Educator’s Guide for the film OUT OF THE POISON TREE: The Antidote is Truth written, directed and produced by Beth Pielert

copyright © 2007 by Beth Pielert published by the Center for Asian American Media September 2007

CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA

145 Ninth Street, Suite 350, San Francisco, CA 94103 t: 415.863.0814 f: 415.863.7428 www.asianamericanmedia.org Educator’s Guide for the film Out of the Poison Tree: The Antidote is Truth written, directed and produced by Beth Pielert

GRADE LEVELS: 9-12th SUBJECT AREAS: Social Studies, U.S. History, World History ESTIMATED DURATION: Each individual lesson plan, approximately 1 hour

FILM OVERVIEW

On the eve of the long-awaited trial, an American survivor of the returns to Cambodia hoping to unlock the mystery of her Father’s disappearance in 1975. Thida Buth Mam’s quest intersects with many silent voices: widows, survivors from remote villages, monks and even former perpetrators. Her search for the truth stirs up the fractured pieces of one family’s nightmare, unearths an unimaginable heartbreak and ultimately shines light on a people’s broken silence. Story behind making Out of the Poison Tree In 1977, I was sitting in a Hebrew school class, reading about Anne Frank1 who perished in the Holocaust2. We were told never to let happen again. I was seven-years-old and 13,000 miles away, the Holocaust was happening again; but instead of Eastern Europe, it was in Cambodia. Years later I met a former Nuremberg prosecutor3 who sparked a theme for a film – people who were creators of justice after a great injustice had occurred. After being introduced to one of the founders of the Yale Studies Program at Yale University, I began researching films that had been made about ANNE FRANK Cambodia and discovered many detailed accounts of the genocide but none that explored the forgiveness and reconciliation process – this was 1998. Since then many amazing films have been made such as Refugee, The Flute Player and Monkey Dance. (Please see web site for these films: http://catalog.asianamericanmedia.org) The characters in Out Of The Poison Tree take us on a journey toward understanding what happened in Cambodia and how people have come to forgive after The Killing Fields4.

1. Anne Frank was the young author of The Diary of Anne Frank, an autobiographical account of being a Jewish girl in hiding during the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam. Anne Frank perished at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp just a few months before the war ended in 1945. 2. The Holocaust refers to the systematic execution of 6 million European by the Nazi party during World War II. 3. Nuremberg prosecutor refers to The that prosecuted the Nazis in Nuremberg, Germany between 1945-1949. 4. The is a phrase used to describe a number of sites in Cambodia where millions of people were killed and buried by the Khmer Rouge communist regime during the 1970s.

EDUCATOR’S GUIDE FOR THE FILM OUT OF THE POISON TREE CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA, page 2 MATERIALS

1. A copy of the film, Out of the Poison Tree, by Beth Pielert. To purchase a copy of the film please contact the Center of Asian American Media (CAAM) at [email protected]. You can also visit the web site at http://catalog.asianamericanmedia.org 2. Websites: Access needed to internet for student research. See resources on page 9 for list of web sites.

Activity 1: Pre-Viewing Activity – Discussion and Writing on Genocidal Factors Teachers can discuss in detail the “Historical Timeline Sheet” on page 6 and then screen the historical timeline section of Out of the Poison Tree to facilitate a classroom discus- sion on the question: What are the factors that enabled the Killing Fields5 to occur? Define the Following Words: • Genocide • Propaganda • • Autogenocide • Forgiveness • Refugee • Reconciliation • Buddhism • Coup d’état • Scapegoat • Justice • Classicism

Activity 2: Post-Viewing Activity – Discussion Topics • How have the characters in Out of the Poison Tree come to a place of forgiveness? • What is the difference between personal and formal justice? • What is the metaphor behind the film?

• How did the lack of education play a part in CHILDREN ENJOYING PARK IN FRONT OF the genocide? NATIONAL MUSEUM, PHNOM PENH • How do you think Buddhism contributed to the reconciliation process? • How do you think Buddhism contributed to a lack of justice? • Do you think former perpetrators such as the former Khmer Rouge are victims too? If so, how?

