[The following is in regards to the trial of Kaing Guek Eav, commonly known as Comrade Duch, who was the head of the Khmer Rouge’s internal security branch, in which he oversaw the Tuol Sleng (S-21) prison camp where thousands were held for interrogation and torture. While the trial itself takes place in the early 2000s, I still felt it appropriate, as the trial only covered events taking place between the years 1975-1979. Every testimony is from that time period, and everything depicted by the author, who was present at the trial, are essentially reactions to this gruesome period of history by contemporaries who were present or had participated. In that sense, I feel this fits well for our purposes, and I do not believe it breaks the 20 Year Rule.]
In another report, an interrogator named Pon made a note of the number of lashes a prisoner had received; Duch wrote instructions to give him more. Elsewhere, he wrote to Pon to torture a prisoner by the hot method [physical torture, as opposed to ‘cold,’ which was verbal interrogation], “even if it leads to death.” When asked in court what he has to say about this particular note, Duch claims that it was a bluff to frighten the prisoner into confessing; it wasn’t for real.
Duch wrote his annotations in a clear, neat hand. They are as elegantly written as they are ruthless.
[…]
Duch wrote instructions to his torturers in a red pen:
Did not confess. Torture him!
Hit him in the face
We must apply pressure, absolutely
Beat them all to death
Smash them to pieces
Source:
Cruvellier, T., and Alex Gilly. “Chapter 7.” The Master of Confessions: The Making of a Khmer Rouge Torturer. Ecco, 2014. 52-3. Print.
Further Reading:
សារមន្ទីរឧក្រិដ្ឋកម្មប្រល័យពូជសាសន៍ទួលស្លែង (Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum) / Security Prison 21 (S-21)
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