Thursday | December 4, 2014
Where was God? Today we visited Phnom Penh’s Security Prison S-21 where over 17,000 intellectuals were brutally tortured, and the killing fields of Choeung Ek where over 8,985 people were savagely murdered. Where was God?
It was going to be a long and tiring day, which it proved to be. We left Sihanoukville at 5:00 AM for our 4 ½ hour drive to Phnom Penh. On this occasion, it was just three of us – we had rented a private van for the 15 hour day. Our driver was terrific. Thankfully, he did not leave us to meet the fate of this poor guy we saw on our way to Phnom Penh.
Our driver was advertised as not being able to speak English. We were to meet our English-speaking guide once we arrived in Phnom Penh. But our driver turned out to be a pleasant fellow with a rudimentary command of English. As a result, we were able to communicate about life’s basics, such as the need for more air conditioning or a bathroom stop.
We left the ship in pitch dark, driving the first hour on bumpy, dirt pothole-filled roads, made worse by last night’s rain storms. But by about 6:00, the sun had started to rise and we were each finding seats that were comfortable so we could settle in for the day’s long ride.
By seven o’clock a.m., we had seen a virtual zoo of assorted Cambodian wildlife. We saw bands of roving monkeys, oxen, cats, dogs, roosters and hundreds of cows just wandering around singly or in small groups along side the road, feasting on garbage in the deep garbage-filled troughs which lined the road.
There is no lack of food for them in that respect. Unfortunately (or fortunately for us), we have never seen so much garbage interspersed with places of daily life, in any country before.
We stopped once or twice for gas and bathroom breaks. At those locations, which were very remote and desolate, we saw more pits of garbage everywhere. But on a pleasant note, we were able to get huge platters of delicious fresh papaya or mango for one dollar each.
At one of the stops, we saw a small caravan of young boys on ATVs, with their carts full of freshly slaughtered pigs.
The toilets were equally uncivilized. The “toilet” itself was a ceramic bowl (though the women’s was just a ceramic hole on the floor), but next to it was a large plastic pail with the dipping cup. After one finished one’s business, one had to reach into the pail, get some cups of water and pour them into the toilet so it would “flush.”
Once we got about two hours from our destination, we observed the same roadside crappy stores we saw in Vietnam. Only these were worse, more rundown and filthy.
Nor were things made better by the long dusty roads that were heavily traveled. Unlike Vietnam, there was more vehicular traffic than motorbikes. As a result, there was dust everywhere. Even electronics stores were open to the unpaved roads, resulting in everything being covered with dust.
But when got close to Phnom Penh, we did notice two very impressive looking office towers. So, there is some evidence that society is beginning to rebuild Cambodia.
We met our guide, Kim, and the fascinating part of the day began.
Cambodia is presently home to 25 million people; approximately 2 million live in the city of Phnom Penh. The country holds elections every five years “but they are not free and fair.” Instead, Kim explained, the government deploys soldiers to make sure the results are in fact what the government wants them to be. He also shared the perspective that some people believe the Cambodian government is merely a puppet of Vietnam.
I am sure these fine gentlemen are caring, noble civil servants with only the people’s best interests at heart.
When I commented about the lack of dogs roaming the streets, especially given the fact that spaying or neutering doesn’t really exist in Cambodia, our guide assured us that: “Cambodians don’t eat dogs. Only the Chinese and Vietnamese do that.” Hmm, so maybe those weren’t pork dumplings after all!
In 1955, Cambodia was transformed from a monarchy into a democracy. In 1964, Cambodia allowed the Viet Cong to move in, much to the protestations of the aristrocracy and the intelligencia who were wary of the increased role of the Khmer Rouge. The United States tried to bomb the Vietcong soldiers who were present in Cambodia, but killed many civilians during the process– and strengthened the power and influence of Khmer Rouge.
We then spoke generally about the Khmer Rouge regime and its infamous leader, Pol Pot. (Incidentally, we learned that the name Pol Pot was a derisive abbreviation for “political potential.”) Pol Pot’s sister had been a concubine to the king; that is how he became enmeshed in Cambodia’s inner circle. While all the hostilities were going on with Vietnam and the United States, China invited Pol Pot to join the Khmer Rouge in China, which he did. It was from that platform that he gained the power and backing necessary to return to Cambodia and take it over following the bombings in 1975.
