Toul Sleng Genocide Museum
(S-21)

On January 7, 1979, party and government collected all of the remaining evidence in S-21 such as: photographs, films, prisoner confession archives, torture instruments, shackles and fourteen victim corpses (including one female) to welcome international and national guests to visit.

Toul Sleng Genocide Museum opened while the Cambodian Revolution Court began their hearing on the leader of “Democratic Kampuchea,” the infamous Pol Pot, Eang Sary, Khiev Samphorn on August 19th, 1979.  The former office S-21 covered an area of 600 by 400 meters.  The fence extended to Sihanuk street on the north side, to Mao Zetong Blvd. on the south side, to Monivong Blvd. toward the east and clear to street 163 on  the west side.  This entire parameter was surrounded by two folds of corrugated iron sheets and dense barbed wire.

The torture prison grew out of two establishments, one being Toul Sleng Primary school, the other being Toul Svay Prey high school, which in the beginning where located within the establishment walls.  These schools where converted into an addition to the torture prison and also surrounded by the same corrugated iron sheeting.  This expanded the prison fences to street 113 on the east side, to street 320 on the west side, and to street 360 toward the south, right in the center of the city.  The addition was made after Pol Pot’s regime forced all of the people to leave Phnom Penh, and live out in the country side as slaves.  All four buildings of the high school contained classrooms which were converted into small cells (0.8 x 2 meters) where each prisoner was caged.  In front of all these interior buildings was a mesh of dense barbed wire which prevented anyone from attempting to jump down the building walls.

From 1977-1978 the rooms in building “A” where restructured to new dimensions of  6 x 4 meters per room which allowed space for glass windows to be installed to minimize the sound of screaming from prisoners during torture.  Building “A” was primarily used for detaining the cadres who had been accused of leading the uprising against Pol Pot’s revolution.   These cadres where given a cell with a bed, blanket, plastic or iron water containers to dispose of their body waste, and a mat while they awaited torture.  Buildings “B”, “C” and “D” on the ground floor where divided by brick walls into very small cells.  The second floor was used as collective cells where prisoners were kept in very large numbers.

The tomb of fourteen victim corpses was discovered by the United Front for the National Salvation of Kampuchea (UFNSK) on January 7, 1979.  Most of the bodies where tortured to the point where they were unidentifiable either because of mutilation, or severe decomposition, and were burned outside in front of building “A”.  These fourteen corpses where the last of many killed by the S-21 guards before they escaped.  

The wooden pole in the courtyard area which at one time was the center of where students conducted their exercises was utilized at a torture device.  The interrogator would tie both hands of the prisoners behind their backs with a rope and lift them upside down repeatedly until they lost consciousness; then the guards would dip the prisoners head into a jar filled with urine or fowl water to force the victim to regain consciousness so that they may continue with their interrogation process.

To maintain security and to manage the internal activities in the office of S-21 and its branches, Pol Pot’s clique employed 1684 staff members in 1976, which were divided into four units:  office S-21 (Toul Sleng), office S-21 Kor (located in  Ta Khmao), office S-21 Khor (located at Prey Sor, west of  Phnom Penh in the Dangkor District of the Kandal Province) which was responsible for producing agricultural supplies for the S-21 complexes.  

The office and its branches were directly under the Authority of the Central Community and the Khmer Rouge Ministry of Defense.  This facility was lead by Kang Keck Ieu, also known as Kuch.  Kuch was born in Cho Yok village in the Chine Thbong sub-district of Kampong Thom province, and was formally employed as a school teacher before taking the position of Director of S-21.

According to the research done on the prisoner list archives, the influx of prisoners from 1975 until June of 1978:

1975:  154 prisoners
1976:  2,250 prisoners
1978:  2,350 prisoners
1979:  5,765 prisoners

These figures do not include the number of children killed by the Khmer Rouge, which is estimated to exceed 20,000.  The duration of imprisonment ranged from two to four months, but for some “political prisoners” the torture sentence could have ranged between six and seven months.

An excerpt taken from a flyer passed out to guests at the S-21 facility:

“It is a compulsoriness to preserve this place as an achieves, evidences, in order to keep in mind about all the oppression and exploitation of the ‘Khmer Rouge’ regime.  If we all do not emerge the anger, do  not remind this cruelty and inhumanity action, this stat will fade way in our exhilaration.

Furthermore, we have to emerge and extend the anger ads much as possible in order to make the dishonor history be existed in Cambodian heart for a lifetime.  Also to prevent this foolish regime not to return to Angkor territory as in the world.”