Interrogated, Tortured, and Executed…Remembering the Victims at Toul Sleng S-21 Prison

Interrogated, Tortured, and Executed…Remembering the Victims at Toul Sleng S-21 Prison

August 18, 2010, 12:21 pm
Filed under: Soma Norodom

14 corpses in front of Building A at Toul Sleng

 

Interrogation and torture room in Building A

 

Photos of prisoners

 

Interrogation and torture machine

 

Torture tools

 

Painting by Vann Nath of torture

 

Cells

 

Torture machine - water

 

Bophana-prisoner at S-21

 

Prisoners' skulls displayed in Building D

 

As I write in my blog of my experiences in Cambodia, one landmark I visited has tugged at my heart. That place is the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum. Before the Khmer Rouge came into power in April 1975, Toul Sleng Svay Prey was a primary school and high school, where students learned Khmer and French, math and science, and had hope for a bright future. The classrooms were filled with teachers lecturing and kids laughing, and now, Toul Sleng is a museum, a memorial, dedicated to the victims of S-21 Prison during Pol Pot’s reign. Haunting photographs of prisoners, tortured tools and machines, human skulls, and 14 victim corpses are displayed at the museum, as Toul Sleng is a testament of the madness of the Khmer Rouge. The Khmer Rouge reign in Cambodia ranked as the most disastrous in modern history.   

On April 17, 1975, led by Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Warden “Duch”, the S-21 was designed for detention, interrogation, torture, and killing after confession from the detainees were received and documented. Toul Sleng in Khmer means “hill of the poisonous trees.” The S-21 Prison processed over 17,000 men, women, and children who were accused of opposing the Pol Pot Regime, or have ties with the American and Vietnamese Government. The letter “S” stood for Security, the number “2” stood for Warden Duch, second in command, and the number “1” stood for Brother Number One, referring to Pol Pot.  His real name is Saloth Sar. Inmates at the prison were interrogated, tortured, and then led to one of the dozens of “Killing Fields” to be executed. Only a few survived the S-21 Prison. Last month, in an international tribunal, Kaing Guek Eav was convicted and sentenced to 30 years in prison for his role and leader at S-21. Survivors and family members of prisoners of Toul Sleng believed the sentence was not harsh enough.   

My father cannot watch any movies or documentaries about the Khmer Rouge Regime.  I remember watching the 1984 movie, “The Killing Fields”, and he did not watch it with us. I cried at the end of the movie, when John Lennon’s song, “Imagine” came on. I still can remember the images from the movie, especially the bones and corpses, known as the “Killing Fields” that Dith Pran, character in the movie, discovers. The film was shot in Thailand, and the close-up shots of blood, rubble, and devastation of the nation is truly the heart of the film. The movie won three Academy Awards, one was for Best Cinematography, and another was for Best Supporting Actor to Dr. Haing S. Ngor, who was the first Cambodian to win an Oscar. Imagine two million lives cut short. Imagine what might have been.   

Even though my father did not experience the Pol Pot Regime first hand, he is still traumatized during this dark period of Cambodian history. He will not talk about it because many of the Royal family, his family members, have been killed, 5 were his own children (3 half sisters, 2 half brothers of mine). You can see in his eyes the pain whenever this topic comes up. In order for me to understand my people’s history, I will have to witness first hand of the place of brutality where the genocide began. This was not an easy trip, as I had been warned by locals that this is not for the weak at heart. But I must go visit the museum, as this is an important part of my heritage.   

The first look at the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum was eerie. Four buildings, which are labeled A, B, C, and D are the areas to tour. The four buildings, three levels each, were turned into small cells, (0.8 x 2 meters) locking up prisoners ranging from scholars, teachers, doctors, military officials, ministers, monks, foreigners, and Pol Pot’s cadres. The Khmer Rouge considered anyone who was a skilled professional or intellectual was an enemy. The front of the buildings was covered in a fishnet of barbed wires, preventing them from escaping. In front of Building A was a burial ground consisting of 14 corpses. The bodies of 14 victims were discovered on January 7, 1979, by the United Front for the National Salvation of Kampuchea (UFNSK). They were the last prisoners to be tortured and killed by S-21 personnel before they fled.   

