(Baonghean.vn) - During a working trip with the Vietnamese press delegation in Cambodia, Nghe An Newspaper reporters were able to capture some moments at the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. The place preserves images, relics, and artifacts that are living proof of the genocide caused by the Khmer Rouge.
In just 3 years, 8 months and 20 days, the Pol Pot regime killed nearly 3 million innocent Cambodians, eliminated all social foundations and pushed the Cambodian people to the brink of extinction. Vietnamese volunteer soldiers helped the Cambodian army and people stop the historical disaster, winning a great victory on January 7, 1979, closing one of the darkest pages of Cambodia and of humanity. Many people were haunted when visiting the school that the Khmer Rouge had turned into a prison to commit genocide, when visiting the prison cells, seeing the brutal torture and torture, especially when entering the exhibition room with the remains and skulls of innocent people who were unjustly killed by the Khmer Rouge regime of the Pol Pot - Ieng Xeerri gang. Lim - a tour guide reminded us over and over again: I know that many people are haunted, and many people after visiting the prison suffered psychological trauma. However, that is also the reason why it is necessary to maintain this museum, because it is the most concrete reminder of the government's attitude towards the lives of its people, regardless of the regime or ethnicity.
During this visit, Nghe An newspaper reporters met two witnesses in a photo taken of the surviving victims right when the Vietnamese volunteer army came to liberate Cambodia. Chum Mey - one of the two witnesses in the photo of the surviving characters in Toul Sleng prison in 1979 who is still alive today, was moved: If there were no Vietnamese volunteer army, the genocide would not have ended, and I certainly would not have escaped death to be present at this museum every day to tell the story of the genocide, a unique historical disaster in human history. Currently, many rulers of major countries still harbor plots to annex, invade, attack... Therefore, the existence of the Toul Sleng Museum has a profound reminder meaning. Because, history cannot be repeated but historical mistakes are difficult to avoid...
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| The entrance to the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum – originally a school but under the Pol Pot regime it was turned into a prison because of the huge number of Khmer Rouge people who were arrested and killed. |
The tour guide was denouncing the genocide – a monster of history. |
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| The genocide museum has become a destination for domestic and international tourists. |
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| The photo of Vietnamese soldiers saving children - a large outdoor display, always attracts everyone's attention. |
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| Visitors took photos with Mr. Chum Mey (in blue shirt) and Nghe An Newspaper reporters took souvenir photos with Mr. Bou Meng - 2 witnesses in the photo of the liberation army rescuing people in Toul Sleng prison from genocide. |
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| Statues of those in power during the genocide are now in cages – facing the judgment of history. |
Ngo Kien(email from Cambodia)
