COMMUNITY OUTREACH TRIP TO PHNOM PENH AND THE ECCC... and even the love of our enemies

Report By: Randle DeFalco

*** To read the report with photos, please click: http://www.dccam.org/Projects/Living_Doc/pdf/Community_Outreach_Trip_to_Phnom_Penh&the_ECCC.pdf



From February 10 to 12, 2010, the Living Documents Project of the Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) hosted 93 visitors from the provinces of Banteay Meanchey, Svay Rieng and Kandal. The purpose of the trip was to help rural Cambodians better understand the proceedings ongoing at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) and the history of the Democratic Kampuchea (DK) period in Cambodia.



The villagers were transported to Phnom Penh by bus and arrived Tuesday evening. The program started the following morning at the National Senate building. For DC-Cam director Youk Chhang the group from Banteay Meanchey were especially significant, as they came from Trapeang Veng village, where Youk was sent to live during the period of Democratic Kampuchea from 1975 to 1979. Trapeang Veng is a small village in Preah Net Preah commune, located in northern Cambodia and is nearly a 400 km drive from Phnom Penh. In fact, at the request of some of the villagers, Youk brought his mother, Keo Nan to the morning event, where the Trapeang Veng villagers greeted Keo Nan with great respect.



Presentations on the Proceedings of the ECCC and Tuol Sleng Prison



After the participants settled into their seats, Living Documents Project Leader Sirik Savina welcomed the group and went over the itinerary for day one, explaining that the morning session would consist of a series of presentations to help bring group up to speed regarding the proceedings of the ECCC. The first presentation of the day came from ECCC Deputy International Co-Prosecutor William Smith, who gave a talk on the challenges of prosecuting case 002 at the ECCC. The charged persons in Case 002 are, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Khieu Samphan and Ieng Thirith, who are the four most senior former Khmer Rouge officials still alive. Mr. Smith opened with a short background of his professional experience, first as a police investigator in Australia and then as a lawyer at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (referred to as the ICTY). Mr. Smith then gave an overview of the challenges in creating the ECCC, including determining: where to place the Court; the ECCC’s jurisdictional scope; the degree to which international and Cambodian law and personnel would be mixed; and whether to include civil parties, a first in international criminal law.



Mr. Smith then discussed the current, day to day challenges of administering the system created. Mr. Smith mentioned the difficulties of working at a Court with three official languages (Khmer, English and French) and colleagues from various professional backgrounds. Additionally, Mr. Smith mentioned that the ECCC staff must be careful to set a good example, because of the current weakness of the Cambodian judiciary and the tenuous rule of law in Cambodia. Finally, Mr. Smith addressed two issues that are recurrent themes in debates concerning the ECCC. First, whether it is worthwhile to prosecute former senior DK leaders when they are all of advanced age and second, what the primary purposes of the Court are. Regarding the first issue, Mr. Smith noted that millions of Cambodians still suffer daily due to the crimes committed during the DK period and that the regime’s former leaders should be tried despite their age because of the severe nature of the charges they currently face. Regarding the second issue, Mr. Smith stated that there are several objectives the creators of the ECCC had in mind when forming the Court. First and foremost, the ECCC is designed to provide some measure of justice to the millions of victims that suffered and/or died during DK. Second, the Court is designed to create an accurate history of the controversial DK period. Third, the ECCC’s designers hoped to improve human rights and encourage the rule of law in Cambodia by creating a model Court as an example for the Cambodian judiciary. Finally, by addressing past atrocities, the ECCC will hopefully help contribute to reconciliation and memory in Cambodia.



Mr. Smith’s presentation was followed by a short question and answer session. The first question was “why did the United Nations give the Khmer Rouge Cambodia’s seat after 1979?” Mr. Smith responded that at the time, Cold War politics interfered with the United Nations and numerous powerful, anti-communist (and therefore anti-Vietnamese) nations supported any group that opposed Vietnamese influence in Cambodia, even the Khmer Rouge. The second question was “why was the ECCC created so late?” Mr. Smith responded that for a long time the Khmer Rouge remained a powerful military force and fought the government intermittently until the mid-1990s, making it impossible to capture former DK leaders. Furthermore, international politics prevented an agreement to create a tribunal throughout the 1980s and 1990s. However, Mr. Smith explained the theories of justice that support prosecution of serious crimes well after their commission.