Right next to the corpses was an interrogation and torture machine, a wooden pole, once used for physical education for the students. The interrogators tied both hands of the prisoners to the back by a rope and lifted the prisoners upside down, until they lost consciousness. Then they dipped the prisoner’s head into a jar of filthy, smelly water, so the victim can regain consciousness, and continue the interrogation. The filthy water was used as fertilizers for the crops in the terrace outside. Other methods of torture included; electric shock, burning with cigarette, water tortures, suffocation with plastic bag, beating with a stick and electric wire, paying homage to images of dogs, tables, chairs, drinking urine, and eating “2 to 3 spoonful of shit.”   

Walking through the buildings I felt the pain and suffering of the victims. It was quiet, despite the numerous tourists. I viewed the rooms full of rows of mug shots of the prisoners, as well as paintings by Vann Nath, of torture and execution. One painting depicted a prisoner getting his finger nails pulled off with pliers, and then the interrogator poured alcohol over it. Vann Nath is a former prisoner and survivor of Toul Sleng. He never witnessed any of the torture, but heard about it from the prisoners. Vann Nath was kept alive because of his skill as an artist, and was put to work painting pictures of Pol Pot. Of the 17,000 prisoners, there were only 12 known survivors, and only 4 are thought to still be alive, one of them is Vann Nath.   

As I was staring at the photos of the leaders of the Khmer Rouge, a man by the name of Pao Thouun, who was visiting the museum with his uncle, asked if I could read the writings below the pictures (which were in Khmer, French, and English). I said, “Only English and I just came from the U.S.” He mentioned that his family was lucky to flee to France and never experienced the Pol Pot Regime, and so did I, my parents, and sister, Tana. His uncle was a high ranking official in the Army, and the Khmer Rouge would have killed him, if he was caught. He asked if I knew about the history, and I told him I’ve recently started reading books about it, as my father does not want to talk about it. I just finished reading the memoir by King Norodom Sihanouk, volume one. He gave me his contact information and mentioned that many books about the Khmer Rouge Regime are biased, and have their own agendas, but the books he will recommend gives the facts. I briefly spoke with his uncle, who has decided to stay for the remainder of his life in Cambodia, instead of France. I mentioned my father has decided to stay in Cambodia as well, instead of the U.S.   

Pao Thouun said, “I must have lived the good life in America.” I said, “No.” My parents both worked, and went to school in the evenings, learning English and taking business courses in a community college. In the U.S., my father was not treated as a prince or a General of the Air Force, but just like the rest of the people trying to make a living. Every day my father lives through the pain of what the war has done to the country and his family, and has never forgotten it. Later, my parents started their own businesses (donut shops, grocery store) and became successful. During the mid 70s there were no government assistance programs for refugees, and my parents earned their money working 7 days a week. My sister, Tana, and I were latchkey kids, having to take care of ourselves most of the time. A latchkey kid is someone who returns from school to an empty house because the parents are working, or left alone with little or no supervision. 

My parents always gave us the materials things we wanted, but lacked the emotional support we needed. They were not available when there were Parent/Teacher Conferences, school recitals and concerts (I played the violin and cello), school field trips, and Spelling Bee competitions. I didn’t understand why my parents never attended these events, and always stood out as the parentless kid in school. The teachers understood, and now I do too. I thank my parents for working really hard, to give us all a college education, and molding me into a strong and independent person, sometimes too independent.   

Building A was used for detaining cadres who were accused of leading a revolt against Pol Pot. Their rooms (6 x 4 meters each), were furnished with a bed, blanket, cushion, a mat, and an iron bucket used to dispose their body waste. The windows were paneled with glass to minimize the sound of screams by prisoners during the torturing process. The blood stains have been removed from these rooms, and only photographs of tortured prisoners in that same room are displayed on the walls. Building B, C, and D were used as cells, divided into small cells with brick walls. The upper floors were used for large cells where many prisoners were crowded together. It felt dark and cold walking through these corridors of brick walls. Seda, who has been here before, waited for me outside in the middle of the terrace as I toured the buildings alone. I rushed through one of the building, since no tourists were there, as I felt a cold chill. Some believed that the spirits of the victims still haunt the place.   

During the tour, Seda and I stopped to watch a one hour documentary of the S-21 Prison, which Seda hasn’t seen. This documentary talked about one of the prisoner, a 25 year old female named Mom (pronounced mum). The documentary featured her mother who told the story about her daughter, Mum, whose real name is Bophana. When the regime began, Cambodians changed their names so the Khmer Rouge would not know who they really were. Bophana was raped, became pregnant, and gave up her son for adoption. Many times she tried to commit suicide, but was unsuccessful. At the time, if you are unwed and pregnant, you were disowned from the family, because the villagers would talk about you. Bophana changed her life around and later was educated in France, and came back to Phnom Penh to work for the government. She was considered an intelligent woman. Her life was beginning to look bright, until, April 1975, the dark days of Cambodia began. The prophecy predicted became a reality.   

