Khmers Rouges - An introduction to Tuol Sleng
Tuol Sleng... I'm sure that for most of you, it doesn't mean anything. In Khmer, it means "the poisoned trees hill". And it was the place where was held Security Prison 21, better known as S-21. I am still sure that for most, Pol Pot and S-21 don't mean much. "Khmers Rouges" may raise some old memories from the far end of your brain ? Well... let's refresh our memory !
The Khmers Rouges, led by Saloth Sar (called Pol Pot) intented to create a whole new Cambodia where everyone would have worked in collective farms. Between 1975 (Year Zero) and 1979, they tried to start again from the very beginning. They cancelled any currency available, closed schools, hospitals and factories, took over all private properties, outlawed Buddhism and religions and relocated all cities inhabitants to the countryside. Phnom Penh became a dead city.
PP's evacuation led to a huge exodus, people were told that they were sent 2-3km away for a few days, because of a imminent Americain air raid. Hospitals were emptied, many patients dying along the road as no-one was there to take care of them.
The intellectual "elite" was considered as dangerous, because of their ability to overthrow the party. All intellectual man, professional worker or people owning some wealth were thus wiped out. Many people threw away their glasses, as they were a "proof" they were educated (i.e were able to read). To fill in the lack of doctors then created, the Khmers Rouges gave the medical supplies and books to teenagers, farmer's sons who didn't know how to read, and even less how to cure someone.
City people were called the New People, in opposition to the Old People of the countryside. The policy towards the New People was "To keep you won't bring us any benefit. To destroy you is not a loss" Families were separated, people had to work in the rice fields 12 to 14h a day, 7 days a week, eating two clear rice soup a day.
Between 1975 and 1979, when the Vietnamese entered Phnom Penh, between 1.5 and 2 millions of Cambodians died, for a population of about 7.5 millions. That means that 25% of the Cambodian people died in 4 years.
Today, 30 years later, everyone can tell you who died in his family. Grand-father, uncle, aunt, father and mother, cousins, children, brother, sister, husband... I met a man in Angkor who had lost 31 members of his family before he managed to escape to Thailand. Everyone born before 1975 has a story to tell you and it's not a beautiful one...
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