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| Story and Photo by Vanchai Tan |
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"At that time, I was a student at the Faculty of Science. The day the Khmer Rouge invaded Phnom Pen, I was actually happy, because I hadn't agreed with Lon Nol's politics. I thought the Khmer Rouge would rid us of corruption and build a new nation. But the following day, they announced that everyone had to leave the capital, especially the civil servants, teachers, and students, whom they felt needed a re-education, a new 'perspective'... those in power among the Khmer Rouge lacked education - many were formerly servants. The Khmer Rouge had taught them to hate the upper classes. Had they uncovered that I was actually a student, I would have been killed..."
For those Cambodians over the age of forty, April 17th 1975, the day the Khmer Rouge captured Phnom Pen, will forever live in their memories as a nightmare. During the Reign of Terror of the Khmer Rouge, 80% of the middle class, artists, students, were systematically killed. Instead of creating a new nation, they had nearly destroyed the old one, encumbering the current with the disabilities of a civil war. |
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"Art and Culture for Peace in 2000," bringing together Thai and Cambodian artists to display their talent in art exhibitions held both in Bangkok and Phnom Pen, is no run-of-the mill art show. Its special significance derives from the project's overarching goal - to jump-start support for reviving the arts in Cambodia. In a country burdened with the reconstruction of so many aspects of its society, support for the arts is rarely prioritized.
For a country that has so much to offer in terms of art - the legendary Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom are claimed to be the Michelangelo masterpieces of the East - we must not allow the ravages of a civil war to erase such remarkable imprints. Should we not do so for the sake of art, let us do so in the name of the two million killed during the Reign of Terror...
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