The Khmer Rouge came to prominence and power in Cambodia around 1975. There are those who would suggest that America played a role in that because America’s bombing of Cambodia weakened the Cambodian government such that it was ripe for the Khmer Rouge, aligned with the Chinese government, to seize control of Cambodia. At that time, the Khmer Rouge forced approximately 2 million Cambodians to move out of the cities. The people were taken to work farms in the country where they were required to work 12 hours a day, every day of the year. Even children, over eight years old, were forced to work. They were more concerned with exporting rice for China to get money than they were feeding their own people. As a result, many Cambodians starved to death – perhaps as many as 1 million. But the intellectuals and teachers were the ones who received the harshest forms of detention and torture.
The Khmer Rouge harbored an explicit resentment of intellectuals, teachers and all who were loyal to the king and the previous government. The Khmer Rouge forced everyone in Cambodia to work and try to implement communism. Moreover, from 1978 to 1991, no one in Cambodia was allowed to study English and its study was punishable by imprisonment. When the Khmer Rouge eventually was toppled in 1979, Pol Pot was not part of the peace process. Instead, he fled to the Western Forest where he lived with his own army before dying a natural death. (Our guide, on the other hand, suggested that his death may not have been so natural.)
Our first stop was the Royal Palace. It was originally constructed in 1434 and then reconstructed in 1866. The sprawling palace grounds encompass 435 x 421 kilometers.
The first building we entered was the Golden pagoda, built in 1917. Because Cambodian law forbids the taking of photographs in any temple, you do not have to suffer through them in this blog. But the temple was magnificent. We were unable to go into it, but just viewed it through the various windows. Interestingly, the king sat on the throne only once.
Behind the Victory Gate, which is open for national holidays and visits from the heads of state, was a huge billboard displaying the face of the existing king of Cambodia on this, his 61st birthday.
Next door was the Silver Pagoda. And that is a majestic place. Built in 1962, the floor of the pagoda is made of 6 tons of silver. All the marble was imported from Italy. In the center of the pagoda is an extraordinary Buddha made from Baccarat crystal which sits on top of an impressive gilded pedestal. Adding to the lavish mix is a life size Buddha made from solid gold weighing 198 pounds and adorned with 9584 diamonds, the largest of which is 25 carats. Behind that statue of Buddha is an emerald Buddha, said to have been carved out of a single emerald, which is extraordinary.
In the palace grounds, there are a series of funeraires, large obelisk – shaped monuments that are built to contain the cremated remains of the leaders of Cambodia. On a smaller scale, around the countryside, more of these funeraires exist to house the ashes of local digniataries.
We also visited a small museum outside the palace grounds, a tribute to the 2004 coronation of the king. We were able to view some of the costumes worn by the king and his wives.
Our next stop was the national Museum of Cambodia which houses an elegant terra-cotta building located to the north of the Royal Palace.
The building was constructed in 1917 and is home to the world’s finest collection of over 1,000 Khmer sculptures. It is made of four pavilions that surround an attractive garden. Each pavilion displays a different type of medium – bronze, textile, bamboo or sandstone. It houses pre-Angkorian works, including several striking statues of Shiva from the 10th and 11th centuries. At the museum, we also learned that when Buddha sits on a snake, the snake has seven heads that form the back of the chair.
We had a nice lunch at Khmer Surin, where we each ordered Fish Amok, a traditional Cambodian dish- delicious!
Then, the day turned dark. Security Prison 21, or S-21, had been a high school before 1975. But then, it became a torturous morgue.
At that time, the Khmer Rouge established a prison and a killing field in every village of Cambodia. The prisons were usually buildings that had previously housed schools or churches – large enough to be able to house and torture thousands of people. It is estimated that there were 167 prisons and 343 killing fields.
Of the 7 million citizens of Cambodia in 1975, 3 million were killed in these fields.
