Killing fields - My visit to Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia

After my return from the recent trip to Phnom Penh in late June, I have been putting off blogging until last night when I was told that the day was the 15th day of the seven-month festival, a.k.a. the "Hungry Ghost Festival" here.
In June, I have spent a week or so on a job assignment in Phnom Penh, capital of the Kingdom of Cambodia. Everything went smoothly as scheduled and I was fortunate to make time for visits to the central market, Russian market where imitation of many kinds can be had for a couple of dollars, the National Museum, Royal Palace and Tuol Sleng Museum, the infamous detention prison, torture and execution centre in the heart of the city.
Tuol Sleng, S-21, the former high school is located in Tuol Svay Prey sub-district, south of Phnom Penh. We paid US$2 each for the entrance fee. BTW, the Cambodians use US dollars beside their currency, Riel. Thai baht is also welcome in supermarkets and shopping centres. Outside Tuol Sleng Museum, the scene is disheartening. Amputees and other beggars beg near the entrance and refreshment stands. The once school may look benign, with palm trees and grass lawns in a suburban setting. From the outside, Tuol Sleng could be a school anywhere in the world. But, what you are about to see is equally disheartening – there are weapons of torture, skulls, blood stains and photographs of thousands of people who were murdered inside the ‘school’. I was appalled by the inhumane, horrifying and cruel tortures depicted in artifacts, pictures, and photographs. 17,000 victims were probably tortured and killed in a short spell of 3 years, only 7 survived. The Khmer Rouge kept meticulous records of their work. Every prisoner was photographed upon arrival – they were forced to sit on a wooden chair with a rod stemming out from the back and directing the position where their head should be. There were children, women with babies and young men among the prisoners. The few foreigners who were killed at Tuol Sleng also have their testaments on the wall.
How could this happen? How could anyone torture these children and women with babies? I know the history. I have heard the Khmer Rouge rhetoric about creating a utopia. But I still cannot understand! In the same way, I cannot understand how the Japanese soldiers could have murdered so many innocent men, women and children during World War II. Such mass cruelty is beyond my comprehension. I was told that most, if not all, of the tortures were carried out by young, uneducated Khmer Rouge recruits. This reinforces my belief that education is the very foundation and institution that everyone in this world, regardless of the societal strata level one is in, family status, race, religion or wealth, should not be deprived of, for the uneducated will always be disadvantaged and manipulated by others.
I thought I would probably spent an hour or so there. It turned out that I actually spent more time. I was both shocked and saddened! I decided to abort the trip to the killing fields of Choeung Ek, some 14.5 kilometres from the city centre, for obvious reasons. I have had enough of the genocide practised by the Khmer Rouge during the late 70s – probably an atrocity of the worst kind. This is where human rights activists should focus on more, not those activities commonly heard of in first world city centre such as those staged by failongong and what have you. I shall not go on.
Next time, when you are in Cambodia. There are two things you must see in Cambodia. Obviously, one is Angkor Wat. You must also not miss the killing fields, one of which – the killing fields of Choeung Ek - has been turned into a tourist attraction. Another notorious site is the Tuol Sleng Museum of Genocide in Phnom Penh - a high school converted torture camp, prison and execution centre that I have just described earlier. If you have more time, make a trip to the world’s second largest lake, Tonle Sap and all the sites I have mentioned earlier. By the way, it takes about 4-5 hours to get to Angkor Wat in Siam Reap from Phnom Penh.