Dust From A Distant Sun: Two Sides to Cambodia

Cat Hingley looks at Cambodia's haunting past as she reflects on Tuol Sleng the former school, turned prison, turned genocide museum and looks ahead to Cambodia's bright future...

Over the weekend the trip was in Phnom Penh we visited Tuol Sleng, or S-21, a former school which was used as a torture centre between 1975 and 1978. Here members of the Khmer Rouge regime systematically tortured 17 000 men, women and children, before sending them on to be executed.

We walked around in stunned silence. There were fewer information boards than in many museums, but the rusted shackles and spattered blood on the floor spoke for themselves. 

In Cambodia the atrocities and chaos in which a third of the population died, are still raw; still in living memory. I was struck by the courage shown by our tour guide, she was visibly moved as she recounted the deaths of her own father and brother, a story she must repeat day after day. As we travel around the countryside I have found similar stories everywhere.

There were fewer information boards than in many museums, but the rusted shackles and spattered blood on the floor spoke for themselves.

Upstairs at S-21 is an exhibition showing photographs of members of the Khmer Rouge who worked here, along with interviews. Most seemed regretful, others didn’t. 

I was left feeling overwhelmed; there seemed no decisive reason why this warped communist regime should have consumed Cambodia. Only a series of coincidences, such as the war in Vietnam, the US forces carpet bombing Cambodia, King Norodom Sihanouk joining in alliance with the Khmer Rouge, all  leading to five years of utter horror.

As we left Tuol Sleng by tuk-tuk I seemed to see suffering everywhere. There are lots of beggars on the streets of Phnom Penh and many of them have lost one or more limbs because of landmines. We motored past ramshackle dwellings and rivers full of rubbish with children playing in them.

I am glad then to have visited Mith Samlanh an organisation which offers education, opportunity and fun for the poorest children in Phnom Penh. Here youths between 0 and 24 years benefit from schooling, art, dance and games. Children who work on the streets can find a safe haven free from the threats of sex trafficking and drugs abuse, and their parents are given training to help them increase their family income, so that they will not have to send their children to work. Teenagers can choose from a range of vocational training classes including hairdressing, mechanics, welding, textiles, electronics and hospitality.

This partner has completely transformed their lives and their hopes for the future and it’s wonderful to be part of that change in some small way.

In the dressmaking class I met Theary, age 22, my own age. She explained how because of family problems she couldn’t stay in school and she took to selling odd bits and pieces on the street; now she has received training she dreams of becoming a clothes designer one day and of teaching others about dressmaking. Her three younger brothers and a sister are all also in school or training at Mith Samlanh. This partner has completely transformed their lives and their hopes for the future and it’s wonderful to be part of that change in some small way.

Cambodia today is a relatively stable nation, but in many ways people still feel the impact of the events of the 1970s; development has been set back by more than thrity years. Nevertheless I have seen so many positive projects that are helping the poorest communities, that I don’t doubt that there can be a better future for the next generation of Cambodians.

Words: Cat Hingley

Photos: Hannah Henderson and Daniel Sinclair

Read what Nadia Kouhi had to say about her experience at Tuol Sleng here [1]

Luke Harman explains more about Mith Samlanh's work here [2] and Rosie Underwood reflects on the project's happy atmosphere here [3]

Find out more about Mith Samlanh from their website [4].