In (Sacred) Memory: Must Politics Obstruct Honoring the Dead?

The following column was first published in June 2007 in The Phnom Penh Post.  Since its publication, the 30 March 1997 stupa has been preserved but the Choeung Ek Memorial continues to ridicule us with its ghastly indecency of commercialization, foreign privatization and unbridled greed.  As victim Civil Parties think through reparations of provincial learning (information) centers and memorials, here’s a “what not to do” in terms of lessons for the future.  Not only that, we should demand that the government redress the Choeung Ek ghastliness.  – Theary C. Seng, Phnom Penh, 30 March 2011

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IN (SACRED) MEMORY:

Must Politics Obstruct Honoring the Dead?

“To those who died, we remember, to those who survived, we hear you, to the next generations, we must never forget." - Elie Wiesel

Lest we forget

The above mentioned quote by famed Jewish holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel serves as a fresh reminder – not only for those who survived and experienced loss under the Khmer Rouge regime, but also for the new generation born in the aftermath of the tragedy – to remember, reflect, and understand.

Our remembrance encompasses a sense of reverence and contemplation for the sacredness of life and freedom. In the face of deep mourning and unimaginable loss, we recoil from ill-mannered blustering and crassness; these sentiments reflect disrespect for the significance of human life.

Too dearly loved to be forgotten

With this in mind, we Khmer should do all that we can to make sure that the Khmer Rouge Tribunal (formally, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, ECCC) works in accordance to what is true, just, right and admirable, thus affirming all the values of life.

We must ensure that the Tribunal is not manipulated by politics to become a charade of justice, thus perverting the memories of our loved ones – Papa Im, Maman Eat, Auntie Eap and her husband of one-month Veng; parents of Loung Ung, Dr. Im Francois and Reach Sambath; relatives of Chea Sophara, Om Yentieng, Roland Eng, Sok An; family of the King Father, Hun Sen and Sam Rainsy; and 1,700,000 others – who would otherwise have died in vain.

In this regard, we beseech once again the powers-that-be: please keep politics away from the ECCC - for the dignity of my parents, your parents, your brothers, your sisters, our loved ones, and generally for our collective Khmer dignity.

Also, we beseech the powers-that-be: please de-commercialize the "killing fields" of Choeung Ek. The 30-year contract with Japanese-owned JC Royal Corporation to privatize this sacred ground is reprehensible and should be annulled. Please let the dead rest in peace.

The memory we hold of loved ones who have passed away is sacred. The memorial we erect in their honor is holy ground.

 Mr. Van Nath, Theary Seng, Dr. Ervin Staub, Dr. Luanne in front of photo of Choeung Ek Killing Fields (Tuol Sleng, March 2011).

Easter Sunday 1997 Memorial

We, Khmer however, are in danger of ridiculing the memory of our dead, again.

On Easter Sunday morning 1997, four grenades ripped through a peaceful group of demonstrators in front of the National Assembly, killing 20 people and wounding 100 others. The demonstrators included garment workers, cyclo drivers, vendors, advocates of democracy, and political activists led by Sam Rainsy, demanding independence for the judiciary.

The first memorial, a stupa, was erected on 29 March 2000, the eve of the anniversary of the grenade attacks. Two days later, this stupa was found in a sewage-outlet on the banks of the Tonle Sap.

The following day, Sam Rainsy supporters retrieved the stupa memorial from the river and returned it to its original location outside the National Assembly.

On 30 April 2000, the stupa was destroyed on location, "pounded to rubble."

The stupa was rebuilt on May 16, some two weeks later, only to be taken and dumped over the Japanese Friendship Bridge later that night at 11 p.m.

The next day, the stupa was returned and re-erected for the fourth time. In the afternoon, it was "smashed by police who raced away with debris." Later that same afternoon, yet another stupa was erected, this time with victims' ashes and a Buddha statue placed inside.

On the evening of June 12, the stupa was destroyed by a bulldozer, injuring at least three people in the chaos. The injuries prompted the involvement of then US Ambassador Kent Wiedemann and a request to the King Father.

The municipality finally awarded permission to Sam Rainsy to build a new stupa, which was officially commemorated on 3 August 2000 and remains standing to this day.

De-politicize, de-commercialize memorials – they are holy grounds

I take pain to put into detailed chronology the efforts in establishing this stupa because the persistence and energy of those who fought to build it reflect deep respect and acknowledgement of the courage and sacrifices of the lives lost. Now, this stupa is under threat of removal to Wat Botum where it will be lost in the forest of other stupas.

Remembrance is commemoration. A memorial is designed to preserve the memory of a person, a place, an event, a moment.

The removal of this memorial to a new location will remove all traces of the event from the sight of the grenade attacks, and thus defeat the purpose of remembrance and a memorial. It will diminish the symbolic meaning of "honoring" those who died in the grenade attacks.

The stupa is not a war memorial; it should not be a political issue. The deceased were high school students, garment workers – simple ordinary citizens, not politicians – exercising their right to demand greater justice and democracy. Yes, the peaceful gatherers were led by Sam Rainsy, but their memories should not be politicized. Moreover, the place of the tragedy is sacred ground and should be treated as such in its remembrance.

The degree to which we value and treasure life is reflected in the way we remember our loved ones.

Whatever our political affiliation or inclination may be, we can join in the commemoration of these precious lives for their bravery and yearning for a better society. These are the values that all individuals and political parties – SRP, CPP, NRP or Funcinpec – should share and desire.

Hence, let us preserve this stupa in its present sacred ground.

Let us claim back the Choeung Ek killing fields for the dignity and honor of our loved ones who passed away.

Let us work to uphold the Khmer Rouge Tribunal to high standards of quality and integrity in hallowed remembrance of our parents, our siblings, our relatives and country men who presence we miss, memory we treasure, loving them always, forgetting them never.

Tribute inscribed on stupa those who died

"To the heroic demonstrators who lost their lives on 30 March 1997 for the cause of justice and democracy. The tragedy occurred 60 meters from this monument on the sidewalk of the park across from the National Assembly.”

• Chet Duong Dara, medical doctor/journalist, 29
• Hann Muny, bodyguard, 32
• Yung Srey, female garment worker, 21
• Yos Siem, female garment worker, 36
• Sam Sarin, bicycle repairer, 50
• Ros Sir, high school boy, 13
• Sok Kheng, female student, 18
• Yoeun Yon, high school boy, 17
• Yung Sok Nov, female garment worker, 20
• Chea Nang, high school teacher (passerby), 28
• Nam Thy, motodop driver, 37
• Chanty Pheakdey, high school girl, 13
• Unknown others.

We honor your courage and will not forget you, for “remembrance is the only paradise out of which we cannot be driven away" (Jean Paul Richter).

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Theary C. SENG www.thearyseng.com, Founding President, CIVICUS: Center for Cambodian Civic Education (CIVICUS Cambodia) www.civicus-cam.org; Founder of Cambodian Center for Justice and Reconciliation (CJR) www.cjr-cam.org, now incorporated as a major project of CIVICUS Cambodia; Founding President of Association of Khmer Rouge Victims in Cambodia www.akrvictims.org, first to be registered with the Ministry of Interior and first to be recognized by the ECCC Victims Support Section.