March 2002

Views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of the AFSC.

Recovering from Genocide -- Cambodia, Twenty-three Years After the Killing Fields

Carol Wagner, a member of Strawberry Creek Friends Meeting in Berkeley, California who currently lives in Findhorn, Scotland, works with women's and humanitarian organizations in Cambodia, leads educational tours to Southeast Asia, and was a UN observer in Cambodia's 1998 election. She is the former director of Mt. Diablo Peace Center in Walnut Creek, California.

As a child, Serey Phal dreamed of becoming an ambassador when she grew up, but her hopes were destroyed in 1975 when the Khmer Rouge marched into Phnom Penh. After nearly two million people died from execution, starvation or disease, the Khmer Rouge regime was ousted in 1979.

Serey Phal started working as a cleaner for the Cambodian Women's Association, and with determination, worked her way up to president. Today, Serey Phal helps poor women help themselves, through loans and skills training. A self-made ambassador, she travels abroad to speak on behalf of Cambodian women.

I met Serey Phal at a conference on Cambodia in Washington, DC and was impressed when I heard her clear summary of the issues facing women in Cambodia. She listed unemployment, prostitution, AIDS, a shortage of day-care centers, domestic violence, landlessness, illiteracy, a lack of education and vocational training, under-representation in politics and government, and high rates of maternal and child mortality.

When I first visited Cambodia in 1991 I was shocked by the extreme poverty, but impressed by the resilience of the people. Starting over was the theme of everyone's life in 1979, and it is a process of recovery that continues today as Cambodians struggle to reconstruct their families, society, and culture.

"The principles of Buddhism are enshrined in the hearts of each Cambodian: Nothing is ever permanent. We accepted, and that was how we let go of the pain and had the strength to rebuild each day for the future. In each breath we inhale hope, life, and loving-kindness, and we exhale the sorrow and pain, " stated Mu Sochua, founder of Khemera, a Cambodian women's development organization.

Two decades of civil war slowed Cambodia's recovery. It was only after Pol Pot's death in 1998 that the Khmer Rouge finally disbanded, allowing peace to settle on Cambodia. The effort to form an international tribunal to bring the Khmer Rouge to trial for crimes against humanity failed recently. The United Nations pulled out of the process in February 2002.

I have visited Cambodia four times in the last ten years, led educational study tours, worked with women's organizations, and was a UN observer in the 1998 election. I was deeply touched by the
Cambodian people's stories of their tremendous loss and suffering, and how they courageously moved forward and helped each other.

I interviewed fourteen people, including Serey Phal, and their personal narratives appear in my new book Soul Survivors--Stories of Women and Children in Cambodia. Soul Survivors documents the stories of twelve people who stayed in Cambodia after the genocide and it includes two refugees who came to the United States as orphans and then returned as young adults to help their country.

Dr. Judy Ledgerwood of the Department of Anthropology, Northern Illinois University said of Soul Survivors, "These are the stories of survivors of the Khmer Rouge regime, but also survivors of war, of corrupt governments, of poverty, of hatred, of racism. It is in the details of their lives, as a teacher, a dancer, a doctor... that one finds great heroism. The book is important because it is about the best of what it means to be human."

I wrote this book because I hope it will create understanding and be a tool for peace. It illustrates a pattern of violence that is repeated through history. Extreme economic injustices, exploitation by foreign governments, family violence, and war create the circumstances for a Hitler, Pol Pot, or bin Laden to come into power. Yet people subjected to violence and brutality are capable of rising above it. As we see in Cambodia, their spirits are strong and caring. Hope and kindness survived the darkest period of Cambodia's recent history.

Soul Survivors describes how the Khmer Rouge came to power, the role of the United States in Cambodia, the problem of six million land mines, and the Buddhist peace movement. With a chronology of Cambodian history, sixty-four photographs of contemporary Cambodia, a map of Cambodia, and an index, it is intended for teachers and students as well as a general readership.

Tues., April 2, 6:00 PM, "Soul Survivors in Cambodia," Harvard Information Center, Holyoke Center, 1350 Mass. Ave. in Harvard Square, Cambridge. Sponsored by Harvard Bookstore; 617/661-0372

A slide presentation about the courageous people of Cambodia and how they rebuilt their lives following the genocide (1975 -1979) and civil war. Carol Wagner will discuss Cambodia today, including the international tribunal, women's issues, landmine situation and Buddhist peace movement. Co-sponsored by American Friends Service Committee, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom and Amnesty International. For her complete speaking schedule, March through June, <tocarolwagner@ hotmail.com> Soul Survivors is $15.95 and can be ordered through local bookstores or directly from the publisher Creative Arts Book Company, 800-848-7789.

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