Tat Marina
Skye FitzgeraldPortland, OR August 21, 2009
BY GEOFF NORCROSS
Oregon Public Broadcasting
Ten years ago, Tat Marina was 16, a pretty rising star in the karaoke video scene in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
She was involved in a sexual relationship with a middle-aged man, who – she later learned – was in fact Cambodia’s Undersecretary of State: a man named Svay Sitha.
In December of 1999, Cambodian police say Marina was attacked in a Phnom Penh market.
She was thrown to the ground, knocked unconscious, and doused with nitric acid.
Tat Marina: “I felt something burning behind my neck through my back. And I got up and there’s acid all over my body and my face,and I’m trying to look for who did that. I feel it burning, and I scream for help. The acid was on my body, burning badly. I couldn’t see, couldn’t open my eye. And I thought I’m going to be blind.”
Marina was burned on more than 40 percent of her body.
The burns were so deep on her face, her ears eventually had to be removed.
According to witnesses, one of the perpetrators was Svay Sitha’s wife.
A warrant for her arrest was issued, but Cambodia’s culture of impunity has protected her and her powerful husband for ten years.
Portland filmmaker Skye Fitzgerald has documented Marina’s story in a new film called Finding Face.
Fitzgerald says he and his collaborators were considering a film about acid attacks on women in general, but Marina’s story kept coming up in their research.
Tat Marina has had over two-dozen reconstructive surgeries on her face in the past ten years, most of them at Shriners Hospital in Boston, where she now lives.
You can meet Marina and the filmmakers at a special screening, this Sunday evening at Portland Art Museum.
She was involved in a sexual relationship with a middle-aged man, who – she later learned – was in fact Cambodia’s Undersecretary of State: a man named Svay Sitha.
In December of 1999, Cambodian police say Marina was attacked in a Phnom Penh market.
She was thrown to the ground, knocked unconscious, and doused with nitric acid.
Tat Marina: “I felt something burning behind my neck through my back. And I got up and there’s acid all over my body and my face,and I’m trying to look for who did that. I feel it burning, and I scream for help. The acid was on my body, burning badly. I couldn’t see, couldn’t open my eye. And I thought I’m going to be blind.”
Marina was burned on more than 40 percent of her body.
The burns were so deep on her face, her ears eventually had to be removed.
According to witnesses, one of the perpetrators was Svay Sitha’s wife.
A warrant for her arrest was issued, but Cambodia’s culture of impunity has protected her and her powerful husband for ten years.
Portland filmmaker Skye Fitzgerald has documented Marina’s story in a new film called Finding Face.
Fitzgerald says he and his collaborators were considering a film about acid attacks on women in general, but Marina’s story kept coming up in their research.
Tat Marina has had over two-dozen reconstructive surgeries on her face in the past ten years, most of them at Shriners Hospital in Boston, where she now lives.
You can meet Marina and the filmmakers at a special screening, this Sunday evening at Portland Art Museum.
27 comments:
Democratic Kampuchea Pol Pot Khmer Rouge Regime had committed:
Tortures
Executions
Massacres
Atrocities
Crimes Against Humanity
Starvations
Overwork to Death
Slavery
Rapes
Human Abuses
Assault and Battery
Cambodian People's Party Hun Sen Khmer Rouge Regime had committed:
Assassinations
Assassinated Journalists
Assassinated Political Opponents
Assassinated Leader of the Free Trade Union
Attempted Assassinations on Chea Vichea and Sam Rainsy
Attempted Murders on Chea Vichea and Sam Rainsy
Executed members of FUNCINPEC Party
Murders members and activists of Sam Rainsy Party
Killings
Extrajudicial Execution
Grenade Attack
Terrorism
Drive by Shooting
Tortures
Intimidations
Death Threats
Threatening
Human Abductions
Human Rights Abuses
Human Trafficking
Drugs Trafficking
Under Age Child Sex
Corruptions
Bribery
Illegal Mass Evictions
Illegal Land Grabbing
Illegal Firearms
Illegal Logging
Illegal Deforestation
Illegally use of remote detonation on Sokha Helicopter, while Hok Lundy and others military official on board.
Illegally Sold State Properties
Illegally Remove Parliamentary Immunity of Parliament Members
Plunder National Resources
Acid Attacks
Turn Cambodia into a Lawless Country
Oppression
Injustice
Steal Votes
Bring Foreigners from Veitnam to vote in Cambodia for Cambodian People's Party.
Abuse the Court as a tools for CPP to send political opponents and journalists to jail.