The third question was “why did the Khmer Rouge kill and starve people?” Mr. Smith responded that there is no single, clear answer to this important and fundamental question, but that there are several prominent causal factors to consider. First, the Khmer Rouge leaders wanted to radically change Cambodian society in a very short period of time. Additionally, these leaders tried to apply pure Marxist theory to Cambodian society and thus, were extremely absolute and rigid with their policies. Finally, it appears that the DK government valued revolutionary objectives more than human lives, meaning that anyone who did not benefit the revolution could be killed without remorse.



The fourth question was “are there other countries that experienced such mass killings?” Mr. Smith responded that unfortunately, there are several instances of mass killings similar to those that took place during DK in Cambodia. The prime examples of such killings are the holocaust of the Jews during World War II, the crimes committed during the 1990s in the former Yugoslavia and the genocidal killings in Rwanda in 1994. Mr. Smith noted that the crimes committed during DK were amongst the worst of the 20th century, as one quarter of Cambodia’s population was killed, representing the highest percentage of any of the previous atrocities he mentioned.



The final question was from an attendee who was happy to see the ECCC created, but has been frustrated by the long delays and wanted to know when the ECCC would finish its mandate. Mr. Smith responded that he is unsure when the Court will conclude its work, but added that the ECCC staff is working hard every day to move the process along and that trials of crimes of such a massive scope necessarily take a long time. Mr. Smith then concluded by thanking the group for their attention and involving themselves in the process.



Mr. Smith was followed by DC-Cam Deputy Director Vanthan Peou Dara, who gave a presentation on Case 002 at the ECCC. Peou Dara explained that there will be four defendants in Case 002, who represent the most senior former Khmer Rouge officials still alive. He also explained the role of each of the four charged persons during DK and the crimes each of them are currently accused of, including: war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Before ending his presentation, Peou Dara explained the layout of the ECCC courtroom to help the visitors follow the proceedings the next day. After the presentation, one attendee asked “is it true that Ieng Sary and the other charged persons are in jail?” Peou Dara assured him that all of the charged persons are currently in pretrial detention and that they would see this when they visited the ECCC the following day.



After a short break, the group watched video footage of the Khmer Rouge Tuol Sleng prison in Phnom Penh, shot shortly after the Vietnamese entered Cambodia in January of 1979. This video was followed by a screening of “Behind the Walls of S-21,” a documentary on the history of the Tuol Sleng prison, produced by Youk Chhang. The last speaker of the morning session was Him Huy, who was a guard at Tuol Sleng during DK and was interviewed in the film. Him Huy gave a short summary of his experience of being drafted into the Khmer Rouge guerrilla army and subsequently being transferred to work at Tuol Sleng prison after refusing to join the DK navy due to his fear of water.



Him Huy said that prior to late 1976 only a few prisoners passed through Tuol Sleng, but that thereafter the secretive Angkar Padeveat (“revolutionary organization”) and comrade Duch (the head of Tuol Sleng prison and accused person in Case 001 at the ECCC) became extremely suspicious and began a series of mass arrests, quickly escalating the number of prisoners who were arrested and subsequently tortured and executed. Him Huy also stated that he lived in a state of constant fear because many Tuol Sleng workers and guards were arrested and executed, including his former commanding officer. Him Huy claimed that he only killed one prisoner, after being ordered to do so by Duch as a test of his loyalty and that he fled the Khmer Rouge in 1979 when the Vietnamese entered Phnom Penh.



