Source: (2013) Asianjoumal oJ Social Science 41:23-66.
Nearly four decades after the Khmer Rouge genocide, the Cambodian people have found some
solace to a tragic past that forever has defined their personal and collective identities. The first of
five defendants on trial in the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (the ECCC),
Kaing Guek Eav (alias Duch, Chief Warden of S-21) was found guilty of crimes against humanity
and Grave Breaches of the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and sentenced to life imprisonment on
3 February 2012. Aside from his criminal reputation as the head executioner of S-21, what other
legacy does Duch leave behind? In particular, what psycho-emotional legacy does he leave his
children? This paper focuses on the social and political legacy passed on to Duch’s eldest son as it
affects the possibilities for his contributing to reconciliation, forgiveness, and ‘healing justice’ in
post-Khmer Rouge Cambodia. The paper also warns against casting perpetrators’ children as
bystanders to their own history or as being guilty of their parents’ crimes, and provides an alternative
Khmer Rouge narrative: that of the children of perpetrators and how their identities fit within
the larger Cambodian national identity and search for justice. (excerpt)
Your donation helps Prison Fellowship International repair the harm caused by crime by emphasizing accountability, forgiveness, and making amends for prisoners and those affected by their actions. When victims, offenders, and community members meet to decide how to do that, the results are transformational.
Donate Now