Abuse of Power
Abuse the Laws
Abuse the National Election Committee
Abuse the National Assembly
Violate the Laws
Violate the Constitution
Violate the Paris Accords
Impunity
Under Cambodian People's Party Hun Sen Khmer Rouge Regime, no criminals that has been committed all of these crimes above within Hun Sen Khmer Rouge government have ever been brought to justice.
UNDER AGE CHILD SEX
Cambodian People's Party Hun Sen Khmer Rouge Regime had committed under age child sex.
Svay Sitha is a senior government official from Cambodian People's Party.
Svay Sitha had a sexual relationship with Tat Marina, she was only 16 years old.
Source: Human Rights Watch
ACID ATTACK ON TAT MARINA
Cambodian People's Party Hun Sen Khmer Rouge Regime had committed acid attack.
"On December 5, 1999, Tat Marina, age 16, was severely disfigured in an acid attack in Phnom Penh. The attack was allegedly committed by Khun Sophal, the wife of a senior government official, Svay Sitha, because she was angry her husband had a sexual relationship with Tat Marina. Neither Khun Sophal nor those suspected of being her accomplices in the attack were brought to justice. Intense media publicity compelled the Phnom Penh Municipal Court to issue an arrest warrant for Khun Sophal for attempted murder, but the police claimed that they could not locate her, although journalists reported that she was living at home as usual."
Source: Human Rights Watch
TORTURE AND MURDER ON PRAK SITHA WHILE IN CUSTODY BY MISNISTRY OF INTERIOR OFFICIAL
Cambodian People's Party Hun Sen Khmer Rouge Regime had committed torture and murder.
"On the night of January 16, 2003, a street youth named Prak Sitha was beaten to death at the Ministry of Interior (MOI) headquarters after he was arrested and detained by off-duty MOI officers on suspicion of theft. His body - bearing numerous injuries to the head, torso, arms, and legs - was dumped at a Phnom Penh pagoda the following morning by ministry officers, in violation of police regulations regarding deaths in custody. No criminal charges were filed in connection with this death. In December 2004, the case was cited by the UN secretary-general's special representative for human rights in Cambodia - who stated that Prak Sitha died at the ministry "following beatings by a known police officer" - as an example of a "consistent and continuing pattern of impunity" in Cambodia."
Source: Human Rights Watch
PUT SAMPHORS WAS SHOT DEAD BY MEAN SOKCHEA, A RCAF MAJOR WORKING IN BRIGADE 70.
Hun Sen's personal Bodyguards Unit (Brigade 70) is a terrorist organization.
Hing Bunheang is a March 30, 1997 Grenade Attack suspect identified by the FBI.
Cambodian People's Party Hun Sen Khmer Rouge Regime had committed murder, again.
"On September 4, 2008, Mean Sokchea, a RCAF major working in Brigade 70, shot dead 21-year-old waitress Put Samphors at a restaurant in Kandal province. Mean Sokchea, in a drunken stupor, fired his gun and apparently mistakenly hit Put Samphors in the stomach. She was taken to a hospital but later died of her wounds. Mean Sokchea was detained by the police overnight but was then released, allegedly after intervention by Hing Bun Heang. Put Samphor's family received US$2,700 from Mean Sokchea, and the police told them that their daughter was shot while authorities were chasing robbers."
Source: Human Rights Watch
BUTCHERS ON A SMALLER SCALE:
HUN SEN AND THE CAMBODIAN PEOPLE'S PARTY
by Bruce Sharp
On July 7, 1997, Hun Sen, the leader of the Cambodian People's Party (CPP), overthrew Prime Minister Norodom Ranariddh in a brutal, bloody coup. Two days of fighting left at least 58 people dead and hundreds wounded. Ranariddh's forces were overwhelmed.
The atmosphere in the weeks prior to the coup was one of optimism. Rumors surfaced that Pol Pot, the head of the hated Khmer Rouge, had been captured, and would be turned over to the government to stand trial. The Khmer Rouge were defeated, consumed in the end by their own violence and infighting. But in a bitter twist of fate, killers have become a sought-after commodity in Cambodia. The remaining Khmer Rouge were a prize. Ranariddh, whose soldiers had been battlefield allies of the Khmer Rouge throughout most of the Eighties, seemed poised to absorb them into his ranks. Hun Sen, fearing the effect that this might have on his attempts to consolidate his power, moved to crush Ranarridh before the Khmer Rouge could join him.