MONKS WAITING FOR THE TRIAL

5. The Killing Fields is a phrase used to describe a number of sites in Cambodia where millions of people were killed and buried by the Khmer Rouge communist regime during the 1970s.

EDUCATOR’S GUIDE FOR THE FILM OUT OF THE POISON TREE CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA, page 3 Activity 3: Post-Viewing Activity – The Importance of Accurate Reporting and Education Youk makes the point that not being taught about the Holocaust in school created ignorance to genocidal factors that contributed to Khmer Rouge successfully taking over the country. In contrast, how has the recent genocide in Darfur main- tained a presence in today’s media?

Youk Chhang holding up photograph of young victims of Toul Sleng prison

Activity 4: Post-Viewing Activity – Genocide Is News vs. Priorities for Major Networks Despite the fact that there are worldwide monitoring systems for the ongoing Darfur conflict, also referred to, as ‘Genocide’ there is pitifully little coverage of Darfur in the media as compared to pop-star coverage. • Teachers can ask students what is “hot” in the news today? Example: O.J. Simpson, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Tom Cruise • Teachers can then show the Statistics on Network News Coverage of the Genocide in Sudan chart from at the bottom of: http://www.beawitness.org/ • Finally, teachers can discuss the web resources that exist to help gather information about the conflict in Darfur. – SAVEDARFUR.ORG web presence Amnesty International –eyesondarfur.org – GoogleEarth Monitoring – Web videos distributed via BeaWitness.org – United States Holocaust Museum and Google Earth Map Crisis in Darfur http://www.ushmm.org/googleearth/ – Witness – See It, Film It, Change It http://www.witness.org/

EDUCATOR’S GUIDE FOR THE FILM OUT OF THE POISON TREE CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA, page 4 Activity 5: Post-Viewing Activity – Walking in Their Shoes • Why do you think Thida’s mother Ean Boun won’t return to Cambodia? • If you were in Thida’s position, would you continue to search for the details of your father’s disappearance?

THIDA’S SISTER RASMEI HOLDS UP A PHOTO OF THEIR MISSING FATHER BUTH • How does Choen’s status as a Congressman CHOEN. ultimately affect his fate? • How is Aki Ra righting the wrongs of his past? • If you knew everything there was to know about landmines would you do what Aki Ra does – removing landmines by hand?

Activity 6: Post-Viewing Activity – Personal Injustice The seed for genocide begins with name-calling, bullying and creating a separation between oneself and others. Ask students to write on a piece of paper a person- al example of this and how they dealt with the injustice. Discuss some basic conflict resolution and how to halt intolerance in its tracks. AKI RA AND SEEKA, LANDMINE MUSEUM, SIEM REAP Resources http://www.peacegames.org/ http://www.kidpower.org/School-age.html http://www.antibullying.net/

EDUCATOR’S GUIDE FOR THE FILM OUT OF THE POISON TREE CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA, page 5 Activity 7: Research and Report on Current Status of The Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) is the arena for the formal trial to prosecute the senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge. Because so many of the leaders have passed away the ECCC is now a court where serious crimes committed during the Khmer Rouge regime (1975-1979) are tried. While this is a United Nations funded tribunal, Japan contributed approximately one-half the budget. The Khmer Rouge Tribunal has taken three decades to manifest and as of 2007, the pros- ecution has been operating behind closed doors. A recent accomplishment includes the charging of Kang Kek Ieu, aka Douch who was the director of Toul Sleng between 1975- 1979. Douch named Noun Chea as his direct superior during the Khmer Rouge Regime which resulted in Noun Chea’s arrest in September 2007. Soon after his arrest, an indict- ment was released by the tribunal’s investigating judges. It stated that Mr. Noun Chea “planned, instigated, ordered, directed or otherwise aided and abetted” the commission of crimes including “extermination.” It also said that he exercised effective control over the group’s detention centers. The wheels of justice are finally turning.

Research the following: What is the status of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal as of today? In what ways does the judicial process at the Extraordinary Chambers in Cambodia differ from our Western one?

