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The Triumph of an Ordinary Man in the Khmer Rouge GENOCIDE SURVIVOR CHUM MEY with Documentation Center of Cambodia

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The Triumph of an Ordinary Man in the Khmer Rouge GENOCIDE SURVIVOR CHUM MEY with Documentation Center of Cambodia Chum Mey at Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. Photo by Mariko Takayasu Mariko by Genocide Sleng Photo Museum. at Tuol Chum Mey The Triumph of an ordinary man in THE Khmer Rouge GENOCIDE SURVIVOR CHUM MEY with Documentation Center of Cambodia Translation by Sim Sorya and Kimsroy Sokvisal Chum Mey's confession (with introduction by David Chandler and Youk Chhang) Documentation Series No. 18 – Documentation Center of Cambodia, 2012. (126 pages in English) Chum MEY personifies the tormented history of his country, surviving gunfights and rocket attacks during a civil war, losing his wife and four children during the brutal Khmer Rouge regime, and dragged blindfolded into Tuol Sleng prison, where more than 12,000 people were chained and tortured and sent to a killing field. Only a handful survived, and Chum Mey's story provides a rare glimpse inside the workings of a brutal and highly organized assembly line of death. At least 1.7 million people died between 1975 and 1979 when the Khmer Rouge ruled Cambodia. It was his skill as a mechanic that saved him, when after 12 days and nights of beatings and repeated My life was spared when Seng, my interrogator, electrocution, he was plucked from among the other prisoners and put to work repairing the had a prisoner carry this typewriter to me and typewriters his torturers used to record their forced confessions. asked me whether I could fix it. I said, "Brother! Wait, let me have a look." After I fixed it, Seng put me to work as mechanic and gave me food. Chum Mey himself confessed to a wild fantasy of counter-revolutionary work for the CIA, an This typewriter kept me alive until the organization whose name he had never heard before his torture began. He was ready to say Vietnamese and liberation troops came. Because of this typewriter, I have been able anything in order to stop the pain. His confession is one of the few that have been translated into to tell millions of people of the bitter and most English and it is reproduced in this book, the first of thousands of Tuol Sleng confessions to be brutal operation of Tuol Sleng prison. Photo by published. Kimsroy Sokvisal, 2012. Over the years Chum Mey has come to understand and even identify with his torturers, rather than to condemn them. "I consider them victims like me, because they had to follow other people's or- ders," he says in an introduction to the book. "How can I say I would have behaved differently? Would I have had the strength to refuse to kill, if the penalty was my own death?" Funding for this project was generously provided by Friends of the Documentation He escaped death, but his survival itself continues to bewilder him. "It was such a rare chance that Center Cambodia with core support from I survived when so many people were killed there," he says. "I think about it every night, how lucky I United States Agency for International was to survive. Why did I survive?" Development (USAID). “...a society cannot know itself if it does not have an accurate memory of its own history.” Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) for Memory & Justice www.dccam.org www.cambodiatribunal.org www.cambodiasri.org SURVIVOR The Triumph of an ordinary man in THE Khmer Rouge GENOCIDE CHUM MEY with Documentation Center of Cambodia Translation by Sim Sorya and Kimsroy Sokvisal Chum Mey's confession (with introduction by David Chandler and Youk Chhang) Documentation Series No. 18 – Documentation Center of Cambodia, 2012. (126 pages in English) Chum MEY personifies the tormented before his torture began. He was ready to say history of his country, surviving gunfights and anything in order to stop the pain. His confes- rocket attacks during a civil war, losing his wife sion is one of the few that have been translated and four children during the brutal Khmer into English and it is reproduced in this book, Rouge regime, and dragged blindfolded into the first of thousands of Tuol Sleng confessions Tuol Sleng prison, where more than 12,000 to be published. people were chained and tortured and sent to a killing field. Only a handful survived, and Over the years Chum Mey has come to un- Chum Mey's story provides a rare glimpse derstand and even identify with his torturers, inside the workings of a brutal and highly rather than to condemn them. "I consider them organized assembly line of death. At least 1.7 victims like me, because they had to follow oth- Top:: My life was spared when Seng, my interrogator, had a million people died between 1975 and 1979 er people's orders," he says in an introduction prisoner carry this typewriter to me and asked me whether when the Khmer Rouge ruled Cambodia. to the book. "How can I say I would have b I could fix it. I said, "Brother! Wait, let me have a look." After I fixed it, Seng put me to work as mechanic and gave haved differently? Would I have had the me food. This typewriter kept me alive until the Vietnam- It was his skill as a mechanic that saved him, strength to refuse to kill, if the penalty was my ese and liberation troops came. Because of this typewriter, own death?" I have been able to tell millions of people of the bitter and when after 12 days and nights of beatings and most brutal operation of Tuol Sleng prison. Photo by Kims- repeated electrocution, he was plucked from roy Sokvisal, 2012. among the other prisoners and put to work He escaped death, but his survival itself Bottom: Chum Mey at Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. repairing the typewriters his torturers used to continues to bewilder him. "It was such a rare Photo by Mariko Takayasu record their forced confessions. chance that I survived when so many people were killed there," he says. "I think about it Chum Mey himself confessed to a wild fantasy every night, how lucky I was to survive. Why of counter-revolutionary work for the CIA, an did I survive?" organization whose name he had never heard Funding for this project was generously provided by Friends of “...a society cannot know itself if it does not have an accurate memory of its own history.” the Documentation Center Cambodia with core support from Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) for Memory & Justice United States Agency for International Development (USAID). www.dccam.org www.cambodiatribunal.org www.cambodiasri.org.
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