Chapter Four
Life in Cambodia:
After traveling 50 minutes on a winding, unpaved road, our tuk-tuk driver drew our attention to a scenic landscape. Here, the thick cover of the palm trees cleared, and we noticed an expansive lake. The lake was enclosed by distant mountains and boasted of idyllic charm. As water lilies floated by, we paused to take pictures and consulted a map to determine where we were—the Secret Lake.
The name seemed to make sense. We were on a trip to the small town of Kampot in the south of Cambodia, and the lake was well hidden—it was an hour outside of the town, on a road leading to a pepper farm. However, when we reached the pepper farm, we began to research the history of the lake.
The Secret Lake was a project of the Khmer Rouge. The Khmer Rouge had several dam projects in hopes of creating an irrigation system that would supply water to the rice fields. To build these dams, the Khmer Rouge took villagers as prisoners and forced them to work grueling hours to quickly develop the country. The lake is not considered a “secret” because it is a secluded and peaceful location. Rather, the “secret” of the lake is that it is the site of a mass grave. Beneath the surface, thousands of enslaved Cambodians rest after days, weeks, or years of terror and forced labor.
On a Case Tried by the Khmer Rouge Tribunal:
The second case against Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan, Case 002/02, began in 2014. In 002/02, the defendants faced allegations of crimes against humanity, genocide, and grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions. The case identified specific crime sites including the Khmer Rouge’s “security centers,” worksites, and cooperatives. The trial lasted for over two years—with evidence presented in January of 2015 and closing statements concluding in June of 2017.
The Trial Chamber convicted Nuon Chea of genocide of the Vietnamese and the Cham; the crimes against humanity of murder, extermination, deportation, enslavement, imprisonment, torture, persecution on political, religious, and racial grounds, and the other inhumane acts of attacks on human dignity, enforced disappearances, forced transfer, forced marriage, and rape in the context of forced marriage; and grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, including willful killing, torture, and willfully depriving a prisoner of war the rights to a fair and regular trial.
The Trial Chamber convicted Khieu Samphan of genocide of the Vietnamese; the crimes against humanity of murder, extermination, deportation, enslavement, imprisonment, torture, persecution on political, religious, and racial grounds, and the other inhumane acts of attacks on human dignity, enforced disappearances, forced transfer, forced marriage, and rape in the context of force marriage; and grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, including willful killing, torture, and willfully depriving a prisoner of war the rights to a fair and regular trial.
The Trial Chamber sentenced each defendant to life imprisonment. If they would like the Supreme Court Chamber to review their case, the defendants must file their appeals before 1 July 2019. For more, see https://www.eccc.gov.kh/en/case/topic/1298