Mapping the killing field project 1999

D119510

Mapping the killing field project 1999

English

Cambodia

21 June 1999

Banteay Meanchey province

DC-Cam/D119510 20 March 2025

DC-Cam

20page/Computer typing (Tx)

General information of Banteay Meanchey province.

In the end, he added that he survives because he tried to work hard even though he caught beriberi. Whenever they gathered people, he tried to
escape from one place to another. He hid himself in mobile work brigades. He could do this because in late 1978 the rule was not so strict as
before. His parents and his siblings who lived in concentration places died. Mr. Sangvat said that Pol Pot cliques were very cruel. He will never
forget what the Khmer Rouge did to him.

After interviewing Mr. Ek Sangvat, our team met with Hap Svang, 69 years old, born in Wat Chass Village, Thmar Puork sub-district, Thmar
Puork District, Battambang Province. In the Pol Pot regime he lived in the same place which is Ekapheap village, Kumrou sub-district Thmar
Puork district, Banteay Meanchey province. He now works in the Social Affairs and Culture Office in Thmar Puork district.

In the Pol Pot regime, he was a teacher of social affairs in Thmar Puork district. He healed people in this district. He cured beriberi, diarrhea,
fever, etc. He used traditional medicine made of tree roots. He made the traditional medicine by himself. Later, there was a Chinese named Vien
and his wife Lun. He was skillful in operating. In the Lon Nol regime, the Chinese taught Uncle Hap Svang how to produce traditional medicine
and put into ampoule. 4 other youths also worked with them to produce the medicine. When the Southwest people came to take control over the
district, Vien and his wife were killed. Then Hap Svang was responsible for curing beriberi, diarrhea, fever or period cease etc. in the hospital.
He then was ordered to work in a plantation.

A Southwest woman came to be in charge of the hospital of Thmar Puork District. Most patients, who came to the hospital died, very few
patients survived because only medicine, which was made of tree, roots were used in the hospital. They played trick that they evacuated people
to plant cottons or hemp in different cooperatives. In fact they took families of people to be detained in a large closed-up hall. They called it a
theatre hall. The hall could store 5,000 people. All cows, water buffaloes, and carts of people were sent out to keep in different cooperatives. At
night, they drove trucks back and forth.

It seemed that these trucks carried people elsewhere, but they just drove the empty trucks. The people who were kept in the hall were taken to be
killed in military barrack which is now headquarters of Division 7 of Thmar Puork district, and the other killing place was Sep Pheng well as
Sangvat mentioned. Coconut branches were laid at the bottom of the well and after killing people, they laid coconut branches. They did like this
until the well was full. There were 7 layers of coconut branches. He knew this because he joined the excavation team with Mr. Ek Sangvat in
1982. He added that Pol Pot cliques planed to kill all people by 1979, after harvesting season. Before killing, the Khmer Rouge gave Khmer
noodle party. Fortunately, Vietnamese armed forces came in time to liberate our country.

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