In the days leading up to the coup, Hun Sen protested loudly that the Khmer Rouge were murderers, and that they should have no place in Cambodian politics. This is a admirable sentiment. But it is rather odd to hear it from Hun Sen, who is himself a former Khmer Rouge soldier. His defection from the Khmer Rouge came only when one of the many purges conducted by the Khmer Rouge came to focus on his own ranks. One can only assume that he had no particular objection to genocide, so long as it was not directed at him personally.
In the days following Ranariddh's overthrow, Hun Sen's soldiers hunted down supporters of Ranariddh's FUNCINPEC party. Several of the victims were apparently tortured before being murdered; four of the bodyguards of Nhiek Bun Chhay, Ranariddh's top military commander, were found with their eyes gouged out. (Nhiek Bun Chhay narrowly escaped.) Former Interior Minister Ho Sok was shot in the head while in the custody of Hun Sen's military. Chau Sambath, an intelligence expert for Ranariddh, was "shot while trying to escape" according to one CPP account, and "committed suicide" according to another. The United Nations, meanwhile, reported that several persons imprisoned in the wake of the coup had been tortured; they were beaten, forced to drink sewer water, and some had their fingers crushed in metal clamps. Thirty detainees were held in an unlit, unventilated cell roughly six feet wide by twenty feet long. In a haunting echo of the Khmer Rouge years, the CPP denied that FUNCINPEC supporters had been killed. They had, according to the CPP, been sent for "re-education." In the aftermath of these incidents, Amnesty International has issued an appeal to embassies in Cambodia to provide shelter to Royalist party members. Hun Sen's soldiers, meanwhile, celebrated their victory with a looting spree throughout much of Phnom Penh. Even hospitals were not spared. Soldiers stole medicine, beds, and blankets, leaving nothing behind for the care of the wounded. When the UN Human Rights office publicized the killings and torture, Hun Sen called for the replacement of the UN staff and demanded an apology from the UN.
Some scholars have promoted the idea that the core of the Cambodian People's Party was formed from the ranks of "good Khmer Rouge" -- a noble, caring group of kind-hearted revolutionaries who were oppressed by the evil "Pol Pot - Ieng Sary clique."
Anyone who believes that this is so should be reminded that Hun Sen initially acquired the role of "co-Prime Minister" only because he threatened renewed civil war when he lost the UN-sponsored elections in 1993. (For details, see Alan Knight's essay on Hun Sen and Democracy.) Those who still harbor lingering doubts should recall the Easter Sunday grenade attack on pro-democracy protesters in Phnom Penh, an assault that killed at least 18 people and wounded as many as 100 more. After the incident, Hun Sen suggested that opposition leader Sam Rainsy, who arranged the demonstration (and whose bodyguard was killed in the attack), should be arrested. When he finished blaming the victims, he suggested that the Khmer Rouge were responsible. In a sense, he is probably correct: When Hun Sen looks in the mirror, a Khmer Rouge stares back.
The 1998 elections were intended to bestow the mantle of legitimacy on Hun Sen. But the elections were a farce. (See the 1998 Human Rights Watch Report on Cambodia for a detailed description of the conditions in Cambodia leading up to the supposedly "fair" election.) The international community seemed to have exhausted its patience with Cambodia, and clearly intended to wash their hands of the entire matter. Observers rushed to declare the elections "legitimate" even before the votes were counted. After the failure of the UN to enforce the results of the previous election, and the muted reaction to the 1997 coup, one suspects the rest of the world simply decided to declare victory and go home.
After decades of war and violence, the Khmer Rouge are gone. The Khmer Rouge were brutal, stupid despots. Hun Sen is a brutal, intelligent one. In an article in the Salt Lake Tribune, noted Cambodia scholar Stephen Heder described Hun Sen in a single sentence: "He is both a competent political administrator and a ruthless political criminal."
Surely, the people of Cambodia deserve better.
Author: Bruce Sharp
Hi 5 posters above mine.
The subject is about Tat Marina, the victim of acid attack.
Stop playing with your keyboards and stop messing up the article.
Hi 5 posters above mine, except the retarded 1:22 PM.
This subject is about exposing the Scambodian government.
You've done a great job. Please carry on with your work.
1;43pm,
You don't have to get too nasty like a bitch. Where is the subject that said exposing the scambodian government?
Under Hun Sen's leadership, Cambodia is the state of derachan (animal)
Acid attacks are a common occurrence in Cambodia mostly happened to many cases especially the second wife or other abuse and by jalousie. Once again perhaps you or the young generation knew that DY SAVETH a former famous Khmer movies actress she had an acid attack as well, this happened since the latest 1968. She immediately went to Japan for the operation; after she got well recuperated her first film came the earliest 1970 as ‘Adventured Life’. I hope everyone know about this.
