Beauty in the country of the skull: There is plenty to see that is uplifting, such as the temples at Angkor Wat (Pring Samrang, Reuters)
GLYNNIS UNDERHILL
The Mail & Guardian, South Africa
Aug 12 2011
In the blistering heat, standing in the Choeung Ek killing fields outside Phnom Penh in Cambodia, you get a taste of what it would be like to land in hell.
Dominating the dusty site is a glass tower filled to the ceiling with the skulls of men, women and children, which were exhumed from mass graves in the area. Almost 9 000 corpses have been found here since 1980 and this surreal monument pays tribute to the victims who were murdered during the horrific rule of the Khmer Rouge army from 1975 to 1979.
Walking around the fields is a chilling experience and not for the faint-hearted -- clothing and crumbling bones that have been washed up from shallow graves by rain protrude from the ground.
Two members of our tour party chose to stay on the bus, not wanting to set foot on this execution ground. Our group was a diverse lot, made up of three high-ranking tourism officials from Swaziland, Zambia and Mozambique, two South African journalists and three Vietnamese academics who had partnered with the Brenthurst Foundation. Its deputy director Terence MacNamee led the tour.
The foundation, which was set up by the Oppenheimer family in 2004, helps to formulate strategies and policies to strengthen Africa's economic performance. On this occasion it had organised a working trip for African delegates to exchange ideas with their counterparts in Cambodia and Vietnam on developing tourism for sustainable economic growth.
Dealing with a tragic past
On the trip to the killing fields we saw first-hand how Cambodia is trying to rebuild a nation savaged by a brutal regime. You can only but admire the honest way in which the Cambodians are trying to deal with their tragic past.
The barbaric Khmer Rouge regime destroyed the lives of many people in this charming and spiritual country and killed most of the intellectuals and professionals of the period. Most families lost at least one family member and others many more, locals say. In the past few years tourism has boomed and it is all the more remarkable because the Cambodians are not hiding the truth but embracing their terrifying past by honouring the dead.
Yet ask Cambodians about how their families were affected by the Khmer Rouge and they appear to be afraid of talking openly. This is not surprising when you learn that some of the Khmer Rouge occupy key positions in the government today and, despite the fact that in the heart of bustling Phnom Penh four top Khmer Rouge officials are on trial for war crimes, fear still runs deep.
"Don't use my name in your story if you are going to write about politics," whispered a Cambodian who, as a child, was sent by the Khmer Rouge to a camp in the countryside. There, he said, he was made to cut grass for years, and lost many years of schooling. Asked why he and other Cambodians appeared to be so happy and how they had overcome the sadness of their past, he shook his head.
"Cambodians smile but they are hiding their pain in their hearts and the pain never goes away," he said.
Justice at last
It felt good to know that a United Nations-backed tribunal is finally putting some of the Khmer Rouge officials in the dock, despite the fact the four who are facing charges are aged and infirm.
Aug 12 2011
In the blistering heat, standing in the Choeung Ek killing fields outside Phnom Penh in Cambodia, you get a taste of what it would be like to land in hell.
Dominating the dusty site is a glass tower filled to the ceiling with the skulls of men, women and children, which were exhumed from mass graves in the area. Almost 9 000 corpses have been found here since 1980 and this surreal monument pays tribute to the victims who were murdered during the horrific rule of the Khmer Rouge army from 1975 to 1979.
Walking around the fields is a chilling experience and not for the faint-hearted -- clothing and crumbling bones that have been washed up from shallow graves by rain protrude from the ground.
Two members of our tour party chose to stay on the bus, not wanting to set foot on this execution ground. Our group was a diverse lot, made up of three high-ranking tourism officials from Swaziland, Zambia and Mozambique, two South African journalists and three Vietnamese academics who had partnered with the Brenthurst Foundation. Its deputy director Terence MacNamee led the tour.
The foundation, which was set up by the Oppenheimer family in 2004, helps to formulate strategies and policies to strengthen Africa's economic performance. On this occasion it had organised a working trip for African delegates to exchange ideas with their counterparts in Cambodia and Vietnam on developing tourism for sustainable economic growth.
Dealing with a tragic past
On the trip to the killing fields we saw first-hand how Cambodia is trying to rebuild a nation savaged by a brutal regime. You can only but admire the honest way in which the Cambodians are trying to deal with their tragic past.
The barbaric Khmer Rouge regime destroyed the lives of many people in this charming and spiritual country and killed most of the intellectuals and professionals of the period. Most families lost at least one family member and others many more, locals say. In the past few years tourism has boomed and it is all the more remarkable because the Cambodians are not hiding the truth but embracing their terrifying past by honouring the dead.
Yet ask Cambodians about how their families were affected by the Khmer Rouge and they appear to be afraid of talking openly. This is not surprising when you learn that some of the Khmer Rouge occupy key positions in the government today and, despite the fact that in the heart of bustling Phnom Penh four top Khmer Rouge officials are on trial for war crimes, fear still runs deep.
"Don't use my name in your story if you are going to write about politics," whispered a Cambodian who, as a child, was sent by the Khmer Rouge to a camp in the countryside. There, he said, he was made to cut grass for years, and lost many years of schooling. Asked why he and other Cambodians appeared to be so happy and how they had overcome the sadness of their past, he shook his head.
"Cambodians smile but they are hiding their pain in their hearts and the pain never goes away," he said.
Justice at last
It felt good to know that a United Nations-backed tribunal is finally putting some of the Khmer Rouge officials in the dock, despite the fact the four who are facing charges are aged and infirm.
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