Magazine of the Documentation Center of Cambodia Searching for THE TRUTH The Impact of the World’s Most Influential People Coping with the Psychological Trauma of the Khmer Rouge « If justice has not been sought, the piled-up bones should not be SpecialEnglish Edition cremated. Proper cremation is not enough for the victims, for Second Quarter 2007 their spirits will not be in a peaceful state unless justice is found. We should build a stupa and place the bones inside.» -- Suos Phorn Searching for the truth. TABLE OF CONTENTS Magazine of the Documentation Center of Cambodia Special English Edition, Second Quarter 2007 EDITORIAL Good Leisure in Gloom, Dark Leisure in Bloom 1 Letters from Youk Chhang: The Impact of the World’s Most Influential People 3 Ethnic Minority Groups and the Legacy of the Khmer Rouge 4 DOCUMENTATION Youth Questions on the Khmer Rouge Tribunal 6 HISTORY Youths Seek Understanding on KR History 15 Discovery of the Sre Lieu Mass Grave 17 Tuol Sleng, a Reminder of the Past 20 To Be Starved Like a Prisoner 22 LEGAL Joint Statement by Judicial Officers 25 PUBLIC DEBATE Coping with the Psychological Trauma of the Khmer Rouge 26 DC-Cam’s Education Tours 31 Review of DC-Cam’s Genocide Education Project 37 Copyright © Resistance and Reconciliation: Examining the Muslim Community of Rwanda 43 Documentation Center of Cambodia Using Documents to Understand the All rights reserved. Khmer Rouge’s Security System 50 Licensed by the Ministry of Information of the Royal Government of Cambodia, Prakas No.0291 P.M99, FAMILY TRACING 2 August 1999. Tobacco and I 53 A Struggle for a New Life on Ancient Territory 54 Photographs by Five Sons in the Khmer Rouge’s Butchery 56 the Documentation Center of Cambodia What Standard of Justice will My Uncle, and Older Brother, and All Victims Get? 58 Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. Contributors: Sayana Ser and Dacil Q. Keo, Sok-Kheang Ly, Rasy Pheng Pong, Pivoine Beang, Sotheany Hin, Terith Chy, Mark Clement, Lisabeth Meyers, Isaac Tabor, Meng Raksmey, Sambath Ly, Chab Chanda Pheakdey and Tong Ra. Staff Writers: Sophal Ly, Sophary Noy. English Editor-in-Chief: Simala Pan. Editor-in-Chief and Publisher: Youk Chhang. Graphic Designer: Sopheak Sim. Distributor: Dara Pidor Roath. Email: [email protected], Homepage: www.dccam.org SEARCHING FOR THE TRUTH ◆ EDITORIAL EDITORIAL: GOOD LEISURE IN GLOOM, DARK LEISURE IN BLOOM Leisure significantly contributes to people's Under these circumstances, the new people happiness and adds meaning to our lives. Normally, were highly unlikely to have leisure time. First, when we humans need leisure to let our brains recover such basic needs as food and medical supplies are from the exhaustion of work and to refresh ourselves insufficient, it is clearly impossible to have leisure. for future work. Working without time to relax leads Second, the lack of privacy made leisure a dangerous to stress and tiredness, both physical and mental. activity. Even in cases where cooperatives had adequate Scholars say that when people experience leisure, food, people still could not enjoy their personal they are able to act from internally compelling love activities because Angkar was observing their every in ways that are personally pleasing and intuitively moment. Moreover, every meal time, people had to worthwhile; leisure also provides them with a basis rush for food; otherwise, their stomachs would be for faith. empty. Even without Angkar's presence, people were This definition of leisure stands in stark contrast still consumed with worry, seeing their neighbors to the Khmer Rouge's ideology, which encouraged die one after another. The fear that pervaded everyday incessant work. During Democratic Kampuchea, life is reflected in a saying common at the time: "At people rarely experienced leisure; instead, the lived dawn I have survived for a night; by sunset I have under conditions of overwork, malnutrition and the survived for a day." Third, some new people were threat of execution. They had no self-determination; able to hide their identities or backgrounds, and instead, they worked like machines whose operator were fortunate to be given positions under the was called Angkar. Most new people and some regime. But even they lived in fear. They did not base people were submissive to Angkar because dare sing any songs but revolutionary songs to they feared being killed, while many base people entertain themselves, for singing love songs was happily did what they were told. The great differences considered immoral and could lead to death. in the lives of these two groups reflect how much Even what was considered "morally appropriate" leisure they had and how leisure affected their destiny. leisure almost never occurred during the regime. New people, most of who came from the cities Children were supposed to go to school, where they where culture flourished, had been long hated by the were indoctrinated in