The Cambodian Genocide: The Truth

Life in Cambodia was great for 11 year old M in the 1970s. She was educated, she had 2 sisters, 2 brothers, a beautiful life, and was from a middleclass military family.  On April 17, of 1975 all of this changed for M. Soldiers came and took her father away and he was never seen again. The rest of her family was forced to leave their house and move into the city, from there they were evacuated into the countryside with thousands of others. M and her siblings were forced to leave everything they had except for the clothes on their backs behind.

 

M and her family eventually went to Battambang . They were all very nervous for an attack and constantly on edge.  Everyone was forced to work, there was no money, and no doctors so everyone had some form of equality. Everyone was forced to wear black clothing. M's first job under the Khmer Rouge was cutting grass and growing plants from Dawn until Dusk. She worked 12hr days. Day by day more people disapeared and the soldiers nor the leaders gave any reason as to why.

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M remained in this village for 4 years with her family until her family was seperated and her mother was killed. M says "They wanted ultimate control over people's lives." The food rations during her time were also outrageous, rice broth and the smallest grains of rice were the equivalents of a meal for M and her remaining family. As a result of the low food supply M and her sibilings ate bugs, grass, and whatever else they could scavenge. M and her family were forced to work everyday of the week, even Sundays, a religous day for many. The Leaders of the Khmer Rouge were so controlling that they even assigned marriges. Those marriages often went like this: A female stands across from a male in the opposite line a soldier tells them to recite specific vows, which they did and then they were officialy married.

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M always had to lie about her age to prevent events such as marrige, and refusal of help because she was too old. For example she lied to those in charge of an orphange saying she was 12 when in reality she was 16 just so she could be taken care of. There was also a race classification during this time. If you had a lighter shade you were assumed to be educated and an enemy of the Khmer Rouge. If you had dark skin you were assumed to be an uneducated field worker which often was in your favor. For many your hands told where you came from and determined  the future of your life.

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As M began to lose more of what she loved she decided that she would make an escape. She did this for two reasons: 1. She was losing everything around her 2. The current president's army joined forces with Vietnam against Pol Pot's original army. So, M and her remaining family members  walked to the border of Thailand because the Vietnamese were there. They "walked at night to avoid land mines and they walked fast" says M. There was great danger at the border (being killed), but also great hope.

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There was a Red Cross Refugee Camp that was staying in Cambodian for about 10 months. M and her family transfered from refugee camp to refugee camp often staying for months at a time. Life in the refugee camps was harsh,but with sufficent work. Finally after months of transfers between camps M was able to come to America. She was sponsored by a Christian Church pastor, Rathayem, who was also the sponsorer for thousands of other refugees. M says "that coming to America equals heaven." Her brother, sister, and adopted sister all were able to also come over to America together, but spoke no English. M's youngest brother was sadly not found until later on in her adult life. All of the children lived with friends of the pastor for the next 5 years until they were able to become stable on their own.

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Since coming to America M has "No regrets because I lived a horrible life. When I came to America I have oppurtunites. I'm not regretting I'm Happy." M now has a college education, speaks perfect English, has succesful children, and is very happy.  When asked what she thought the rest of the world could learn from this event she said, "They can learn that past is the past and to move to the future. If it happens again that it will be different." When M was also asked what she thought her life would be like if she still lived in Cambodia she said that "I'd be married at an early age with no education" the exact opposite of what she wanted. M says " I think that I would have survived. You have to be strong."

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*M's story is an anonymous and true story. There is also an audio version of our interview if you prefer to listen. It is a Q &A version about M's life. It can be found below or if you click the picture of the Cambodian dancer in the righthand corner it well send you to the interview. No contact information will be disclosed about/for M on this website. Please refrain from contacting for any further information about M's life this is the  best possible information to get from any open survivor.

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