Cambodia: Day 51

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Prey Veng

4:27 PM

Have you ever had one of those days where you wake up one person and go to bed someone different?

Today was definitely one of those days.

I began my day at 6:30 AM. We got ready and walked down the street in search of somewhere to eat breakfast before heading out with RACHA. We were able to find a small restaurant in a shack; we knew it was a good place to eat because a handful of locals were already dining there. There weren't any menus, so we just ordered rice and pork. It was simple, but delicious. On our way back we were intercepted by a RACHA car that took us to the hotel to grab our stuff and then back to the office where we parted ways.

I talked to one of the head guys at the office while I waited for Sareth to arrive. Ten minutes passed and we were on our way. I sat in the back of the car, making small talk with Sareth as picturesque acres of rice paddies and palm trees passed outside my window. People were hard at work plowing their fields and transplanting the rice stalks. Sareth turned around in his seat to face me and asked, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure," I replied smilingly, encouraging him to go on.

"How many siblings do you have?"

I promptly answered his question, "Only one brother."

He proceeded to tell me that he came from a very large family with eleven kids, fourteen people in total. "Only three of them survived the Khmer Rouge."

I was dumbfounded. My heart dropped. Only three survived? I asked how he survived, and he proceeded to tell me his story…

He was born and raised in Phnom Penh. When the Khmer Rouge took over Phnom Penh, he and his family were moved to Battambang. I estimate that he was about ten years old. When they were sent to work in Battambang, he was assigned to be an animal keeper; his job was to watch the cows and other grazing animals to make sure they didn't get into the rice crops. There were four animal keepers, one assigned to each direction (north, south, east, and west). His older brother was given the same assignment.

One day, a few animals got into one of the rice paddies and ate some of the crops. Sareth's older brother took the blame and told the soldiers it was his fault. What did the Khmer Rouge do? They tied his elbows together behind his back and pushed him into the river, right in front of Sareth's face.

Sareth watched his brother die. He had no choice, there was nothing he could have done to save him. Sure, he could have tried to stop the soldiers, but they would have surely killed him, as well.

As for his other family members, I only got the stories of two of them. His father, like many of the other prisoners, were assigned to labor in the fields. His father grew ill, and without the proper medicine to treat his infirmity, he passed away. A case like this was very common in the camps; people were worked too hard, had little to nothing to eat, got sick, and died because there was no way to treat them.

His sister was married with a few children. While in the camp, the soldiers found out that she had been married to a Lon Nol soldier back in Phnom Penh. Since Lon Nol was one of the top enemies of the Khmer Rouge, anyone that was associated with that particular regime was killed without question. Such was the unfortunate fate of her and her children.

I didn't know what to say. There wasn't anything I could say. An overwhelming feeling overcame me as I considered the fact that I had never been taught anything about the Khmer Rouge in school. It pains me to know that I probably would have never known about the atrocities that occurred under Pol Pot's regime had I not signed up for this internship.

I was lost in thought as we continued on our journey to the food distribution. I was able to, with Sareth's help, interview eighteen women throughout the morning. A crowd gathered everywhere we went. I would like to say I'm used to dozens of pairs of eyes being on me, but I'm still not.

The distribution ended and about fifteen of us gathered to eat lunch. The VHSG had made all of us a meal with various components: sticky rice, steamed rice, fried fish, eggs and ginger, bamboo and frog, field crab, the list went on and on. It was delicious. It was so amazing to be able to eat what the villagers eat and be in their company. I loved every moment of it.