Sources: • Open Society Justice Initiative http://www.justiceinitiative.org/db/resource2?res_id=103814 • Khmer Rouge Trials http://www.parish-without-borders.net/cditt/cambodia/politics/kr-trials1.htm • An Introduction to the Khmer Rouge Trials http://www.cambodia.gov.kh/krt/english/introduction_eng/index.htm • Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge Tribunal http://www.genocidewatch.org/news/CAMBODIA.htm

EDUCATOR’S GUIDE FOR THE FILM OUT OF THE POISON TREE CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA, page 6 The Perfect Storm: A Historical Timeline for Cambodia

1659 – First Vietnamese invasion of Cambodian territories. 1851 – Cambodia successfully overthrows Vietnamese invasion. 1863 – King Norodom is forced to accept French protection to avoid domestic rebellion. 1887 – Cambodia is included in the Indochinese Union. 1953 – Cambodia officially gains independence from France. 1964-1974 – Vietnam/American War. 1969 – Operation Menu – secret bombing of Cambodia. 1970 – Coup led by general Lon Nol – abolishes the monarchy and ends Prince Sihanouk’s reign. 1975-1979 – led Khmer Rouge Regime. 1975-1979 – Toul Svay Prey High School now known as Toul Sleng Genocide Museum was converted into a torture and execution center processing an estimated 17,000 people with only 7 survivors. Toul Sleng was directed by Douch. 1979 – Vietnam invasion and “liberation” created civil war. 1980 – Toul Sleng opens as a Genocide Museum. 1979-1988 – Civil war within Cambodia. 1982 – Campaign to Oppose the Return of the Khmer Rouge (CORKR) is founded by Gregory Stanton, Craig Etcheson, Ben Kiernan. 1998 – Pol Pot dies in the jungles of Anglong Veng. 2001 – Tamok and Douch are arrested. 2001 – Resolution is passed to create a Khmer Rouge Tribunal. 2005 – Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia are created. 2006 – Tamok dies in a military hospital. 2007 – Douch is first former Khmer Rouge leader to be put on trial. 2007 – During pre-trial, Douch identifies Noun Chea (Brother # 2) as his direct superior during the Khmer Rouge Regime. Noun Chea is arrested.

EDUCATOR’S GUIDE FOR THE FILM OUT OF THE POISON TREE CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA, page 7 Where Does Cambodian Fall on the Timeline of Genocide?

Armenian Genocide 1915-1917 Perpetrators: Young Turks; Victims: Armenians 1.5 million

The Holocaust 1938 – 1945 Perpetrators: Hitler Led Nazi Army; Victims: Jews, Gypsies, Gays, Protestants, Mentally & Physically Disabled People 9-11 million

The Cambodian Genocide (Autogenocide) 1975 – 1979 Perpetrators: Khmer Rouge (Cambodian); Victims: Intellectuals, Royalty, Traitors (Cambodians) 2-3 million

East Timor 1975 – 1999 Perpetrators: Indonesian Army; Victims: East Timor 60,000-100,000

Bosnian Genocide 1992-1995 Perpetrators: Serbian Forces; Victims: Croatians and Muslims 2 million displaced and 200,000 + killed

Rwandan Genocide 1994 Perpetrators: Hutus; Victims: Tutsis and Hutu & political moderates 800,000-1 million

Darfur 2003 – present Conflict between the Sudanese and the Janjaweed Arab Militias vs. the SLM and the JEM; Victims: Nomads, women and children caught in the cross fire 200,000-400,000 dead with 2.5 million displaced

EDUCATOR’S GUIDE FOR THE FILM OUT OF THE POISON TREE CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA, page 8 Resources

• Good Film Works http://www.goodfilmworks.com

• The Center for Asian American Media For related films such as REFUGEE, THE FLUTE PLAYER and MONKEY DANCE http://catalog.asianamericanmedia.org/

• YALE University Genocide Studies Program http://www.yale.edu/gsp/

• Facing History and Ourselves http://www.facing.org

• Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia http://www.eccc.gov.kh/english/

• Asian Educational Media Service http://www.aems.uiuc.edu

• The United States Holocaust Museum http://www.ushmm.org/

• Cambodian News Source http://www.cambodia.org/news/

EDUCATOR’S GUIDE FOR THE FILM OUT OF THE POISON TREE CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA, page 9