The Khmer Rouge Regime took over the city of Phnom Penh, and Bophana, now called Mum, was forced to work as a peasant out in the field. She was married, and her husband was split from her. The Khmer Rouge’s radical program included isolating the country from foreign influence, closing schools, hospitals, factories, and banks, outlawing all religions, confiscating private properties, and relocating people from the city to the countryside, where forced labor was widespread. The entire population was forced to work in labor camps as farmers. Bophana’s mother never understood why the Khmer Rouge split up mothers and fathers from their children, and husbands and wives. They were forced not to learn to love as well.   

Bophana began writing love letters to her husband, as this was rare, because she was educated and could read and write. These letters were later confiscated by the Khmer Rouge, and Bophana was arrested in 1976 and taken to Toul Sleng. After 6 months in prison, on March 18, 1977, Bophana was executed. The Khmer Rouge also killed her husband, and people she talked about in her letters. Her mother, with tears in her eyes, knows that her daughter will never come back home. The painful memory of the regime still lies in the hearts of most Cambodians. Her letters were later founded at S-21, and a book has been published about Bophana’s story, who is considered the Anne Frank of Cambodia. Anne Frank is a renowned Jewish victim of the Holocaust. Known for the quality of her writing, “The Diary of Anne Frank” has become one of the world’s most widely read books, which has been translated into plays and movies.   

A former Toul Sleng employee, who worked as the truck driver, was interviewed in the documentary. I don’t recall his name, as he will be called “Driver.” He was forced by Warden Duch to beat the prisoners before they were killed and later thrown into the field.  Driver mentioned that he was scared of Duch, and had to do whatever Duch ordered, or else, he would be killed. Driver never killed any of the prisoners, and stated he only beat up 5 of them. He was responsible for taking them from their cells at night and transporting them to the field. Sometimes there were 3, or 5, or as many as 30 prisoners. Two trucks had to be used. The prisoners were blindfolded, as Driver helped them walk to the trucks. They asked him if they were going to be killed. Driver just told them, “No. You are going to another facility”. But this was not the truth. The prisoners were beaten and executed, and the inhumane acts were witnessed by the head chiefs and Warden Duch.   

Building D displayed horrific photographs and paintings of the gruesome acts at Toul Sleng. One of the room displayed skulls of the prisoners, stored in glass cabinets. Some of the human skulls were individually displayed in glass cases. I couldn’t read the writing because it was in French and Khmer. High above the wall was a photograph of the bones and skulls of the prisoners dumped at the killing field of Choeung Ek, 30 minutes outside the city of Phnom Penh. Choeung Ek Memorial is now a group of mass graves and a memorial containing thousands of human bones and skulls. This was chilling to view, as I thought about the movie, ‘”The Killing Fields.” I prayed for the victims at one of the spot located in this building.   

The Toul Sleng Genocide Museum was opened on August 19, 1979 when Kampuchea People’s Tribunal started prosecuting the leaders of the Khmer Rouge, which also includes Ieng Sary and Khiev Samphorn. Pol Pot never went to trial because he died in 1998. Some believed he was poisoned.   

Keeping the memory of the bloody regime, the oppression, anguish and suffering caused by the Khmer Rouge, is the key to building a stronger nation and preventing new “Pol Pot” from emerging in Cambodia, or anywhere in the world. Visiting Toul Sleng gave me a chance to witness the brutal acts by the Khmer Rouge, the worst genocide in history, and getting closer to understanding my people’s history.   

As I started walking toward the entrance of Toul Sleng, I looked back at the buildings and stopped for a moment of silence. In April 1975, my parents, Tana and I were vacationing in Thailand when the country fell into the hands of the Khmer Rouge. Because my father was stationed in the Thai Air Force Base in Bangkok, and his connection with the U.S. Air Force, we were immediately flown straight to the U.S. Imagine what would have happened if we were in Phnom Penh. My father or mother probably would have been taken to Toul Sleng, and I, at the age of 5, would have been parted from them and my sister. Maybe that is why my father does not want to talk about it, because he feels guilty giving the opportunity to live. He never had a chance to say goodbye to his family and kids, and after all these years, his heart still aches. Then I thought about the comment that Pao Thouun made to me earlier. I did live the good life in America, because I was fortunate to live.

2 Comments

2 Comments so far
Leave a comment

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI