Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum - Torture and extermination

Most prisoners at S-21 were held there for two to three months. However, several high-ranking Khmer Rouge cadres were held longer. Within two or three days after they were brought to S-21, all prisoners were taken for interrogation. The torture system at Tuol Sleng was designed to make prisoners confess to whatever crimes they were charged with by their captors. Prisoners were routinely beaten and tortured with electric shocks, searing hot metal instruments and hanging, as well as through the use of various other devices. Some prisoners were cut with knives or suffocated with plastic bags. Other methods for generating confessions included pulling out fingernails while pouring alcohol on the wounds, holding prisoners' heads under water, and the use of the waterboarding technique. Women were sometimes raped by the interrogators, even though sexual abuse was against Democratic Kampuchea (DK) policy. The perpetrators who were found out were executed. Although many prisoners died from this kind of abuse, killing them outright was discouraged, since the Khmer Rouge needed their confessions. The "Medical Unit" at Tuol Sleng, however, did kill at least 100 prisoners by bleeding them to death. It is proven that medical experiments were performed on certain prisoners. There is clear evidence that patients in Cambodia were sliced open and had organs removed with no anesthetic. The camp's director, Kang Kek Iew, has acknowledged that "live prisoners were used for surgical study and training. Draining blood was also done."

Caisson: (pronounced kay-suhn) �" A two-wheeled cart that carried two ammunition chests, tools, and a spare wheel for artillery pieces. The caisson could be attached to a limber, which would allow both to be pulled by a team of horses.

Republican Party: A political party created in the 1850s to prevent the spread of slavery to the territories. Eventually Republicans came to oppose the entire existence of slavery. Abraham Lincoln was the first Republican president. Very few Southerners were Republicans.

Interior Lines: A military strategy which holds that the fastest, most efficient maneuvers, transportation and communication are conducted within an enclosed geographic area as opposed to outside the geographic area.

Rout: A crushing defeat where, often, the losers run from the field.

Breech-loading: Rifle-muskets that could be loaded at the breech (in the middle between the barrel and the stock) instead of from the end (by shoving gunpowder and a ball down the barrel) were called breech-loading guns.

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum

The museum is open to the public from 8 am to 5 pm. Visitors have the opportunity of viewing a 'survivor testimony' from 2:30pm to 3pm (Monday�"Friday). Along with the Choeung Ek Memorial (the Killing Fields), the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum is included as a point of interest for those visiting Cambodia. Tuol Sleng also remains an important educational site as well as memorial for Cambodians. Since 2010, the ECCC brings Cambodians on a 'study tour' to the Tuol Sleng, Choeung Ek and finishing at the ECCC complex. During 2010, around 27,000 Cambodians visited the museum through this tour. (See ECCC Court Report January 2011.) Some believed that ghosts of the victims continue to haunt the place.

A number of images from Tuol Sleng are featured in the 1992 Ron Fricke film Baraka.

Abatis: (pronounced ab-uh-tee, ab-uh-tis, uh-bat-ee, or uh-bat-is) A line of trees, chopped down and placed with their branches facing the enemy, used to strengthen fortifications.

Armory: A place where weapons and other military supplies are manufactured.

Long Roll: A long, continuous drum call which commanded a regiment to assemble.

Kepi: (pronounced KEH-peeh) Cap worn by Civil War soldiers; more prevalent among Union soldiers.

Entrenchments: Long cuts (trenches) dug out of the earth with the dirt piled up into a mound in front; used for defense.

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum - "Skull map"

The buildings at Tuol Sleng are preserved, some rooms as they were left when the Khmer Rouge were driven out in 1979. The regime kept extensive records, including thousands of photographs. Several rooms of the museum are now lined, floor to ceiling, with black and white photographs of some of the estimated 20,000 prisoners who passed through the prison.

The site has four main buildings, known as Building A, B, C, and D. Building A holds the large cells in which the bodies of the last victims were discovered. Building B holds galleries of photographs. Building C holds the rooms sub-divided into small cells for prisoners. Building D holds other memorabilia including instruments of torture.

Caisson: (pronounced kay-suhn) �" A two-wheeled cart that carried two ammunition chests, tools, and a spare wheel for artillery pieces. The caisson could be attached to a limber, which would allow both to be pulled by a team of horses.

