The Killing Fields and S21

Lots of people say that you have no excuse to go to Phnom Penh and not visit the Killing Fields. I guess they're right, it's such a huge part of Cambodia's recent history that not to go would be to ignore the people and culture just to avoid the uncomfortable and brutal truth of what happened less than 40 years ago.

A 30-minute tuk tuk ride took me to the Killing Fields (Choeung Ek Genocidal Center), a small area which was one of hundreds of sites across Cambodia where mass executions took place between 1975 and 1979 under the rule of the communist dictator Pol Pot. An audio tour gave details of the genocide, including personal accounts from survivors. Roughly 1 in 4 people in the country were killed, not to mention the forced labour and torture that was commonplace.

Probably the most shocking part of the tour was the 'killing tree' (pictured above) where executioners beat children before they were thrown in to the adjacent mass grave.

Next was S21 (Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum), a former school which was turned in to a prison and used for torture before prisoners were sent to the killing field. Again, there were harrowing accounts from survivors and many photos of prisoners. There were even two survivors on site to meet and talk to, although they were mainly there to sell their books.

I think the scariest thing from everything I learnt today was that the genocide took place without the rest of the world having a clue what was going on. Even after Pol Pots was overthrown and driven out the country, he remained the recognised leader in most Western countries and still had a seat in the UN.