Built to Last: Reconciliation for the Khmer Kampuchea Kroam

Aileen Tsao

Seattle University School of Law



Pursat is a quiet province, rich with fruit trees and rice fields. However, despite Pursat’s peaceful appearance, two thousand people, mostly of the Khmer Kampuchea Kroam, were killed in the sugarcane fields during the Khmer Rouge regime. Thirty years later, on August 2, 2009, more than four hundred community members gathered next to the same sugarcane field to participate in the Documentation Center of Cambodia’s Living Documents project. The participants shared their experiences with the Khmer Rouge, learned about the ECCC, and discussed the establishment of a permanent memorial for the victims and to educate future generations.



The first memorial was built by the community members shortly after the Khmer Rouge. However, the wooden structure rotted over time and the victims’ bones were temporarily re-buried under a Banyan tree. Now, DC-Cam will be assisting the community to construct a new memorial. To ensure that the memorial lasts, the structure will be designed by architecture students from Columbia University , USA . The building itself will be funded by the community, DC-Cam’s friends and the final design will be unanimously agreed on by the residents. Additionally, this memorial will include a book with the victims’ names and a library to educate and preserve documents.



Brief History of the Khmer Kampuchea Kroam

The Khmer Kampuchea Kroam are an ethnic minority from the Mekong region of Vietnam . Faced with political oppression and discrimination, many of the Khmer Kampuchea Kroam moved to the Pursat province for freedom and agricultural opportunities. During the Khmer Rouge regime, people were brought from the Eastern Zone of Cambodia to Pursat to be killed, including the Khmer Kampuchea Kroam, Cham Muslims, and other ethnic minorities. The Khmer Rouge considered the Khmer Kampuchea Kroam as having a “Vietnamese brain in a Khmer body;” consequently, the majority of those killed in Pursat were Khmer Kampuchea Kroam.



“Speak from the Heart”

The community gathered not only to discuss the new memorial, but to seek healing from one another. The commune chiefs encouraged participants to “speak from the heart,” by sharing their stories, opinions and suggestions for moving forward. Although DC-Cam organized the event and distributed history textbooks on the Khmer Rouge, this meeting focused on reconciliatory dialogue among the community members themselves.



Youk Chhang, Director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, led with a personal story of how the Khmer Rouge devastated his family. Youk’s sister, brother-in-law, and two of their children died in Pursat during the Khmer Rouge regime. Youk’s brother-in-law was brutally beaten by the Khmer Rouge when he was caught taking a cucumber to his family; a cucumber that the cadres had discarded. Left weak and unable to sit up, he died several days later from his injuries and starvation. Youk’s sister then became very ill after her husband’s death and was unable to nurse her infant son. Although she begged other nursing women for breast milk to feed her son, he eventually passed away also. Youk’s sister was later killed by the Khmer Rouge when they wrongfully accused her of stealing rice and cut her stomach open. Following the death of Youk’s sister, his niece, Thevin, developed a painful tumor in her lower back that could not be healed despite her grandmother’s best efforts. As a result of the tumor, Thevin also passed away. Thevin’s sister, Theavy, also Youk’s surviving niece, has since recounted to Youk her memories of hearing her sister screaming in pain until one day her sister stopped crying. Theavy’s last memory of her sister is watching her float away on her bed during the flooding season.



The participants fell silent upon hearing Youk describe his family experiences. In a society where survivors may be resistant to recounting the trauma they experienced, Youk was an example of how reconciliation requires individuals to share their stories so others may understand the history and impact of the Khmer Rouge.



“Be Involved and Use Freedom of Expression”

The five commune chiefs spoke honestly and passionately with the participants. The chiefs voiced their support for the ECCC and encouraged survivors to share their stories with their children. The district chief asked why there were not more students in attendance and challenged survivors to talk with their children and grandchildren to avoid future atrocities. Another commune chief who came with 120 individuals from his area stressed that communication is also important for victims and cadres to be able to live side-by-side. He stated that all the survivors must share openly and not fear further persecution. A third commune chief also encouraged participants to “be involved and use freedom of expression.” Emphasizing his support for the ECCC and DC-Cam’s assistance to the trial, he stated that the tribunal would help to bring justice in the form of symbolic reparation and compensation for Cambodia .



“Not 100 per cent, but enough”

The meeting also educated and invited questions on the Khmer Rouge Tribunal at the ECCC. Seven community members who had observed the Duch trial with DC-Cam shared their experience visiting the ECCC. Afterwards when asked whether they supported the ECCC, the majority of the crowd raised their hands enthusiastically.



After the meeting I had the opportunity to speak with several Khmer Rouge survivors. All of the survivors I spoke with expressed feelings of anger and pain. Surprisingly, none desired revenge; rather, the trial itself brought healing and closure. Ham Sinuon was sixteen when she was drafted into the children’s unit. During the course of the Khmer Rouge regime, she lost 25 relatives whom were targeted for being Khmer Kampuchea Kroam. When asked whether the trial helped her to recover, she described her healing as “not 100 per cent, but enough.” Another survivor, Sao Sophat, was forced to build dams one month after giving birth. She lost her daughter and parents during the Khmer Rouge. Despite her pain, Sao also voiced that she did not seek revenge, and expressed her support for the trial as “a way of real justice;” she appreciated that the perpetrators could no longer be arrogant about their crimes. The Cham Muslims were also targeted by the Khmer Rouge for having a different religion, ethnicity, and culture. Keo Maer, a Cham Muslim, recounted how five of his children died during the Khmer Rouge. Keo said it was hard to describe the suffering and sense of injustice he felt; however, he expressed sympathy for the Khmer Rouge leaders undergoing the trial at an old age. Keo said instead of revenge, it is “better to find the truth, and have something done to educate the next generation. It is enough to try the leaders and have something for the community, then we won’t feel angry or have to think about the regime anymore.”



A Lasting Memorial

Although the meeting lasted only a few hours, the forum represented another step towards healing for the Khmer Kampuchea Kroam. The Khmer Kampuchea Kroam have chosen not to focus on anger or revenge, but have sought other avenues to achieve a sense of justice, whether through attending ECCC proceedings, participating in a project to honor innocent lives lost, or encouraging an open atmosphere to express their opinions. Thirty years after the deaths of family members and friends, the Khmer Kampuchea Kroam have shown they are not only building a memorial, they are rebuilding a stronger community.