Hello everyone, this is Kalea and Michelle reporting on today's experiences.
Our morning began with a visit to the Choeung Ek Genocidal Center, also referred to as the Killing Fields. This site is one of approximately 300 killing field locations across Cambodia, all together holding the remains of 1.38 million victims of the regime. Yesterday, during our visit to the S-21 or Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, we learned that the prisoners there were often relocated to the killing fields for execution. At the Choeung Ek Genocidal Center, we listened to an audio tour and explored nineteen major stops, each retelling a distinct aspect of the stories from past victims.
Something that particularly stood out to us was the killing tree, where many women and children lost their lives. Khmer Rouge executioners bashed victims' heads into the tree and disposed of the remains in a nearby mass grave, a pit filled to the top with corpses. We also heard about the use of propaganda music, not just for the pleasure of the Khmer Rouge, but also to drown out the agonizing screams of victims as they suffered brutal deaths. After reflecting on this information for a while, we recalled meeting Arn Chorn Pond at the Cambodian Living Arts NGO just a few days back. In both his book, Never Fall Down, and in person, he shared about how his ability to create music saved his life, as it made him valuable to the Khmer Rouge. We thought about how this presented a stark contrast between how music was used to silence the deaths of the Khmer people, but also how it saved lives.
At the center of the site was the main monument, the stupa. It holds seventeen platforms of remains from past victims, most being skulls. A small index on the window described the ways in which each person may have died based upon physical observations about the damage to their skulls. We ended our time at the Killing Fields by meeting an expert in traditional Khmer "smot" (funeral) music. Her chants touched on themes such as gratitude for others and mindfulness about one's body and surroundings. Listening to her music was a nice way to end our morning; after witnessing the horrors of the Democratic Kampuchea regime, placing an emphasis on peace and reconciliation gave us the chance to reflect moving forward.
Today featured a lot of Cambodian history, culture, and themes of reconciliation and recovery from genocide. It was really impactful to walk through the killing fields and later meet elders who had survived the Khmer Rouge regime. Through it all, music played a significant role and tied everything together.
Thank you for taking the time to read our blog!
Kalea and Michelle