When Him Huy finished his talk, an attendee asked whether Him Huy personally observed any connection between the four charged persons in Case 002 and Tuol Sleng prison and if so, how close the connection was. Him Huy stated that he never saw any of the four charged persons at the prison, because Son Sen (another former high-level Khmer Rouge official who was murdered by Pol Pot in 1997) oversaw Tuol Sleng personally on behalf of Angkar. Him Huy did add however, that a group of victims that passed through the prison were Cambodian returnees from abroad who had been lured back to Cambodia personally by Ieng Sary and then immediately arrested.



Visit to Cheung Ek Memorial and Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum



Following lunch, the group visited the Cheung Ek killing field memorial and Tuol Sleng genocide museum to see the places discussed in the morning session. The trip to Tuol Sleng was especially personal for one visitor named Sitha, who is chief of Rumduol commune, Svay Check district, Svay Rieng province. Sitha and his wife discovered a photograph of his cousin, Kim Nal, who worked for the DK ministry of information before disappearing sometime prior to 1979. Sitha asked DC-Cam staff member Men Pechet to take a photograph of him with this last known image of his cousin. Sitha is now sure that his cousin Nal was sent to Tuol Sleng because many high-ranking officials from his zone were arrested and disappeared along with their subordinates during the DK period. Men Pechet is currently searching to see if there is any additional information available regarding Sitha’s cousin Nal. After leaving Tuol Sleng, the first day ended with dinner and a trip back to the hotel for the guests to rest before visiting the ECCC the following day.



Attending ECCC Proceedings



On the second day of the trip, the visitors travelled to the ECCC to observe its proceedings. Oral arguments were scheduled for Ieng Sary’s appeal against the extension of his provisional detention order that was issued by the Co-Investigating Judges. An initial issue arose regarding the dress code at the Court. Many villagers wore t-shirts given to them by DC-Cam with the words “Breaking the Silence for Case 002” printed on them in small letters. The security personnel at the ECCC initially refused attendees wearing these t-shirts admission, stating that they were inappropriate. After speaking with DC-Cam staff members, who explained that the t-shirts were merely a gift to the villagers from DC-Cam and not meant as any form of propaganda or message in the courtroom, security officials eventually relented and allowed the attendees to enter the courtroom.



After hearing of this incident, DC-Cam Director Youk Chhang contacted ECCC public affairs chief Reach Sambath and asked for clarification regarding why the t-shirts were deemed objectionable. Initially Youk received responses that were only general in nature, outlining the procedures of visiting the ECCC, but not mentioning any dress code restrictions. Only after making repeated inquiries did Youk receive a specific response. ECCC Legal Communications Officer Lars Olsen stated via email that the Internal Regulations Governing the Courtroom on Hearing Days forbid any clothing “indicating support for Case 002.” Mr. Olsen referred to paragraph two of the Internal Regulations which states:



“Participants shall wear appropriate clothing. Their clothing may not display slogans, indicate their support to a party to the proceedings, otherwise be offensive in any way.”



DC-Cam plans to provide similar t-shirts in the future that do not include any references to Case 002, but hopes the ECCC administration will be more forthcoming and clear with their specific reasoning in the future.



Once the initial attire problem was resolved the villagers entered the courtroom, eager to see the ECCC in action. The guests watched intently and were quite interested to see Ieng Sary in person after hearing so much about the secretive leadership that formed the feared Angkar during the DK period. The day ended early after Ieng Sary appeared unwell and had to take several breaks due to his advanced age and ill health. This sparked concern amongst the audience that Ieng Sary could die of natural causes before facing justice.



After visiting the ECCC for the first time, the visitors were taken back to Phnom Penh and treated to dinner and a performance by musician Kong Nai, who is renowned for his ability to play the cha pei (a traditional Cambodian instrument much like a guitar, but with only two strings) and improvise clever and meaningful lyrics.