Infantry: A branch of the military in which soldiers traveled and fought on foot.

Rebel Yell: A high-pitched cry that Confederate soldiers would shout when attacking. First heard at First Manassas (First Bull Run) Union troops found the eerie noise unnerving.

Corps: (pronounced kohr or korz) A very large group of soldiers led by (Union) a major general or (Confederate) a lieutenant general and designated by Roman numerals (such as XI Corps). Confederate corps were often called by the name of their commanding general (as in Jackson's Corps). 1 company = 50 to 100 men, 10 companies = 1 regiment, about 4 regiments = 1 brigade, 2 to 5 brigades = 1 division, 2 or more divisions = 1 corps, 1 or more corps = 1 army.

Parrott gun: A rifled artillery piece with a reinforcing band at the rear, or breech. Parrott guns were used by both the Army and the Navy, and ranged from 10-pounders to 300-pounders. They were named after their designer, Robert Parker Parrott.

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum - History

In 1979, the prison was uncovered by the invading Vietnamese army. At some point between 1979 and 1980 the prison was reopened by the government of the People's Republic of Kampuchea as a historical museum memorializing the actions of the Khmer Rouge regime.

Offensive: Actively attacking someone.

Parrott gun: A rifled artillery piece with a reinforcing band at the rear, or breech. Parrott guns were used by both the Army and the Navy, and ranged from 10-pounders to 300-pounders. They were named after their designer, Robert Parker Parrott.

Napoleon Gun: Another name for the Model 1857 gun howitzer. This lighter, more maneuverable field artillery piece fired 12 pound projectiles and was very popular with both Federal and Confederate armies.

Havelock: (pronounced hav-loc) A white cloth cover that went over a soldier's kepi, and had a long back that covered a soldier's neck and shoulders. Although it saw use in the early stages of the war, soldiers quickly learned that it cut off circulation around the head and face, leading to the eventual abandonment of the havelock.

Defeat in Detail: Defeating a military force unit by unit. This occurred when units were unable to support one another, often because of distance.

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum - Non-Cambodian prisoners

Twenty-six-year-old John D. Dewhirst, a British tourist, was one of the youngest foreigners to die in the prison. He was sailing with his New Zealand companion, Kerry Hamill, and their Canadian friend Stuart Glass when their boat drifted into Cambodian territory and was intercepted by Khmer patrol boats on August 13, 1978. Glass was killed during the arrest, while Dewhirst and Hamill were captured, blindfolded, and taken to shore. Both were executed after having been tortured for several months at Tuol Sleng. Witnesses reported that a foreigner was burned alive; initially, it was suggested that this might have been John Dewhirst, but a survivor would later identify Kerry Hamill as the victim of this particular act of brutality. Robert Hamill, his brother and a champion Atlantic rower, would years later make a documentary, Brother Number One, about his brother's incarceration.

Monitor: Originally, the U.S.S. Monitor, the first ironclad warship in the United States Navy, commanded by Admiral John L. Worden. The vessel had a large, round gun turret on top of a flat raft-like bottom, which caused some spectators to describe it as a "cheesebox on a raft." The first engagement between ironclads occurred on March 8-9, 1862, at the Battle of Hampton Roads, VA, when the U.S.S. Monitor fought the C.S.S. Virginia (formerly the U.S.S. Merrimack). Eventually a "monitor" became the official term for an entire class of warships modeled after the original U.S.S. Monitor.

Caliber: The distance around the inside of a gun barrel measured in thousands of an inch. Bullets are labeled by what caliber gun they fit.

Breach: A large gap or "hole" in a fortification's walls or embankments caused by artillery or mines, exposing the inside of the fortification to assault.

States Rights: This doctrine held the powers of the individual states as greater than the powers of the Federal government. States rights meant that the Federal government held its power only through the consent of the states and that any powers not specifically given to the Federal government remained in control of the states.

Long Roll: A long, continuous drum call which commanded a regiment to assemble.

