[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.]
Chum Narith was accused of forming a group opposed to collectivization. At the trial, his younger brother asks the court how anyone can believe a confession obtained by torture. Yet despite this, he seems to want to believe that the charges against his older brother were true, as though Narith’s admissible arrest by a regime founded on lies, fabrication, and slander could mitigate his powerlessness and rage.
Chum Narith was executed on January 1, 1977, after sixty-five days of prison and torture. His brother’s voice swells until it fills the room: “I don’t understand the point! If you want to kill, why not kill immediately?”
Chum Sinareth also died at S-21. The ignominious sign around his neck bore the number 59. His date of execution is unknown. His wife, wearing Khmer Rouge clothes and a Khmer Rouge haircut, was number 18. All that remains of her is a photo.
Source:
Cruvellier, T., and Alex Gilly. “Chapter 33.” The Master of Confessions: The Making of a Khmer Rouge Torturer. Ecco, 2014. 256. Print.
Further Reading:
សារមន្ទីរឧក្រិដ្ឋកម្មប្រល័យពូជសាសន៍ទួលស្លែង (Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum) / Security Prison 21 (S-21)
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