“Breaking the Silence” Performance at Kraing Ta Chan Prison

Randle DeFalco & Socheat Nhean

On February 5th and 6th 2010, the Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) and Amirita Performing Arts hosted two special performances of the play “Breaking the Silence” at the site of the former Khmer Rouge Kraing Ta Chan security prison in Takeo province. Kraing Ta Chan was the largest prison in the Southwest Zone during the period of Democratic Kampuchea (DK) in Cambodia from 1975-1979 and claimed at least 1,000 lives. Kraing Ta Chan is also located near the birthplace of Ta Mok, a major Khmer Rouge figure who was in charge of the Southwest Zone throughout the DK period. All important leaders of the prison were from Mok’s revolutionary base area and several of the prison’s most important figures were familial relations of his.

Over two days, a total of approximately 1,000 people watched “Breaking the Silence,” which is designed to help unravel some of the difficulties Cambodians encounter when trying to address traumatic memories from the DK era. Viewers ranged from young children and Chea Sim Takeo High School students, to older members of the community who are survivors of the DK period. Both days, the audience watched attentively and appeared satisfied with the play’s treatment of the delicate topics of trauma, honesty and reconciliation.

Two attendees were survivors of Kraing Ta Chan prison. After watching the play, both of these survivors offered their thoughts on both the performance and the larger issue of reconciliation in Cambodia. HUN Nhor, who is now 78, said that the play evoked painful memories for her, made even more visceral by watching it where she had suffered so much. Nhor was however, appreciative of the effort of everyone involved and is happy that the play is being shown so that people can learn about and address their history. Nhor mentioned that the play “reminded [her] again of the Khmer Rouge regime” and also remarked the scenarios shown in the play were “just like what happened during the Khmer Rouge.”

SOY Sen was also a prisoner at Kraing Ta Chan and was only freed after the Vietnamese army invaded Cambodia in January of 1979. Sen believes that it is hard to reconcile former prisoners and perpetrators because the latter never want to tell the full truth about their actions during DK. For example, Sen stated that former Kraing Ta Chan workers never voluntarily visited the site or discussed their actions during DK. Sen also believes that former perpetrators generally try to ignore their past actions, rather than admitting or confronting them and thus, avoid activities like watching the play. DC-Cam researcher NHEAN Socheat asked Sen if he was satisfied with the Khmer Rouge tribunal so far and if it could provide him justice. Sen replied “no,” and stated that the Tribunal “will not provide justice to me at all.” Sen then asked, “how can it offer justice, while a perpetrator who is now living 100 meters from me never says the truth?”

After the play, one high school student from Takeo province asked why Cambodians killed their own people. DC-Cam staff member and project facilitator SER Sayana replied that the Khmer Rouge not only killed ethnic Khmer people, but also targeted minority groups such as Vietnamese, Cham and Kampuchea Krom people for especially harsh treatment and extermination. Another student asked why other characters in the play did not want to talk to the character of Chea, who had been under suspicion by the Khmer Rouge. SUON Bunrith, a facilitator from Amrita Performing Arts, responded that during the DK period people avoided connecting with others who were accused of being traitors out of fear. He added that any of Chea’s relatives discovered by the Khmer Rouge would be persecuted, arrested and/or executed, or might simply vanish one day.

A third student asked about the current situation at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal in Phnom Penh. Bunrith and Sayana replied that the trial of four surviving former senior Khmer Rouge leaders has not yet finished, but that the accused persons are currently being detained and the case is in the investigative phase. A fourth student took the microphone and asked if the DK government had diplomatic relations with other countries, specifically mentioning China. Sayana replied that DK had diplomatic relations with some countries however, other than high-level Khmer Rouge officials, all Cambodians were restricted from travelling during DK. Also, Chinese advisors had freedom to travel and work with Khmer Rouge cadre. The final question of the first evening came from a former resident of Tramkok, a model communal district during DK, who asked why people were starved while they worked so hard in the farmland. Sayana responded that at the time the DK cadre in the local area tried to save face and gain prestige by producing the most rice to give to the DK government. Additionally, the Khmer Rouge traded rice in exchange for weapons to fight Vietnam.

On the second night of the play about 300 people attended, some of whom were 11th grade students from Chea Sim Takeo High School. Although few people asked questions, a woman named KHATT Khorn remained at the site after the rest of the audience had left. Khorn, now 68, said that she has been waiting for Khmer Rouge researchers for a long time and wanted to share her experiences. In 1971 Khorn joined the revolution as a soldier, hoping that she could help liberate Cambodia from American imperialism and corruption. She fought until 1975 when she was suddenly arrested by the Khmer Rouge and sent to a nearby prison. Khorn was unsure what prison she had been sent to, but it appears that she was incarcerated at nearby Security Center 204, established before Kraing Ta Chan prison. Khorn added that she was happy to see the play near her village and hopes that the young generation will learn about the regime by watching “Breaking the Silence.”

Overall, the event was a success. The performance brought together multiple generations of villagers to discuss a painful and controversial chapter of Cambodian history. While these types of discussions are often uncomfortable and sometimes evoke painful memories in participants, they are important to national reconciliation after a national trauma on the scale of that which occurred during the DK period in Cambodia.

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