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THE EVENTS THAT PASSED ON 17 APRIL 1975
Vannak Sok
17 April 1975 is
an historical day that all people throughout the country must remember. At that time
I was probably about nine years old, but I cannot remember clearly the events
that passed on that day. 17 April 1975 is the day in which the soldiers dressed
in black and rubber tire shoes and wearing khaki Chinese caps achieved victory
over the Lon Nol soldiers.
At that time, in
Koh Praak Village, Phum Thom Sub-District, Kien Svay District, Kandal Province,
the soldiers dressed in black shot the Lon Nol soldiers while they were guarding
near the groves of bamboo, at the end of the village. They ought
to be pitied.
It wasn't certain whose children or husbands they were. They had
come to die in such suffering and pain. It was also
uncertain what village or sub-district they came from, because the people in the
district did not know them. None of the
villagers were willing to take the Lon Nol soldiers to be buried, because they
were afraid the soldiers dressed in black would misunderstand. These
soldiers walked back and forth carrying guns in each hand. They ought to be
feared, but some of the villagers were not very scared. They even
came out and welcomed them with congratulations, yelling, "Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!" Perhaps the
villagers believed this new regime would be more prosperous and happy than the
previous regimes. No one could
imagine that in the near future some thing horrible would happen.
If you glanced at
the situation at that time, there were thousands of people wandering into the
village.
According to what I was able to observe at that time, many more people
were walking from the west to the east. While people
were travelling, some carried their belongings on their heads, some carried
their things in their arms and their backs and others had a Peta car, a
motorcycle, or a cart to push the elderly. In the
afternoon, some people stopped to rest underneath the tree and cook rice. Some asked
the villagers for a place to cook. Others just
kept moving forward. At that
time, there was one girl about six-years-old, standing there alone, without
anyone asking her what was wrong. She was
probably separated from her mother and father because when she cried she kept
screaming for her mother. I did not
see anyone come to get her. This girl
kept walking without knowing where she was going. At that
moment, the villagers also saw a new, black car. They didn't
know where the owners had gone. I only heard
the villagers say that the car belonged to a movie star. Some said the car
belonged to a high-ranking official. They saw four people walking past the
stream to the island. Afterwards
they took a boat across to the far bank and disappeared into Lvea Em
District.
Among the hundreds
of people, I saw my uncle, named Ma Kum Hean, coming from Phnom Penh. He was a
professor in the Reas Niyum period. He brought
his wife and all of his children with him. He stayed at
my parent's house for s short while, before he would leave to find his native
district.
At that time, the soldiers dressed in black had evacuated everyone
outside of the city for three days. If anyone
was stubborn or was unwilling to leave they would be shot and killed. My uncle was
very scared.
Another group of people were forced to leave quickly even though they had
not yet united with their families and were therefore separated from each
other.
Some were separated from their husbands and some were separated from
their beloved children. No matter
how much everyone cried and pleaded with them, it did not matter. Therefore, in
tears, each family had to force themselves to leave their homes. They could
not imagine that a city that was once filled with people could be evacuated
entirely by the soldiers dressed in black. The city
that was once filled with people became silent. These are
the words my uncle told me.
On the other hand,
in my village, the people dressed in black were not as brutal as my uncle had
described them. When they
saw older people, they called them "nhorm." (this is a word of respect used as a
substitute for mother or father.) "Please,
nhorm, quickly leave to find your native village. Angkar will
not harm you."
They only told the people who had recently arrived from Phnom Penh,
"Angkar only want you to leave the city for three days so that they can clean up
the city. When Angkar has finished re-organizing it, brothers and sisters can
return and live there. Our Angkar will only kill the enemies. If they see
the Lon Nol soldiers they will kill them immediately. They will not keep
them."
In the evening,
around 5:00 on the 17th of April, the people who were evacuated from Phnom Penh,
remained silent during their journey. I could only
see smoke from the fire. Along the
road no one spoke to each other about anything. Perhaps they
were tired from their travels. Around 8:00
at night, none of the villagers or the people who had just arrived from the city
asked each other about anything. It was
completely quiet. I only saw
the groups of soldiers dressed in black walking to and fro and a dog
howling.
That night, I believe most of the people were not able to fall
asleep.
Everyone was thinking about the problems that they might face the next
day.
17 April 1975 is
the most horrific day for the people throughout Cambodia. Every person
recognizes this day as a day that forced families and relatives to endure much
pain and suffering. There is nothing that can be compared. Some died,
some were separated from their husbands and children and their parents. Almost all
of my mother's family died. It is
because of this that I, Sok Vannak, representing all the people in Cambodia,
would like to ask that a just tribunal be established so that all the people in
Cambodia can be appeased and so that the souls of those who have died can also
rest in peace.
If there is no trial, all the people will certainly never be satisfied,
because the things that have happened are too brutal. We must have
a trial and keep this as a model for the future.
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