Khmer Rouge
One of Pol Pot's mottoes was, "To keep you is no benefit. To destroy you is no loss." Anyone with an education, or even the appearance of education was immediately killed. The Khmer Rouge carried out a radical program that included isolating the country from foreign influence, closing schools, hospitals and factories, abolishing banking, finance, and currency, outlawing all religions, confiscating all private property and relocating people from urban areas to collective farms where forced labor was widespread. The purpose of this policy was to turn Cambodians back into "Old People" through agricultural labor. Children were separated from their parents and brainwashed, and then given leadership in torture and execution. Young children were often forced to watch their parents being killed and then they themselves were killed for fear that they would grow up and take revenge. All of this resulted in massive deaths due to the numerous executions, work exhaustion, illness, and starvation. There was an estimated 1.7 million deaths, although, there is no definite number. It was between 1/5 and 1/3 of Cambodia's population.
These 14 graves at the genocide museum were the last 14 people killed by the S.21 guards and were found when the prison was overtaken in 1979.
One of the torture rooms
A place of learning turned into a place of torture.....the chalkboard still on the wall.
Demands of the regime
Pictures of some of the victims. Mothers with babies....
...men with a look of wild desperation in their eyes...
...and children. :(
One of the tiny cells, only 6x2.5 feet.
Other devices of torture...
We also went out to visit the Killing Fields where mass graves have been unearthed. There are many of these sites all over Cambodia, but this is one of the biggest ones.
Piles of the victims clothing that was removed before their were killed.
The indents in the ground are where they dug up the graves.
This was the "magic tree" where they hung loud speakers blaring music to drowned out the wailing and mourning coming from the victims.
Another site of a mass grave.
This is the "killing tree" where many young children died after their parents were killed.
Bones protruding from the earth..... who knows how many bodies were never discovered.
Being there, seeing all this, was saddening and angering. How could one group of people do this to their fellow human beings? It's beyond me. But it's just another reminder of how much this world needs Jesus.... especially the people in Cambodia who are still scarred and suffering from what they experienced during that time.
This is a poem displayed at the genocide museum that captures a glimpse of what life must have been like under the rule of the Khmer Rouge. It's long, but worth the read.
The New Regime
By Sarith Pou
No religious rituals.
No religious symbols.
No fortune tellers.
No traditional healers.
No paying respect to elders.
No social status. No titles.
No education. No training.
No school. No learning.
No books. No library.
No science. No technology.
No pens. No paper.
No currency. No bartering.
No buying. No selling.
No begging. No giving.
No purses. No wallets.
No human rights. No liberty.
No courts. No judges.
No laws. No attorneys.
No communications.
No public transportation.
No private transportation.
No traveling. No mailing.
No inviting. No visiting.
No faxes. No telephones.
No social gatherings.
No chitchatting.
No jokes. No laughter.
No music. No dancing.
No romance. No flirting.
No fornication. No dating.
No love songs. No love letters.
No affection.
No marrying. No divorcing.
No marital conflicts. No fighting.
No profanity. No cursing.
No shoes. No sandals.
No toothbrushes. No razors.
No combs. No mirrors.
No lotion. No makeup.
No long hair. No braids.
No jewelry.
No soap. No detergent. No shampoo.
No knitting. No embroidering.
No colored clothes, except black.
No styles, except pajamas.
No wine. No palm sap hooch.
No lighters. No cigarettes.
No morning coffee. No afternoon tea.
No snacks. No desserts.
No breakfast, (sometimes no dinner).
No mercy. No forgiveness.
No regret. No remorse.
No second chances. No excuses.
No complaints. No grievances.
No help. No favors.
No eyeglasses. No dental treatment.
No vaccines. No medicines.
No hospitals. No doctors.
No disabilities. No social diseases.
No tuberculosis. No leprosy.
No kites. No marbles. No rubber bands.
No cookies. No popsicles. No candy.
No playing. No toys.
No lullabies.
No rest. No vacations.
No holidays. No weekends.
No games. No sports.
No staying up late.
No newspapers.
No radio. No TV.
No drawing. No painting.
No pets. No pictures.
No electricity. No lamp oil.
No clocks. No watches.
No hope. No life.
A third of the people didn’t survive.
The regime died.
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