Vann Nath, 62, poses for a picture at his house in the capital Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2007. Nath, a Khmer Rouge death camp survivor now battling chronic health problems, is among 10 Southeast Asians chosen as recipients of the Hellman/Hammett human rights award, the New York-based Human Rights Watch said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)February 6th 2007
DPA
A Cambodian writer, artist and survivor of the Khmer Rouge's most infamous secret prison has been awarded the Hellman/Hammett award, New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a press release Tuesday.
It said Vann Nath was among a diverse group of writers from 22 countries who will receive the HRW-administered grant this year. The award recognizes courage in the face of political persecution. The press released did not disclose the size of the grant Nath was awarded.
HRW said Nath, 62, was one of only seven men to survive Tuol Sleng, or S-21, where 14,000 men, women and children were interrogated, tortured and executed during the Khmer Rouge's brutal 1975 to 1979 Democratic Kampuchea regime.
He survived because of his artistic skills, after his captors discovered his talents and forced him to create works glorifying the movement's leader, Pol Pot.
Nath has since shared his experiences through his writing and art and is an outspoken advocate for justice for victims of the regime, HRW said.
"Vann Nath is an important painter and writer whose memoirs and paintings of his experiences in the Tuol Sleng prison are a powerful and poignant testimony to the crimes of the Khmer Rouge," Hellmen/Hammett programme coordinator Marcia Allina said.
HRW said Vann Nath "will likely serve as an important witness in the tribunal being organized by the United Nations and Cambodia to bring former Khmer Rouge leaders to justice."
The long-delayed tribunal is projected to take three years to complete hearings on charges of genocide and human rights abuses against a handful of now aging and sometimes ailing former Khmer Rouge leaders. No starting date has been set for the trials.
HRW said that despite battling health problems including chronic kidney disease, Nath continues to paint and write about his experiences under the regime and is living proof of the need to protect human rights. Pol Pot died without ever facing justice in 1998.
More than half of this year's 45 awardees hail from three countries - nine are from China, eight are Vietnamese, and seven come from Iran. Vann Nath is the ninth Cambodian to win the award since 1992. He was a previous winner in 2002.
It said Vann Nath was among a diverse group of writers from 22 countries who will receive the HRW-administered grant this year. The award recognizes courage in the face of political persecution. The press released did not disclose the size of the grant Nath was awarded.
HRW said Nath, 62, was one of only seven men to survive Tuol Sleng, or S-21, where 14,000 men, women and children were interrogated, tortured and executed during the Khmer Rouge's brutal 1975 to 1979 Democratic Kampuchea regime.
He survived because of his artistic skills, after his captors discovered his talents and forced him to create works glorifying the movement's leader, Pol Pot.
Nath has since shared his experiences through his writing and art and is an outspoken advocate for justice for victims of the regime, HRW said.
"Vann Nath is an important painter and writer whose memoirs and paintings of his experiences in the Tuol Sleng prison are a powerful and poignant testimony to the crimes of the Khmer Rouge," Hellmen/Hammett programme coordinator Marcia Allina said.
HRW said Vann Nath "will likely serve as an important witness in the tribunal being organized by the United Nations and Cambodia to bring former Khmer Rouge leaders to justice."
The long-delayed tribunal is projected to take three years to complete hearings on charges of genocide and human rights abuses against a handful of now aging and sometimes ailing former Khmer Rouge leaders. No starting date has been set for the trials.
HRW said that despite battling health problems including chronic kidney disease, Nath continues to paint and write about his experiences under the regime and is living proof of the need to protect human rights. Pol Pot died without ever facing justice in 1998.
More than half of this year's 45 awardees hail from three countries - nine are from China, eight are Vietnamese, and seven come from Iran. Vann Nath is the ninth Cambodian to win the award since 1992. He was a previous winner in 2002.
1 comment:
good on you. and God bless.
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