(Thos who write long sentence like a book I won’t have time to read it)
Angkorianma Krama Man
CPP (Cover-up Plot and Planted)
So TAT MARINA was 16 when she had sex with the big shot?.Wow excited was it ?.Big shot ,you must bledding her.
Cambodia is the lawless country in the south East Asia.
to be safe do not go there.
Talking about the word "Derichhan" in Cambodia language, there's a village in Cambodia called Derichhan. So Hun Sen always names the schools after him such as Phnom-Penh Hun Sen elementary school. So when it comes to this village, he asks the school to name this school as Hun Sen Derichhan elementary school. Therefore, he is a derichhan person.
Got it....Hun Shit supporters
Don't worry Khmer nation will one day cook Taing Hun and Sen for Hun Kwak for his funeral.
I like to eat Taing Hun when I sen for whoever passed away.
Samdech Hun Sen will soon join Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos.
Finally, samdech Hun Sen will be exiled.
To 11:48 PM,
You get a problem with Sadech Daychu Hun Sen? Are you in Cambodia? If so, I would like to take you out and teach the lesson. Why can you come to work in Cambodia? Stop making fun, Okay?
Angk Krama Man
Hi Pu 12:40am.
It is just opinions, so let them speak. This kind of attack should be prosecuted but the women who enjoy committing this crime are the women of high ranking CPP, so the blame goes to Hun Sen. If Hun Sen starts to obey the laws everyone will, no matter who it is.
stu of astronomy (UVa)
Let's me make it short. Samdech Daychu always obey and salute to the law and for Cambodian people and the country. Who starts who first by filling a complain against Samdech Daychu? Man look! I am not on no body side. I work all night long I've been followed up this news.
AngkorM Krama Man
Animal kingdom of Hun Sen!
To 2:17 AM
You insult your motherland. Sorry you are against your government. Do you think you live abroad is the best place for your life? Every where is the problem. I believe there’s corrupt, abuse and so on not quite different from Cambodia.
Angko Krama Man
Hi Pu 1:44 AM,
Hun Sen was indirectly harassed the woman, so Mu Sochua filed a lawsuit against him. Isn't Cambodia trying to be a democratic society? If so then you shouldn't complain.
The sign of Hun Sen has never obeyed the law and has always intimidated his rivals: is that Mu Soc Hua's attorney feared for his life, and Mu Soc Hua was forced to lead her own defense. This kind of intimidation is obvious to every dictator like Hun Sen. Hun Sen has broken every law of the land and he has committed treason against Cambodia.
Love is blind, and you are in love with Hun Sen is quite understood.
stu of astronomy (UVa)
TO 3:19 AM STU OF ASTRONOMY (UVA) Fuck!
This is to follow up regard to your comments. I don’t want to bring that Lady’s name up here. And Yes! She caused problem first with Samdech Daychu. You should respect him if you are in Cambodia. He opens foreigner to come to do business in Cambodia, Land? We rent or sold to them in order to help our country growth and bring more tourists. We DID NOT SELL Cambodia as you stated, you and the rest other Cambodian who live abroad keep yelling to the government especially to Samdech Daychu Hen Sen as stupid using all kind of nasty language to him, Hey MAN! ….he didn’t actual heard from you, and he doesn’t’ care. If you are a MAN, why can’t you send a letter to the Cambodian People Party concerning your complaint? You should respect your country; you all in here make the country looks very bad. Does Thailand, Thai people ever do this to their government? Some do I believe! You must stop now, not thing you can do.
(For those who write long sentence like a book I won’t read it.)
AngkorianMan Krama Man
Dear Lok Pu 4:19 AM.
You said we should respect Hun Sen as long we are in Cambodia, in spite of his absolute dictatorship.
Then you said Cambodia is a democratic society. Which one should I listen?
Stu of astronomy (UVa)
Hey kraman your debate was lost by Stu astronomy already because the ignorant prime minister employ the stupid employee like you,so just get the fuck out of my face ,you are sucked and annoying person sound like Alzheimer,retarded and weird or perhaps drunkard officiers like khiev kanalith?
this kind of thing would never happen in america. why? because people sue in america? but they can get away in cambodia and some other society as well? it shows weak judiciary system or law system there. cambodia still has a long way to go, still! wake up already!
next time people with cell phone camera take picture of the culprit and give them to authority as evidence for prosecution. wake up already, let's be smarter next time around. then sue them!
We know who were the culprits,Khun sophal, khun vandy, atleast 5 Chomthievs involved, and 6 other men. We remember one of the fat Chomthiev,but not her name.
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