002/19-09-2007-ECCC-OCIJ ЮŲŠ / No: D427
288.
Most people were moved using a combination of means, depending on the final destination:
transport via military or civilian truck;1176 oxcart;1177 boat;1178 train;1179 or walking.1180 The
transportation was generally organised in advance and ready to receive the persons being
moved.1181
289.
As set out in the testimony, people who were moved from Prey Veng and Svay Rieng
Provinces were made to follow the same general itinerary. People first walked,1182 or were
transported by oxcart,1183 from their villages to Neak Loeung,1184 where National Road 1
meets the Mekong River in Prey Veng Province, Sector 24. They then boarded a
motorboat1185 which took them up the Mekong River to Phnom Penh. Most of the people
disembarked at or near Chbar Ampeou, in southern Phnom Penh.1186 Several witnesses note
that, upon arrival in Phnom Penh, they were given food1187 and/or a blue and white krama.1188
A former CPK cadre from the Ministry of Propaganda and Education states that, whilst
transiting through Phnom Penh, people were shown “films about the battlefields and Chinese
films relating to the struggle”.1189 This is confirmed by one witness displaced from Prey Veng
to Pursat Province, who mentions that he was shown propaganda films whilst in Phnom
Penh.1190 The people were then transported by truck1191 to the main Phnom Penh railway
station, whereupon they were made to board a train leaving for various stops along the line
towards Pursat and Battambang Provinces.1192
290.
Similarly, during the same period, many East Zone soldiers were moved. In particular, 5,000
disarmed soldiers were transported from Svay Rieng by military truck via Phnom Penh to the
Kampong Chhnang airport construction site.1193
291.
A significant number of the persons moved from the East Zone disappeared1194 or died during
the displacement as a result of the poor travelling conditions.1195 One witness also states that
“stubborn people (those who opposed the Khmer Rouge soldiers) were shot dead by the
Khmer Rouge soldiers”.1196 Other witnesses add that people who were moved were not
provided with food or water during the journey.1197
292.
As regards the people transported by train to Pursat and Battambang Provinces, one witness
states that “once they arrived at the provinces, their biographies were made. According to
their personal history, they were transferred to different locations”.1198 Most of them were
sent to cooperatives or worksites.1199 They were required to conduct work such as digging
water reservoirs1200 and/or assisting in rice production.1201 All describe harsh working and
living conditions.1202 Most people who were moved recall that they were made to live and
Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, National Road 4, Choam Chao, Dangkao Phnom Penh
Mailing address: P.O. Box 71, Phnom Penh; Tel: +855(0)23 218914 Fax: +855(0) 23 218941.
76
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