Deng era

See also: Sino-Vietnamese War
Soon after Deng became the Paramount Leader of China, the Vietnamese invaded Cambodia and ended the genocide by defeating the Khmer Rouge in January 1979. The People's Republic of Kampuchea was then established. In order to counter the power of Soviet Union and Vietnam in Southeast Asia, China officially condemned the Vietnamese invasion and continued its material support to Khmer Rouge. In early 1979, China launched an invasion of Vietnam to retaliate against Vietnam's invasion of Cambodia.

Deng was convinced by a conversation with Singapore's prime minister Lee Kuan Yew to limit the scale and duration of the war. Following the one-month war, Singapore attempted to serve as a mediator between Vietnam and China on the Cambodian issue.

Furlough: A leave from duty, granted by a superior officer. The furloughed soldier carried papers which described his appearance, his unit, when he left and when he was due to return. Furlough papers also contained a warning that failure to return on time would cause the soldier to be "considered a deserter".

Breastworks: Barriers which were about breast-high and protected soldiers from enemy fire.

Feint: (pronounced feynt) To pretend to attack in one direction while the real attack is directed somewhere else.

Fieldworks: Temporary fortifications put up by an army in the field.

Caliber: The distance around the inside of a gun barrel measured in thousands of an inch. Bullets are labeled by what caliber gun they fit.

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum - Concentration camp rules

When prisoners were first brought to Tuol Sleng, they were made aware of ten rules that they were to follow during their incarceration. What follows is what is posted today at the Tuol Sleng Museum; the imperfect grammar is a result of faulty translation from the original Khmer:

You must answer accordingly to my question. Don't turn them away.
Don't try to hide the facts by making pretexts this and that, you are strictly prohibited to contest me.
Don't be a fool for you are a chap who dare to thwart the revolution.
You must immediately answer my questions without wasting time to reflect.
Don't tell me either about your immoralities or the essence of the revolution.
While getting lashes or electrification you must not cry at all.
Do nothing, sit still and wait for my orders. If there is no order, keep quiet. When I ask you to do something, you must do it right away without protesting.
Don't make pretext about Kampuchea Krom in order to hide your secret or traitor.
If you don't follow all the above rules, you shall get many lashes of electric wire.
If you disobey any point of my regulations you shall get either ten lashes or five shocks of electric discharge.
During testimony at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal on April 27, 2009, Duch claimed the 10 security regulations were a fabrication of the Vietnamese officials that first set up the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum.

Carbine: A breech-loading, single-shot, rifle-barreled gun primarily used by cavalry troops. A carbine's barrel is several inches shorter than a regular rifle-musket.

Furlough: A leave from duty, granted by a superior officer. The furloughed soldier carried papers which described his appearance, his unit, when he left and when he was due to return. Furlough papers also contained a warning that failure to return on time would cause the soldier to be "considered a deserter".

Traverse: A mound of earth used to protect gun positions from explosion or to defilade the inside of a field work or fortification.

South: Also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States of America, or (by Northerners) the Rebel states, the South incorporated the states that seceded from the United States of America to form their own nation. Southern states were: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

Earthwork: A field fortification (such as a trench or a mound) made of earth. Earthworks were used to protect troops during battles or sieges, to protect artillery batteries, and to slow an advancing enemy.

Cham Muslims

In February 1974, the Cham in Region 31, which is in the Western Zone of DK, protested the CPK policy which required the fishermen to register their daily catch with the local cooperative and sell them to the cooperative at a low price. At the same time, the locals were also made to buy those fishes from the cooperative at a higher price. This prompted the locals to confront the cooperative to express their discontent, only to be shot at, "killing and wounding more than 100", as one account put it. By December 1974, a rebellion by the Cham in Region 21 of the Eastern Zone had broken out against the CPK after community leaders were arrested. The rebellion was repressed forcefully by the regime with no records of casualties documented.

