 1973 belies its sinister use during the Pol Pot Regime, 1976-1979. It was taken over by the Security Forces and turned into a detention and torture centre, the largest in Cambodia, and became known as the infamous Security Prison S-21. It covers an area of 600 x 400 metres and during the Khmer Rouge Regime was enclosed by electrified barbed wire fences. The houses in the compound were used as offices for administration, interrogation and torture. Classrooms were converted into prison cells, some individual, others for multiple occupancy.

The victims in the prison were taken from all parts of the country and all walks of life. Although the vast majority were from Cambodia, there were many other nationalities; Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, India, Pakistan, United Kingdom, France, USA, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The prison could accommodate up to 1500 prisoners at a time and who were held for usually between 2-4 months.

Each prisoner who passed through S-21 was photographed; the museum displays many of these together with instruments of torture. There are several large paintings by one of only seven survivors found alive by the Vietnamese Army when they liberated Phnom Penh in early 1979. Within the compound, there are 14 graves; those prisoners who were tortured to death on the very day the Vietnamese Army relieved Phnom Penh.

Before the prisoners were placed in the cells, they were photographed (many are on display) and detailed biographies of their childhood up to the date of their arrest, were recorded. They were stripped of clothes and possessions and slept directly on the cell floor without mats, mosquito nets or blankets. Prison life was hard, with much physical punishment for breaking any of the eight regulations of the establishment.

In the wake of its renovation, following the fall of the Khmer Rouge Regime, the historical museum of genocide opened in 1980 and today welcomes visitors. Renovation is being carried out as a phased approach, to preserve and repair buildings and to ensure that documentation is archivally preserved.

As I walked around the compound, I could not fail to be moved by the poignancy of the place. Each building had its own uniqueness. The metal beds, the manacles, the pictures of the last occupants, the paraphernalia of torture, the rows of cells conjured up a picture of the unbearable hardship that the inmates must have endured. Man’s inhumanity to man! And then, as if to take a breath of fresh air outside the buildings, I was overwhelmed with the pungent aroma of the frangipani flowers.

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CHOENG EK

During the Pol Pot Regime, some 17,000 prisoners, detained and tortured at S-21, were taken to the Extermination Camp at Choeng Ek, 15km from Phnom Penh, to be executed. Driving through the entrance, I was overcome by a chill feeling and sense of foreboding as I looked up at the sign above the entrance archway – ‘Choeng Ek Genocide Centre’.

The site is very well laid out for visitors and a gazebo near the entrance provides a history of the site. As I wandered around the various paths, there was the evidence of the mass graves, some excavated, and others left untouched. Some were covered with thatched structures; others marked with simple wooden carved signs – ‘Mass Grave’.

The remains of 8985 people were exhumed in 1980 from mass graves; 43 of the 129 communal graves remain untouched. In order to save precious bullets, prisoners were blindfolded, made to kneel on the edge of pits, then bludgeoned to death, their throats cut with the saw-like stems of palm fronds. Fragments of human bone and clothing still lie scattered around the disinterred pits. A Memorial Stupa stands in the centre of the site. Inside this clear-glass sided obelisk on 17 storeys, are over 8,000 human skulls, arranged by sex and age.

The sweet pungent aroma of the frangipani flowers and hibiscus blossom pervaded the air as visitors wandered too and fro, many in silence, many deep in thought as they pondered how a nation could do such horrific acts to its own kind. The fluttering of myriad butterfly wings, of all hues and colours of the rainbow, were concentrated over the disinterred pits and interrupted the stillness. It was almost as though Nature was helping with the grieving process in an attempt to soften the edges of the mess mankind had made.

As we travelled through Cambodia, I could not fail to notice how few people there were over 50 years of age. As a 60-year old backpacker, I found the term ‘Pappa’ quite endearing. Despite the traumatic events of recent years, which has had an impact on almost every family, the Cambodian people remain so very warm and friendly.

Some images of Cambodia will live forever and will never be forgotten!

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