Saing Sarin: Khmer Rouge Killed My Father

Som Bunthorn



Saing Sarin, 41 years old, was born in Bralay Meas village, Bralay Meas sub-district, Kampong Leng district, Kampong Chhnang province. The Khmer Rouge killed Sarin’s father after accusing him of being a Lon Nol ME 50 Khnang (a person in charge of taking care of 50 families in the village, but not a village chief) and his mother died of illness because of a lack of treatment. As a consequence he was an orphan at 11 years old. After that he lived with his grandmother.



In 1974, Sarin went to school in grade 12 at a local village school. After studying there for a while, Sarin stopped going because the village was in chaos. There were Khmer Rouge soldiers coming to the village to make propaganda and call for villagers’ support against the Lon Nol Regime. At Sarin’s house, there were guns because his father was ME 50 Khnang. Every night, he saw people come to get guns from his father in order to guard the village.



Later, in April 1975, the Khmer Rouge soldiers took complete control of the village. Soon after that the soldier asked the villagers to leave their homes for two or three days, saying that they did not need to bring along any belongings because they would soon return. His entire family including his parents, grandmother, brother and sister, were evacuated to Po village of Po sub-district. His family brought only plates, pots, rice and clothes. At that village, there were hundreds of families coming from Dok village, Thmei village and Bralay village gathered together. Not long after, Angkar separated the evacuees. Sarin’s family was sent to live in Chheu Ak cooperative while his grandmother was selected to work as midwife in Po sub-district. Because she had pity on her grandson, she requested Angkar to allow Sarin to live with her in the sub-district hospital. Angkar assigned Sarin to help in make wine and mold medicine into small pills and then dry them.



After his parents were displaced by Angkar to Chheu Ak cooperative in Po sub-district, they were separated from the base people. At first Angkar divided people into a children unit, women’s unit and youth unit to work in the village. When work was finished, Angkar allowed each unit to return to their parents and relatives. Later on, Angkar started to separate children from their parents. Those children were collected in a children’s center. Children who looked well built were soon transferred to join the mobile youth unit. Sarin’s parents, however, were assigned to work in the rice fields. Not long after, her mother became sick and was transferred to the hospital in Po sub-district. Because her illness became worse and worse, she was sent to Kampong Leng district hospital for an operation. After that he didn’t hear anything new from her about her illness. Later on, he was told that his mother was dead.



After the death of his mother, Sarin had no chance to see his father and brother anymore because Angkar sent all children living in the hospital to live in another cooperative. Only staff was left working at the hospital. Sarin was asked to work in the rice fields at the Prey Chakeang workplace located in Dar village. There he worked in a children’s unit consisting of about 50 children. He had to pull out the rice seedlings, transplant them, and tend cattle. However, he got only two or three ladles for his food ration. Every half month or month, Angkar transferred Sarin to work at a different workplace in Kampong Leng district without allowing him to return home. Even with this restriction, Sarin’s father often brought dried coconut fresh for him.



One day, while Sarin’s father was working in Chheu Ork cooperative, a Khmer Rouge spy arrested him and accused him of being a spy during the Lon Nol era. The spy then escorted him to be killed in Laban prison located in district 16 (Kompong Leng district). After executing Sarin’s father, the spy told the unit chief to look for Sarin’s brother Sokea in the list of names. Because Sarin’s brother had changed his name from Sokea to Son, the unit chief of unit could not find him. Soon after the spy left Sokea was frightened and got a fever and could not eat. Sokea’s relatives who worked in the same unit told him not to be scared and tried to work hard so Angkar would not suspect. Sarin, who was young and worked in the cooperative, was not investigated.



When Khmer Rouge troops reached Kompong Chhnang in 1979, Sarin, his brother and grandmother were forced to move to the forest. Although aware of the liberation, Sarin’s family did not dare to go back his hometown due to fear of the Khmer Rouge. Later, the Khmer Rouge announced that all people could go home. Hence, Sarin decided to settle in Kompong Chhnang until today.



Sarin said that when he recalls the past he always cries “because I experienced it directly, and my parents who took care of me were killed,” Sarin often use his experiences to teach his students. However, some of them do not believe his stories. He suggests that there should be more Khmer Rouge documentation in order to show students and let them understand about the Khmer Rouge regime more broadly.


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