S – 21 would soon become the largest center for detention and torture in all of Cambodia. Over 17,000 people held at S-21 were tortured repeatedly – at least twice a week. Most inmates were detained there 1-2 months, but intellectuals and teachers were often held for 6-7 months. There were various forms of torture, one more gruesome than the next. For example, some prisoners were stripped naked and had scorpions applied to their nipples or private parts. Other prisoners had their fingernails pulled out and their hands soaked in alcohol. And yet others were hung upside down from a jungle gym until they passed out. And when they did, their heads were dipped into these vats of water so they could regain consciousness only to be tortured further.
We also viewed the various instruments of torture.
Barbed wire that was nailed to the front of all the dorms in case anyone thought about trying to escape by committing suicide.
The Khmer Rouge kept meticulous records of their barbarism. Each prisoner admitted to S – 21 was photographed, sometimes before and after being tortured. When Vietnam toppled Pol Pot in 1979, they found the rolls of film of all the inmates of S-21, all of whom had been murdered – except for 7 who managed to survive. It is estimated that there were 10,000 photos of detainees in the buildings we saw.
The Vietnamese also photographed the prisoners they found still shackled to their beds – often alive, but sometimes dead and just left there.
There was no talking amongst the prisoners. Anyone caught speaking would be tortured. There were many other onerous rules as well, many of which are posted here.
The point of the torture was simple, yet unnerving. The inmates were forced to provide their family histories so the Khmer could track down all their relatives and torture and kill them as well. Where Cambodians had fled the country to the United States or other nations, the detainees were forced to write letters telling them that the new government was wonderful and they should return. When they did, they were met at the airport and driven right to the killing fields where they were murdered instantly.
We spent quite a lot of time walking through the barracks in which the people had been held and tortured. It was the most eerie thing I have ever experienced. The Cambodian government has done nothing to change the appearance of S – 21, maintaining its horrific and violent history for all to witness. Perhaps most touching and terrifying were the many blood stains on the floors we walked on in all of the buildings. There was not a single cell, or a single room, without massive amounts of blood stains.
There were also collections of skulls and bones.
These were artifacts that had been found inside S-21. But they were nothing compared to what we were to see just an hour later.
This somber place was unsurprisingly quiet as one could not help but be consumed with what had happened here. In the unlikely event one didn’t get the message, signs warned against laughing or talking.
If S-21 had not been enough, we next visited the killing fields of Choeung Ek. Between 1975 and 1978, Around 17,000 men, women, children and infants who were previously detained and tortured at S – 21 were transported to the extermination camp of Choeung Ek. To avoid wasting precious bullets, they were often brutally bludgeoned to death. Forced to kneel on the sides of the pits, the prisoners then endured spears or clubs hitting them in the back, with Khmer Rouge soldiers slicing their throats open and kicking them into the pits below.
The pits, although covered by thin layers of grass are easily identifiable.
Many actual remnants of those victims remained and are visible today.
As are their bones peeking up through the dirt under foot.
We could also seek the marks on the trees where the victims had their heads removed by machete.
In 1980, the remains of 8985 people, many bound and blindfolded, were exhumed from mass graves. 43 of the 192 communal graves have been left untouched. Over 1000 skulls, arranged by gender and age are displayed behind the clear glass panels of the Memorial Stupa, a huge funeraire such as we saw earlier in the day. But this one is 19 stories high and the bones are separated and organized by skulls, femurs, tibias, jaws, and other parts of the body.
One mass grave housed 166 people, all of whom were found headless. It is presumed that they were high ranking political prisoners.
Another mass grave contained the bodies of over 100 women and children, all of whom were raped before being killed and thrown into this particular pit.
I could wax on and on about all we saw in the killing fields, but it would seem too macabre and sensational. Nor need I post more photos than absolutely necessary to convey the sad and deranged nature of this place.
As we left the killing fields, we heard the sounds of young boys and girls playing, cheering and screaming in a schoolyard not far away. There was something happily redeeming about those sounds. As was the case with this small boy playing innocently only yards from where those thousands of bodies still lie buried.
Two facts stuck with us like the heavy smell of salt in the ocean air. First, all this happened in our lifetime; we were adults at the time this was happening. Second, as we walked along the dirt paths from mass grave to mass grave – and from exhibit to exhibit – we were actually walking on bones and clothing that continue to rise to the surface as the heavy rains expose them. And not just one or two bones, but hundreds. We actually bent down to touch one or two, and perhaps say a prayer. And ask yet again, “Where was God?”
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