Pol Pot

by Philip Short

  In Sopheap (b. 1943): Scion of an aristocratic family, most of whose members supported the Khmers Rouges. His elder brother, In Sokhan, was a close friend of Ieng Sary. Worked at the Khmer Rouge Information and Foreign Ministries before becoming Ambassador to Egypt in the 1980s. Now lives as a private citizen in Pailin.

  Ke Pauk (1933–2002), real name, Ke Vin: Ex-Issarak. Re-joined the communist movement in 1957, rising to become military chief and eventually CPK Secretary of the Northern Zone. Member of the CPK CC from 1976 and of its Standing Committee from November 1978. With Mok, one of Pol Pot’s two principal military supporters. Defected to Hun Sen in 1998, becoming a general in the Royal Army. Died of a liver ailment.

  Keng Vannsak (b. 1926): Pol Pot’s mentor in Paris and the moving spirit behind the informal study circle which developed into the Cercle Marxiste. Led the Democratic Party campaign for the 1955 elections. A dyed-in-the-wool republican who became one of Sihanouk’s bêtes noires. Served as Lon Nol’s Ambassador to France in the early 1970s. Now lives in the Paris suburb of Montmorency.

  Keo Meas (1926–76): Ex-Issarak. Head of the clandestine Phnom Penh Committee of the communist movement in 1954, afterwards leader of the Pracheachon group. Member of the CPK CC in 1960, dropped at the Second Congress in 1963. From 1969 onwards, Khmer Rouge representative in Hanoi. Purged as pro-Vietnamese and killed at Tuol Sleng in 1976.

  Khieu Ponnary (1920–2003), alias Yim: Daughter of a judge. In the early 1950s, Democratic Party activist and liaison agent with the Khmers Viet Minh. Married Pol Pot, five years her junior, on July 14 1956, and followed him into the maquis in 1965. President of the Democratic Kampuchea Women’s Association. Alternate member of the CPK CC from 1971. Incapacitated by chronic schizophrenia.

  Khieu Samphân (b. 1931), alias Hem, Nan: Head of the Cercle Marxiste in Paris after Ieng Sary’s departure. PhD in economics. Member of parliament and minister under Sihanouk from 1962. Fled to the maquis with Hou Yuon in 1967. Alternate member of the CPK CC from 1971; full member from 1976, the year in which he became Khmer Rouge Head of State. Pol Pot’s most faithful lieutenant. Defected to Hun Sen in December 1998. Now lives as a private citizen in Pailin.

  Khieu Thirith (b. 1930), alias Phea: Younger sister of Khieu Ponnary. Married Ieng Sary in Paris in 1953. Followed him to the maquis in 1965. Khmer Rouge Minister of Social Affairs. Now lives as a private citizen in Phnom Penh.

  Kong Sophal (1927–78), alias Keu, Chheang: Schoolteacher. Joined the communist movement in Phnom Penh in 1958. Head of the Democratic Kampuchea Youth League before fleeing to the maquis in the North-West Zone where he became deputy to Ruos Nhim. Played a key role in fomenting the Samlaut uprising in 1967. CPK CC member from 1971, promoted to the Standing Committee in November 1978. Arrested immediately afterwards and killed at Tuol Sleng.

  Koy Thuon (1933–77), alias Khuon, Thuch: Schoolteacher, childhood friend of Hu Nim. Joined the communist movement in the summer of 1960. CPK CC member from 1971. Secretary of the Northern Zone from 1965 until 1975, when he was replaced by his deputy, Ke Pauk. Arrested in 1976 and killed at Tuol Sleng.

  Le Duan (1907–86), alias Anh Ba: Railway worker. Helped found the ICP in 1930. Imprisoned by the French. Headed the communist movement in southern Vietnam. Took refuge in Phnom Penh for several months in 1957. Appointed Secretary-General of the Vietnamese Workers’ Party in 1960. Succeeded Ho Chi Minh in 1969 and ruled Vietnam with an iron hand for the next seventeen years.

  Le Duc Tho (1911–90): Founder member of the ICP who became Le Duan’s closest collaborator in southern Vietnam. VWP Politburo member responsible for relations with the Cambodian communists. Negotiated the Paris peace accords with Henry Kissinger in 1973, for which he was awarded, but refused to accept, the Nobel Peace Prize.

  Lon Nol (1913–85): Defence Minister and Chief of the General Staff under Sihanouk, whom he overthrew in a coup d’état in March 1970. Six months later turned Cambodia into a republic, of which he became President. Suffered a debilitating stroke in 1971, but clung to power with US support. Flown to exile in Hawaii in April 1975, sixteen days before the Khmer Rouge victory.

  Long Visalo (b. 1947): PhD in cartography from Budapest. Returned to Cambodia after the Khmer Rouge victory. Interned until 1979. After the Vietnamese invasion joined the PRK administration, becoming Ambassador to Cuba and Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs.

