by Moeun Sreynoch, DCCam’s Veal Veng Reconciliation Center
Yuos Phon, a 76-year-old woman, currently does not work and lives with her son. She was born in Thmong village, Samlanh commune, Angkor Chey district, Kampot province, and now resides in Sre Taing Yor village, Bramoy commune, Veal Veng district, Pursat province.
Her father, Yus Ses, and mother, Keo Phi, are both deceased. Phon is the eldest of six siblings, one brother and five sisters, all of whom are still alive. Her husband, Chak Huot, is also deceased. Phon has four children (one daughter and three sons), of whom three are married, while one daughter is a widow.
As a child, Phon did not attend school because her parents were poor, and she had to take care of her younger siblings. While some of her siblings were able to attend school, Phon only learned to read and write a little as a teenager. Her parents worked in the fields and made tiles, while she handled both heavy and light chores around the house to help ease her father’s burden. In 1969, Phon married her husband, Chak Huot.
In 1970, Phon moved to her husband's village in Takeo province, about 4 km from her hometown. She and her husband lived together on a farm. That same year, when Lon Nol staged a coup to overthrow King Norodom Sihanouk, war broke out.
Planes dropped bombs everywhere, which led to Phon and her husband digging trenches to protect themselves from the bombings. In 1973, Phon gave birth to a baby. Although bombs continued to fall on nearby villages, causing some property damage but no casualties, the situation grew more severe. During one intense bombing, Phon ran to her mother’s house across the street and hid in a barn, enduring hunger and thirst until it was safe to return home.
In 1975, after the Khmer Rouge came to power, Phon and her husband remained in their village and were not evacuated. However, the Khmer Rouge relocated people from Phnom Penh and other provinces to live in the homes of Phon and other villagers, forcing Phon and her family to build small huts to live in. Soon after, Angkar began confiscating Phon's family’s property, declaring it the property of Angkar. All crops around the house, including their ducks and chickens, were now controlled by Angkar, and Phon had no right to use or consume them. In mid-1975, Phon gave birth to a child. She endured significant hardship, as the Khmer Rouge had evicted her from her home, stripped her of her possessions, and left her with nothing.
In 1976, Phon, along with her husband, parents, and siblings, was evacuated by the Khmer Rouge to Yittaka near the Vietnamese border, where they were forced to move frequently from one place to another. At the same time, the Khmer Rouge also evacuated all the people from Phnom Penh. In Yittaka, the Khmer Rouge divided the people into mobile units, separated by gender. Phon was relocated to farm in Derm Doung village, while her husband was assigned to transport vegetables and other supplies for cooperatives, constantly moving from one location to another. Phon’s parents were sent to farm in a nearby village, as they were unable to travel far. Some of Phon’s younger siblings were placed in mobile units, while others were assigned to children’s units, so they seldom saw each other due to work demands. For both the local villagers and those evacuated on April 17, living and eating conditions were similar, but those from Phnom Penh, unaccustomed to physical labor, were more prone to exhaustion. Many people suffered from bloating and other health issues due to a diet consisting mostly of thin porridge, which lacked proper nutrition, and without access to medical care, some died. The Khmer Rouge forced Phon and others to work on farms with no time for rest, working day and night, and only provided porridge twice a day. Phon often went without sufficient food, drinking only the liquid from the porridge and saving the solid part for her children. Due to the excessive labor and lack of rest, Phon eventually collapsed, and the Khmer Rouge sent her to Tralach Hospital for treatment.
In 1977, Phon, as part of the same female mobile unit, was ordered by the Khmer Rouge to dig and cultivate rice fields in Yittaka, as well as to move to other locations. At work, tens of thousands of people from various provinces were present, though their origins were unknown. The Khmer Rouge set a daily work limit of 4 meters per person, and once completed, workers were allowed to rest. Phon’s mother was relocated by the Khmer Rouge to farm in a village, while her father was ordered to produce palm sugar. Phon was extremely tired and exhausted, as there were days when she was tasked with grinding 5 bags of rice. Phon’s female mobile unit consisted of both elderly and young people working together, with many members in each unit. In the same year, Phon gave birth to her third child. Her first and second children were assigned by the Khmer Rouge to collect cow dung, while Phon carried her newborn with her while working in the mobile unit.
Phon’s husband only visited her occasionally. For their daily meals, they were given only a thin soup, mostly water with no real food. To make do, Phon would add diced leaves and salt to stretch their meals. There were many fish in Yittaka, and after work, Phon would try to catch some. However, the workers would often take all the fish, leaving none for Phon. Despite being in the same mobile unit, Phon rarely saw or visited her siblings, only meeting her parents on rare occasions. She was unable to care for her children, as she had to work from morning to night. One day, Phon was deeply saddened when she arrived at the rest area and saw her children naked, wearing torn clothes, and gathering dirt to eat. When the children saw her, they ran to her. At night, Phon would return to her resting place, where she had to endure the presence of mosquitoes and flies.
In 1978, living near the Vietnamese border was difficult and exhausting. Phon's parents gathered their children, including Phon, and fled the border overnight to return to their hometown. Upon reaching the district, they faced continued hardship, as the Khmer Rouge forced them to perform the same labor as before. Phon, who was seven months pregnant, was made to carry soil and, at times, ordered to chase and catch mice in the fields. In mid-1978, Phon’s father died due to the harsh work conditions, lack of rest, and insufficient food. As an elderly man, he was only given porridge, which caused bloating and contributed to his decline. After returning to her hometown, Phon ate a lot of porridge with water lilies. Meanwhile, her husband was assigned by the Khmer Rouge to climb 20 to 30 palm trees a day to harvest sap for making palm sugar. At the end of 1978, while Phon was working at the water drills, a fight broke out between the Khmer Rouge and the Vietnamese. The violence frightened Phon’s children, and they fled with other villagers. Phon and her husband screamed for their children until they were reunited and cried together in relief.
After the fall of the Khmer Rouge regime, life was initially difficult as the Khmer Rouge had taken all of their wealth. Phon and her husband resumed farming, but by mid-1979, Phon’s husband died from poisoning after consuming buffalo meat, with no access to proper medical treatment. Shortly after, Phon’s mother also passed away due to illness. Following her husband's death, Phon's life became increasingly difficult as she was left to raise her children on her own. The most painful and unforgettable memories were the malnutrition that led to her father’s death, and the hardship her children endured without a mother to care for them or provide comfort.
Phon moved to Sre Taing Yor village in 2001 because she could no longer afford to live in her hometown. She decided to relocate with her children and grandchildren in search of a better life, and she has continued to live there since.
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