revolutionary ideology, but revolutionary forces. These forces mainly consisted there were no parks or other recreational facilities of poor peasants who considered the new people where they could play. Teenagers were sent to work as impure. Their lives turned upside down after in the cooperatives, to fight on the battlefields, or to April 17, 1975, the day of the Khmer Rouge's great spy on other people. Some of them were sent to work victory marking the beginning of year zero. City people far from their homes, and rarely had time to visit their were evacuated to the countryside; some of them parents. Such separation must have caused loneliness died along the way. Those who were luckier were and kept them from enjoying themselves. forced into hard labor. In the countryside, they had Men and women who were mature enough to adapt to radical changes in their lifestyle and live to settle down and have a family faced arranged a miserable existence threatened by starvation, marriages. Under normal circumstances, they were untreated diseases, overwork, and death. expected to fall in love and enjoy a pleasurable DOCUMENTATION CENTER OF CAMBODIA (DC-CAM) ◆ 1 SPECIAL ENGLISH EDITION, SECOND QUARTER 2007 courtship, but this was never allowed during for childish reasons, which later drove them to Democratic Kampuchea. Disabled men were some- misbehave or even commit extreme acts of violence. times given good-looking women as rewards for their Teaching people to hold a gun, fight in wars, and service in the war. Thus, forced marriage paired off arrest and torture others are the culture of war. There men and women who had never known each other is an old saying, "Children are like a blank canvas that before. Not allowing people to act out of love and needs to be painted. Either a good or bad painting not letting them decide for themselves precluded would emerge." the enjoyment of leisure. The Khmer Rouge's propaganda resulted in What is more, middle-age people were forced discrimination and extreme violence after the to live apart from their children. Once a month or so, regime took control of the country. Young Khmer Angkar would allow a quick visit home. However, Rouge soldiers and cadres, who came from poor family members did not dare talk or show affection peasant families, were able to act on their inner toward each other when they were able to meet thoughts of revenge toward people from city. These because the Khmer Rouge militiamen scattered actions ranged from offensive words and scornful throughout the villages, hiding and listening to people's mocking to torture and execution. For instance, the private conversations. Thus, in their daily lives, their children of base people scorned elderly new people, actions did not become internal. Instead, they had who had to bear their offensive words or possibly to pretend to obey Angkar in order to survive. face death. Also, when Angkar accused someone of Most elderly Cambodians would have wanted being an enemy, he or she was tied up with ropes to live peacefully after their retirement and spend and walked to the killing field by young cadres who time at their Buddhist temple. But in the Khmer Rouge were inspired by Khmer Rouge ideology. These young regime, there was no such place since Buddhism, cadres easily harmed other people, and the culture like other religions, was considered reactionary. Because of torture and killing seemed to come from their the right to believe and worship was eliminated, faith in Angkar. In short, the Khmer Rouge made people could not fulfill their faith and gain peace children or teenagers belong to the improper culture from it. Thus, it appears that the Khmer Rouge's of violence, and the young cadres themselves were policies intentionally eradicated appropriate leisure totally pleased, thinking they were doing the right and unintentionally encouraged inappropriate thing. leisure for the sake of their revolution. All in all, the Khmer Rouge seemed to choose Before the Khmer Rouge overthrew the Lon the right seedlings for planting their revolutionary Nol government, they recruited mostly poor peasants crop and expanding their ideology. They were who believed the revolution's propaganda. Some successful in eliminating good leisure and provided voluntarily served the revolution because they dreamed dark leisure instead. The latter cost thousands of of owning a gun or fighting in battle. Poisoned by deaths, and the results of their dark leisure should the Khmer Rouge's propaganda, they thought that not be forgotten. Hopefully, the upcoming trials will what they were doing was heroic or patriotic. seek justice for the victims of Democratic According to the biographies and interviews with Kampuchea and reveal the acts of wrongdoers. former Khmer Rouge cadres complied at the Documentation Center of Cambodia, most people _________________________ who joined the revolution were under twenty years Simala Pan is a member of DC-Cam's staff.