Searching for the truth Issues 21 - Documentation Center of Cambodia
Searching for the truth Issues 21 - Documentation Center of Cambodia
Searching for the truth Issues 21 - Documentation Center of Cambodia
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
<strong>Searching</strong> <strong>for</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>truth</strong> ⎯ Family Tracing<br />
guard banged <strong>the</strong> table and said, ‘You are all<br />
members <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> militia unit!’ Because <strong>the</strong>y<br />
intimidated me, I told <strong>the</strong>m <strong>the</strong> <strong>truth</strong>. Every one <strong>of</strong> us<br />
was questioned. Of <strong>the</strong> three times I was called to be<br />
questioned, I told <strong>the</strong>m a lie that ‘I don’t have any<br />
relatives.’ Previous captives told me that if I told <strong>the</strong>m<br />
<strong>the</strong> <strong>truth</strong> about this, <strong>the</strong> Khmer Rouge would search<br />
<strong>for</strong> my relatives.<br />
“In addition to questioning us, <strong>the</strong> Khmer<br />
Rouge guards ordered all <strong>the</strong> prisoners to work at<br />
farms, collect firewood, move earth, and carry water<br />
to <strong>the</strong> tanks with our hands and shoulders. The<br />
prisoners were <strong>for</strong>ced to work continuously all day<br />
long, and were provided insufficient food.”<br />
During his one year <strong>of</strong> detainment, Sam Ol was<br />
moved to three different reeducation camps. He<br />
revealed: “After being detained at Prek Rey prison <strong>for</strong><br />
two weeks, <strong>the</strong> Khmer Rouge moved 15 prisoners<br />
including me to Snay Pol reeducation camp in Pea<br />
Reang District, Prey Veng Province <strong>for</strong> one day<br />
be<strong>for</strong>e continuing to Prek Kralanh reeducation camp.<br />
Prisoners who were relocated from Prek Rey prison<br />
to Snay Pol prison were not shackled. Instead, <strong>the</strong><br />
Khmer Rouge tied <strong>the</strong>m using only sewing thread.<br />
‘Anybody who causes <strong>the</strong> threads to detach will be<br />
shot immediately!’ Luckily, <strong>the</strong> guards did not mean<br />
what <strong>the</strong>y said, because as we were walking, if<br />
someone walked too fast, <strong>the</strong> person behind him had<br />
to remind <strong>the</strong> person in front: ‘Don’t walk too fast,<br />
<strong>the</strong> thread will be detached.’ Whenever <strong>the</strong> threads<br />
broke, <strong>the</strong> prisoners spoke in fright, ‘Help! Help<br />
connect <strong>the</strong> threads toge<strong>the</strong>r.’ The Khmer Rouge<br />
soldiers roared with laughter when <strong>the</strong>y heard that.<br />
“When we reached a village consisting <strong>of</strong><br />
approximately ten families, <strong>the</strong> villagers came out.<br />
They were carrying sticks, knives, axes, and hoes.<br />
They ga<strong>the</strong>red around <strong>the</strong> prisoners saying,<br />
‘Comrades! Exchange chickens with us! These men<br />
are imperialists! Take our chickens!’ All <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />
prisoners were scared stiff <strong>of</strong> being slaughtered by<br />
<strong>the</strong> villagers. Fortunately, Santebal prohibited <strong>the</strong>m.<br />
They led us <strong>for</strong> three more days until we reached<br />
Snay Pul prison. In fact, <strong>the</strong> distance from Prek Rey<br />
<strong>Documentation</strong> <strong>Center</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Cambodia</strong> (DC-Cam)<br />
Number <strong>21</strong>, September 2001<br />
to Snay Pul was only a day’s walk. At night, <strong>the</strong><br />
guards led <strong>the</strong> prisoners from Snay Pul to Prek<br />
Kralanh prison, which was my final prison.”<br />
Sam Ol was detained in Prek Kralanh <strong>for</strong><br />
almost a year. On 17 April 1975 when <strong>the</strong> Khmer<br />
Rouge occupied Phnom Penh, he was allowed to<br />
farm <strong>for</strong> <strong>the</strong> new regime, which he called a “prison<br />
without walls.”<br />
Sam Ol talked fur<strong>the</strong>r about his life during his<br />
year <strong>of</strong> captivity in Prek Kralanh: “When I was<br />
detained in Prek Rey prison <strong>for</strong> a week, <strong>the</strong> chief <strong>of</strong><br />
<strong>the</strong> prison told us in a meeting that ‘We’ll move on in<br />
order to live with our people.’ I was very glad to hear<br />
about living with ordinary people, but in reality <strong>the</strong>y<br />
brought us to ano<strong>the</strong>r prison, Prek Kralanh. At Prek<br />
Kralanh <strong>the</strong> prison chief said that ‘We come here to<br />
get conditioned. So, try hard to rebuild yourself from<br />
today on.’ I was always wondering, ‘How do I temper<br />
and build myself?’ The Khmer Rouge conditioned<br />
<strong>the</strong> prisoners on every aspect <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir lives from<br />
sleeping to walking to eating: ‘Train and train until<br />
<strong>the</strong> prisoners became skinny and bony.’ The Khmer<br />
Rouge turned schools into prisons. There were about<br />
30 prisoners at my prison. Five inmates were kept in<br />
a single room. We were provided two meals a day-at<br />
11 a.m. and at 5 p.m. A ladle <strong>of</strong> porridge was given<br />
to each prisoner and a bowl <strong>of</strong> crab sour-soup <strong>for</strong> five<br />
prisoners in a meal. The soup had half a crab and five<br />
slices <strong>of</strong> giant cactus tree as a vegetable. Each person<br />
was allowed only one spoon <strong>of</strong> soup. We did not have<br />
real bowls <strong>for</strong> our rice or porridge; <strong>the</strong>y were made<br />
instead from palm leaves. We had to gulp our thin<br />
boiled-rice immediately after <strong>the</strong> cooks poured it into<br />
our leaf bowls; o<strong>the</strong>rwise it would be gone in seconds<br />
through leaks. We gulped down <strong>the</strong> boiled-rice first<br />
and drank <strong>the</strong> soup later.<br />
“At dawn, <strong>the</strong> deputy chief <strong>of</strong> security assigned<br />
us to do various jobs. Some were appointed to<br />
transplant rice. O<strong>the</strong>rs were told to pull rice seedlings<br />
or fill water tanks. The chief prohibited all inmates<br />
from communicating with villagers. When meeting<br />
villagers, a prisoner was not to tell <strong>the</strong>m about his or<br />
her miserable life in prison, <strong>for</strong> this was ‘a secret <strong>of</strong><br />
45<br />
100 100 100 100 100 100 50 50 50 50<br />
Black<br />
Yellow<br />
Magenta<br />
Cyan