As much as there are records of these restrictions, resistance, and repressions, there were also accounts from the Cham community which deny the oppression by the regime between 1970 and early 1975. While restrictions on certain activities like trade and travel were in place during that period, they were understood to be by-products of the ongoing civil war. Moreover, some Cham had also joined the revolution as soldiers and members of the CPK. According to some local accounts, people had confidence in the Khmer Rouge when they first came to the village communities who assisted the locals with food and provisions, and there were no bans on local culture or religion; even if restrictions were imposed, the consequences were not harsh. The CPK were considered heroes of the revolution as they struggled for the cause of the peasantry and nation against the United States (Hinton, 2005:58). As the Cham communities were to be found across DK, various Cham communities might have experienced the effects of the CPK pre-1975 differently; some communities experienced the repressions and restrictions while others did not. Only when Pol Pot had consolidated power by the end of 1975 that the persecution became more severe and affected all of the Cham people indiscriminately. This could well be one of the simpler factors as to why the Cambodian government and the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) do not prosecute the pre-1975 Khmer Rouge perpetrators before Pol Pot consolidated his power. As such, the accounts of those who experienced the repressions prior to 1975 were not considered to be part of the genocide as the case for a systematic annihilation of a people based on ethnic or religious profiling was not concrete enough.

Nom-de-guerre: (pronounced nahm-duh-gair) Literally, in French this means "war name". A nom-de-guerre is a nickname earned in battle, such as "Stonewall" Jackson or "Fighting Joe" Hooker.

Colors: A flag identifying a regiment or army. The "Color Bearer" was the soldier who carried the flag in battle, which was considered a great honor.

Shoddy: Term for cheap, poorly made cloth which was used early in the war to make Federal uniforms. The cloth fell apart very quickly. Eventually "shoddy" became a term for inferior, poorly made items.

Litter: A stretcher which was carried by two people and used to transport wounded soldiers.

Shot: A solid, round projectile, shot from a cannon.

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum - Torture and extermination

In their confessions, the prisoners were asked to describe their personal background. If they were party members, they had to say when they joined the revolution and describe their work assignments in DK. Then the prisoners would relate their supposed treasonous activities in chronological order. The third section of the confession text described prisoners' thwarted conspiracies and supposed treasonous conversations. At the end, the confessions would list a string of traitors who were the prisoners' friends, colleagues, or acquaintances. Some lists contained over a hundred names. People whose names were in the confession list were often called in for interrogation.

Kepi: (pronounced KEH-peeh) Cap worn by Civil War soldiers; more prevalent among Union soldiers.

Foraging: A term used for "living off the land," as well as plundering committed by soldiers.

Vedette(or vidette): A mounted sentry stationed in advance of a picket line.

Enfilade: (pronounced en-fuh-leyd) To fire along the length of an enemy's battle line.

Casualty: A soldier who was wounded, killed, or missing in action.

United States - Khmer Rouge

The relationship between the United States' massive bombing of Cambodia and the growth of the Khmer Rouge in recruitment and popular support has been a matter of interest to historians. Some scholars, including Michael Ignatieff, Adam Jones and Greg Grandin, have cited the United States intervention and bombing campaign from 1965 to 1973 as a significant factor that led to increased support for the Khmer Rouge among the Cambodian peasantry. According to Ben Kiernan, the Khmer Rouge "would not have won power without U.S. economic and military destabilization of Cambodia. ... It used the bombing's devastation and massacre of civilians as recruitment propaganda and as an excuse for its brutal, radical policies and its purge of moderate communists and Sihanoukists."

Butternut: Home-made dye used to color "homespun" cloth a yellow-brown color, used when imported gray cloth became scarce. The dye was made from the husks, leaves, bark, branches and/or roots of butternut and walnut trees. "Butternut" was also a slang term for a Confederate soldier.

Percussion Arm: A musket or rifle-musket that requires a cap to fire. A tiny cap is placed on the gun so that when a trigger is pulled, the hammer strikes the cap. The chemical in the cap (fulminate of mercury) ignites and flame shoots into the chamber that holds the gunpowder. This ignites the powder and the blast shoots the bullet out of the barrel. (Percussion means striking�"a drum is a percussion instrument and a gun that uses a hammer to strike a cap is a percussion arm.)

Fieldworks: Temporary fortifications put up by an army in the field.

Muzzle-loading: Muzzle-loading muskets or rifle muskets had to be loaded from the end by putting the gunpowder and the bullet or ball down the barrel.

Greenbacks: Paper currency which began to circulate in the North after February 1862 with the passage of the Legal Tender Act. The bills were called "greenbacks" because of their color.