The morning of the final day of the trip was spent at the ECCC, where the visitors watched the oral hearing regarding Khieu Samphan’s appeal against the extension his provisional detention order. While the legal arguments put forth by the parties were quite similar to those of the previous day, at the end of the hearing Khieu Samphan rose and spoke on his own behalf for several minutes. At this moment the audience perked up and paid rapt attention. Khieu Samphan claimed that everything he had done had been with the goal of helping Cambodia, that he was a nationalist first and foremost and that he had only joined the Khmer Rouge at the behest of the King Father. Furthermore, Khieu Samphan claimed that he was a figurehead only during DK, with no true power and that he did not have anyone under his command or even an office. He also claimed that the speeches he delivered during DK were actually written by others. Khieu Samphan concluded his statement by claiming that he was essentially a pawn of the DK government and is “not like the others,” presumably referencing co-charged persons Ieng Sary, Ieng Thirith and Nuon Chea.



A few attendees shared their opinion of the ECCC proceedings with DC-Cam staff members during a short break. Lach Samnang, a 64 year old farmer from Banteay Mencheay province, stated that over the two days he spent at the Court he was generally pleased with what he saw, especially because the ECCC has the power to capture former Khmer Rouge leaders. He feels that the Court is important to Cambodia in general, as well as victims and their families. Before the ECCC’s creation Samnang did not believe that any Khmer Rouge leaders would ever be held accountable and he hopes that the Court can finally uncover the truth. As for the proceedings he saw, Samnang believes that the charged persons in Case 002 should all be kept in pretrial detention because if released they may escape and also, a small number of victims might seek violent revenge against them.



Royal Palace Visit and Performance by PRUM Manh



After spending the morning at the ECCC, the villagers had lunch at a local restaurant and then were treated to a trip to the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh. For virtually all of the villagers this was their first time inside the palace and for many of them, the trip itself was their first time in Phnom Penh. The group walked quietly around the palace grounds and many granted interviews to DC-Cam staff members concerning both their personal experiences during the DK period and their views on the ECCC. Dinner and a special performance by comedian Prum Manh followed the visit to the Royal Palace. Prum Manh is famous throughout Cambodia for his comedy routines and ability to create new jokes and puns while involving the audience.



Performance of the Play “Breaking the Silence”



The final event of the trip was a performance of the play “Breaking the Silence” at the National Institute of Education. “Breaking the Silence” is a series of vignettes that depict the complex emotions that are aroused in survivors of the DK period when trying to speak about their experiences. The audience of the play also included approximately 200 university students from Phnom Penh.



After the play, two audience members provided their impressions of the performance. Hong Huy, commune chief of Preah Net Preah, opined that the play provided an accurate representation of what occurred during DK. Hong Huy also stated that it is important for the younger generation of Cambodians to learn about the DK period and for survivors to tell their stories. He believes that “Breaking the Silence” serves as a mechanism to help survivors both remember and discuss their experiences during DK.



The other audience member who commented on the play was Long Sokhni, a university student. Long Sokhni stated that he believes “Breaking the Silence” is an accurate depiction of the DK period because it is exactly the same as what he has studied concerning the period in school. He then asked about the significance of the play’s title. “Breaking the Silence” director Suon Bunrith responded that the title was chosen because the main purpose of the play is to promote the sharing of stories and experiences of DK survivors, both amongst themselves and with the younger generation. Suon Bunrith continued by stating that this process can encourage survivors to tell the truth about their experiences during DK. He noted that the secondary purpose of the play is to promote the study of the DK period in Cambodia, especially amongst the nation’s youth. Finally, Suon Bunrith said that “Breaking the Silence” is not designed ask or grant forgiveness, but merely to promote dialogue.



After the audience comments, DC-Cam Director Youk Chhang closed the evening with a few personal remarks. Youk specifically addressed why he invited people from Trapeang Veng village, despite the fact that he had suffered so much there. Youk said that after the DK period, no one from Banteay Meanchey province knew what became of him. Furthermore, Youk admitted that he used to be very angry with many people from the village and hated the area because it was the site of so much sorrow for him. As time progressed however, Youk found that, just like in “Breaking the Silence,” sharing his experiences was a method of healing for him, allowing him to move on. Youk believes that the play can help to change the attitudes of victims who see it and help them find forgiveness, tolerance and reconciliation.



