Cambodia

The popular history of the Khmer Rouge regime (1975 to 1979) when nearly 2 million Cambodians - a full quarter of the population – died from execution, starvation, forced labour, malnutrition and torture is one that permeates the public consciousness. It is a cacophony of voices and stories that flash across memory, when one thinks of popular Cambodian history, from the stacked skulls extracted from the killing fields to the images of mangled iron beds in the S21 prison. However, there are some stories yet to be told, especially in fleshing out the publicly available information with personal details. Three exhibits from Cambodia will focus on survivors’ narratives from the period of history dominated by the Khmer Rouge, especially the treatment of ethnic and religious minorities, and the continuing need for memorialising the victims of violence through inter-generational dialogue.

In April 1975, the war in Vietnam ended. Yet, in Cambodia the Khmer Rouge (KR) revolutionaries took over, ruling until January 1979. During that time, more than 1.7 million people died from starvation, overwork, lack of health care, and executions. In December 1978, the Vietnamese army swept into Cambodia with a core group of former KR Cambodians who had fled to Vietnam during the Vietnamese War. Civil war then broke out in Cambodia and along the Thai-Cambodian border between four factions: the Vietnamese-backed People’s Republic of Kampuchea (PRK) headed by Prime Minister Hun Sen (who remains prime minister today), versus the KR and the non-communist resistance (NCR) led by Cambodia’s former king Sihanouk, and Republicans led by Son Sann. Prolonging the conflict, each side was supported by external actors, who played along Cold War divides. The war stretched on for fourteen years until the autumn of 1991. The Paris Peace Agreements (PPA) offered a comprehensive political settlement aimed at ending the “tragic conflict and continuing bloodshed in Cambodia” and ended the Vietnam-Cambodia conflict and brought foreign troops out of Cambodia. Once signed, the PPA created the first large multinational UN peacekeeping mission of the post–Cold War era. Within the commonly held narratives of the brutality and violence of the Cambodian civil war, The Peace Institute of Cambodia, Youth for Peace Cambodia and Kdei-Karuna share little-heard stories and perspectives of survivors highlighting the need to ‘never forget’.

Sketched Pain

Few official documentations exist, either by former cadres of the Khmer Rouge or of victim-survivors from the areas surrounding former security centres such as Kraing Ta Chan. After the war, villagers and perpetrators of violence, lived for decades holding onto their suffering, shame and painful memories. The telling of these memories can at times re-traumatise but it can also heal over time. The Peace Institute Cambodia acknowledges that difficult histories of violence are traumatic and transgenerational. But they also believe that these long-forgotten stories must be shared with new generations if they are to understand history, remember the human cost of war and possibly prevent recurrence of violent conflict in the future. The following exhibit from the project “Stories from the Ground: Memory Sketch of Kraing Ta Chan Security Centre” showcases victim-survivor descriptions of life during the Khmer Rouge as drawn by students in an effort to document and process the transgenerational trauma of the people surrounding the centre.

Exhibits

Do or Die

Kdei-Karuna aims to encourage empathy and understanding from hatred and anger through a deep, reflective dialogue process, helping people to voice their painful memories. This project focuses on little heard narratives of suppression of ethnic minorities and sexual and gender based violence. Under the Khmer Rouge regime, Khmer, ethnic minorities, and indigenous peoples were prohibited from practicing their religion. Khmer Rouge primarily targeted Cham, Vietnamese and Khmer Kampuchea Krom. These ethnic minorities were expelled, systematically killed or made to work in inhuman conditions. The Khmer Rouge also deprived people of individual rights, including the right to choose a marriage partner. Selected by the Angkar, most couples were arbitrarily married without choice or consent. Those who voiced their disagreement were detained, severely tortured, or sent to work far from their cooperatives. Aside from forced marriage, Khmer Rouge cadres committed other forms of sexual violence throughout the period. The four oral histories bear witness to these crimes.

Exhibits

The Monk-Dug Canal

Youth for Peace Cambodia’s co-documentation projects attempt to contribute to memory-building, truth-seeking, healing and reconciliation in Samrong Knong, Battambang in Cambodia. To preserve history and narratives of the community, Youth for Peace brings together youth and those whose experiences need to be documented – in this case Buddhist monks who were forced to relinquish their robes - they create space for co-documentation, understanding and healing without which these stories will disappear from public memory. The co-documentation process transforms both individuals, and transfers memory between generations. This is the story of Tun Tem, a victim-survivor and former monk as told to Rachana Chetha and Keo Rancha, a student.