Phnom Penh, Oct 31 (DPA) A Cambodian entry on Ebay has given the term 'only one previous careful owner' a new meaning. Late Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot's car is up for auction, but former Khmer Rouge has advised it may not be a good buy.
Those wishing to sit in the seat once occupied by a man who orchestrated one of the worst genocides of the last century have until Tuesday to bid a minimum of $72,000 to own the car, which the owner claims propelled Pol Pot between 1975-1979.
Up to two million Cambodians died of starvation, overwork, disease, torture and execution during that period under Pol Pot's Democratic Kampuchea regime. Pol Pot died in 1998.
'For Sale - one classic 1973 Mercedes Benz Stretch Limousine ...previously used by one infamous owner - Pol Pot who led the Khmer Rouge during its genocidal regime,' the Ebay entry reads.
It points interested parties to a clip of the vehicle's restoration, posted on YouTube in an ironic twist for a regime that systematically executed intellectuals and abolished markets and even currency in a drive to turn Cambodia into an agrarian utopia.
Pol Pot, his former photographer said by telephone Monday, would spin in his grave.
'Many former leaders of the regime used these cars. It is interesting a foreigner bought the car,' Nhem En, whom Pol Pot once jailed but reinstated as his personal photographer, said. 'The price seems very high for a very old car, though. Maybe people with this sort of money should buy a new one?'
But Pol Pot is not the only selling point, according to the owner, who did not list his name on the Ebay auction site. Hollywood star Matt Dillon also used it in the making of his cult classic movie 'City of Ghosts'.
Potential buyers may have to have a little faith about the vehicle's authenticity, it continued, citing the nature of Pol Pot's regime as making documentation difficult.
'The Khmer Rouge regime destroyed all official documents during their tenure as the de-facto government in Cambodia during the 1970's ... and hence no official papers for the car exist,' he said.
The car has been used 'for Sunday drives' since it was discovered being used to transport watermelons to market in 2001.
Those wishing to sit in the seat once occupied by a man who orchestrated one of the worst genocides of the last century have until Tuesday to bid a minimum of $72,000 to own the car, which the owner claims propelled Pol Pot between 1975-1979.
Up to two million Cambodians died of starvation, overwork, disease, torture and execution during that period under Pol Pot's Democratic Kampuchea regime. Pol Pot died in 1998.
'For Sale - one classic 1973 Mercedes Benz Stretch Limousine ...previously used by one infamous owner - Pol Pot who led the Khmer Rouge during its genocidal regime,' the Ebay entry reads.
It points interested parties to a clip of the vehicle's restoration, posted on YouTube in an ironic twist for a regime that systematically executed intellectuals and abolished markets and even currency in a drive to turn Cambodia into an agrarian utopia.
Pol Pot, his former photographer said by telephone Monday, would spin in his grave.
'Many former leaders of the regime used these cars. It is interesting a foreigner bought the car,' Nhem En, whom Pol Pot once jailed but reinstated as his personal photographer, said. 'The price seems very high for a very old car, though. Maybe people with this sort of money should buy a new one?'
But Pol Pot is not the only selling point, according to the owner, who did not list his name on the Ebay auction site. Hollywood star Matt Dillon also used it in the making of his cult classic movie 'City of Ghosts'.
Potential buyers may have to have a little faith about the vehicle's authenticity, it continued, citing the nature of Pol Pot's regime as making documentation difficult.
'The Khmer Rouge regime destroyed all official documents during their tenure as the de-facto government in Cambodia during the 1970's ... and hence no official papers for the car exist,' he said.
The car has been used 'for Sunday drives' since it was discovered being used to transport watermelons to market in 2001.