Over time, Youk has tried to find forgiveness within himself for those people who hurt him in the past. By trying to forgive individuals who wronged him in the past, Youk hopes to provide an example for others to follow in reconciling with one another. Additionally, as a token of both his gratefulness to those who helped him and towards forgiveness to those who mistreated him and his family during his time in Banteay Meanchey, Youk and his mother are currently funding the construction of a road in Preah Net Preah district near a local pagoda where a public execution of a couple took place during the DK period and close to where Youk was imprisoned by the Khmer Rouge at age fifteen. Youk ended the evening by reminding the students in the audience of the importance of studying the history of the DK period and preserving the memories of survivors.



When Broken Glass Floats: Personal Expressions of Remorse



The trip to Phnom Penh to learn about the Khmer Rouge and the proceedings of the ECCC aroused strong and complex emotions amongst many of the attendees, all of whom survived the DK period. This was especially true for participants from Trapeang Veng village, who lived alongside Youk Chhang during the DK period. Expressing such complex feelings of remorse is a difficult process for all human beings. Such expressions are especially difficult for Cambodians, whose culture eschews direct, public apologies and places high value on respecting hierarchical social strata. Accordingly, Cambodians do not typically discuss shameful or regrettable events openly, but express their remorse through indirect, generalized statements and assuming a humble posture and countenance.



The complexity and nuances of interpersonal communication in Cambodia was evident in the discussions between Youk and two villagers from Trapeang Veng village. One villager, named Chhoeung approached Youk during a break to discuss the actions of his son named Khai, during the DK period. Chhoeung waited for an opportunity to quietly take Youk aside, rather than discussing the matter publicly amongst the group. Chhoeung then slowly and quietly informed Youk that Khai became ill and died not long after 1979. He further mentioned that he did not feel remorse that his son had died because he is aware that Khai had committed bad acts during the Khmer Rouge time, when he had been a village security guard. Chhoeung then stated that he believes Khai died young as a result of bad karma, attributable to these bad acts.



Although this conversation was brief and general, it had much greater significance to both Chhoeung and Youk than its content would suggest to a casual observer. Both Chhoeung and Youk were aware that during DK, Khai had in fact, arrested Youk himself and beaten him severely with an ax. Although Chhoeung did not mention these specific acts, he was indirectly expressing remorse that his son had hurt and mistreated Youk.



Another participant named Hoeun who is now an achar (non-ordained Buddhist scholar) at Preah Net Preah pagoda, also approached Youk alone during an evening break. Hoeun told Youk that he remembered the Chhang family well from the DK period. Hoeun then quietly recounted an incident he remembers from that time, when fire engulfed a dry rice field during a group work trip to cut hay. Hoeun then asked about Youk’s sister and brother-in-law, expressed his hope that they are both doing well.



Again, this brief interaction was full of important subtext. During the DK period, Hoeun was the deputy village chief of Trapeang Veng and was a very absolute and harsh Khmer Rouge official. In fact, when recounting the story to Youk, both men were well aware that after the fire Hoeun had accused Youk’s sister of causing the fire because she had been the only “new person” (urban evacuee) from Phnom Penh in Hoeun's unit at the time. This caused Youk’s sister great danger and distress, as she could have easily been killed as a result of Hoeun's accusations. Additionally, fellow villager HONG Huy informed Youk that during DK, Hoeun had reported Hong Huy to Angkar (his superior by the name of Chhuong who is still alive today but he is afraid to join the visit) as an enemy of the revolution in late 1978. Fortunately Hong Huy survived because the Vietnamese entered Cambodia and ousted the Khmer Rouge in early 1979, before he could be arrested and executed.



During his brief interaction with Youk, Hoeun purposefully omitted the key elements of his narrative that made it especially relevant to Youk and his family. However, both men were well aware of this background information. By Hoeun approaching Youk in this manner and through his lowered posture and tone, the former Khmer Rouge official implicitly admitted that he had acted wrongly. This admission was a significant act for Hoeun because at the time of the fire incident he surely considered himself victimized, as Hoeun was not immune from the wrath of his superiors in the Khmer Rouge and could have been killed for allowing the fire to happen. Thus, the short narration of the story of the fire during the trip to cut hay was a mechanism for Hoeun to admit he had wronged Youk's sister and thereby try to move forward from the past.



These two, brief interactions are emblematic of the private nature of expressions of remorse in Cambodian culture. Both villagers approached Youk alone and in a private setting. Also, both villagers addressed Youk as “elder” (bong), despite being significantly older than him and assumed an inferior posture to Youk by lowering themselves, looking downward, forcing themselves to smile and speaking in a quiet, trembling voice. Chhoeung even went so far as to forbid himself from mourning the death of his son, which was obviously painful for the elderly man. Youk's relatively high social status, as director of a large organization who has travelled abroad and speaks foreign languages, also contributed to the overt displays of respect exhibited by the two men.

There is a folk saying in Cambodia that during times of strife, “squash drowns, broken glass floats” (khlok lich, ambaeng andaet). This saying connotes an unnatural and dangerous upheaval in society because usually “squash floats and glass drowns” (khlok andaet, ambaeng lich) meaning that people who are useful, like a dried squash containers used for carrying water, rise to the top of society and those who are jagged and dangerous, like shards of broken glass, are held down or sink. This metaphor has been used to describe the DK period, when dangerous people assumed power in Cambodia and everyone else sunk to the bottom, many of them drowning in the process. Through their body language and tone, both Chhoeung and Hoeun acknowledged that broken glass floated during the DK period and that Khai and Hoeun had been shards of this “floating glass” that cut many Youk and his family deeply.



The considerable amount of unspoken subtext that occurs during emotionally charged interactions between Cambodians must be considered when choosing mechanisms to facilitate dialogue amongst former perpetrators and victims of the Khmer Rouge. Members of neither of these groups are homogenous in their feelings or opinions. Furthermore, many survivors cannot be neatly categorized as belonging solely to one of the two groups, as many former perpetrators themselves suffered immense trauma during DK. What is important however, is that the fundamental humanity of all survivors, victims and perpetrators alike, be emphasized so that everyone can speak the truth freely. This can only be achieved by acknowledging and addressing the manner in which Cambodian people express the extremely powerful, yet delicate emotions associated with the DK period.



Conclusion



Overall, throughout the trip the general sentiment amongst the visitors was strongly positive. The entire group paid careful attention to the information they were given concerning the DK period and the ECCC and listened intently to the arguments put forth by all parties at the Court. Bin Ouch, a 63 year old farmer from Banteay Meanchey province, was pleased with his experience in Phnom Penh and felt that he learned a lot about the ECCC and the history of the DK period. Ouch stated that he is also pleased that DC-Cam plays an active role in providing information for Cambodians searching for family members who disappeared during DK and helping explain to them what happened. Additionally, Ouch is satisfied with the overall process at the ECCC because the judges appeared fair and impartial, although he did take issue with some of the arguments raised by defense counsel during the Khieu Samphan hearing and believes that the charged persons should all continue to be detained leading up to trial.



Mea Somaly, a 48 year old farmer from Banteay Meanchey shared similar sentiments to Bin Ouch. Somaly said that she had been very excited for the trip and had enjoyed it very much. She also feels that she learned a lot about the ECCC’s proceedings and now understands what is going on at the Court much better. Somaly is satisfied with what she learned about the ECCC and believes that the Court is worthwhile because it has the power to punish Khmer Rouge criminals.



Some attendees even made efforts to express their gratitude after returning to their home villages. Several DC-Cam staff members received telephone calls from attendees thanking them for the trip. This expression of gratitude was no small act for many of the villagers who had to seek out and pay for the use of a telephone because they are very poor and do not have their own. Hopefully, continuing outreach programs, such as DC-Cam’s Living Documents Project, will help to spread awareness and understanding of the trials at the ECCC and facilitate open dialogue and reconciliation amongst Cambodians. End.