  Mey Mak (b. 1947), real name Nuon Chanthân, alias Nuon Bunno: Joined the Khmers Rouges after Lon Nol’s coup in 1970, rising through the ranks to become a company commander. Based at Pochentong Airport 1975–79. One of Pol Pot’s secretaries at Office 131 in the 1980s. Deputy Khmer Rouge Military Representative to the Supreme National Council 1991–94. Defected to Hun Sen in 1996.

  Mey Mann (1921–2001): Member of the Cercle Marxiste in Paris. Followed Pol Pot into the maquis to join the Khmers Viet Minh, returning with him to Phnom Penh in August 1954. Expelled with the rest of the population of Phnom Penh in 1975, but remained a Khmer Rouge sympathiser until his death.

  Mok (b. 1925), real name Chhit Chhoeun, alias Nguon Kang, Ta 15: Ex-Issarak. Member of the CPK CC from 1963, Secretary of the Southwestern Zone from 1968, CPK Second Deputy Secretary, ranking just behind Pol and Nuon Chea, from 1978. With Ke Pauk, he was one of Pol Pot’s two principal military supporters. Rebelled against Pol’s leadership in 1997. In detention awaiting trial since 1999.

  Ney Sarann (1925–77), alias Achar Sieng, Men San, Ya: Ex-Issarak. Worked as a teacher in Phnom Penh in the 1950s. Joined Office 100 in 1964. Member of the CPK CC and Secretary of the North-Eastern Zone from 1971. Accompanied Pol Pot to meet Mao in 1975. Purged as a pro-Vietnamese element and killed at Tuol Sleng.

  Nikân (b. 1940), real name Son Nhan: Youngest brother of Son Sen. Schoolteacher and communist activist in Siem Reap. Entered the maquis in 1967 and worked at Pol’s headquarters in Ratanakiri. In 1978 he became Chief of Protocol at the Khmer Rouge Foreign Ministry. After the Vietnamese invasion, commander of Khmer Rouge forces at Samphou Loun, on the Thai border. Defected to Hun Sen in 1996.

  Non Suon (c. 1927–77), alias Sen, Chey Suon: Ex-Issarak. Chairman of the South-Western Zone in 1952. Spokesman for the Pracheachon group. Probably elected to the CPK CC in 1960, but dropped three years later. Imprisoned in 1962. Amnestied after Lon Nol’s coup in 1970 and became a CPK Regional Secretary. Khmer Rouge Minister of Agriculture. Purged as a pro-Vietnamese element and killed at Tuol Sleng.

  Norodom Ranariddh (b. 1944): Son of King Sihanouk. Spent the Khmer Rouge period as a research fellow at the University of Aix-en-Provence. Leader of FUNCINPEC and First Prime Minister from 1993, but ousted four years later by the Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, in a coup d’état. Since 1998, President of the National Assembly.

  Norodom Sihanouk (b. 1922): King of Cambodia 1941–55, when he abdicated in favour of his father, Suramarit. Head of State 1960–70. After being overthrown in a coup in March 1970, allied himself with his former Khmer Rouge opponents against the US-backed government of Lon Nol, which was defeated in April 1975. Returned to Phnom Penh as Head of State in October, but resigned the following spring. Held incommunicado by Pol Pot’s government until January 1979. Under pressure from China, renewed his alliance with the Khmers Rouges in 1982, opening the way to the Paris peace agreement of 1991. Became King of Cambodia for the second time in 1993.

  Nuon Chea (b.c.1923), real name Long Bunruot, alias Long Rith, Nuon, Second Brother, Grand-Uncle: Studied law at Thammasat University in Bangkok. Member of the Thai Communist Party. Joined the Khmers Viet Minh in 1949. Worked undercover in Phnom Penh from the 1950s. Appointed CPK Deputy Secretary in 1960. Responsible for Party and state security. President of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly of Democratic Kampuchea 1976–79. Defected to Hun Sen in 1998. Now lives as a private citizen in Pailin.

  Pâng (1944–78), real name Chhim Sam Aok: Recruited into the communist movement by Son Sen while a seventeen-year-old schoolboy in Phnom Penh. Worked at Office 100 at Ta Not and in Ratanakiri. After 1
970, Pol’s chief assistant for administrative matters, a post which he continued to hold after the Khmer Rouge victory. Purged and killed at Tuol Sleng.

  Penn Nouth (1906–85): Veteran Cambodian statesman. Democratic Party stalwart before rallying to Sihanouk’s Sangkum. Prime Minister of the GRUNC 1970–76. Spent the entire Khmer Rouge period in Phnom Penh, officially as an adviser to the Democratic Kampuchea government. Died in exile in France.

  Pham Van Dong (1906–2000): The son of the private secretary to Vietnam’s Emperor Duy Tan. Imprisoned by the French as a communist agitator. Joined Ho Chi Minh in China in 1942. Headed the Vietnamese delegation at the Geneva talks in 1954. Vietnamese Prime Minister 1955–87.

  Phi Phuon (b. 1947), real name Rochoem Ton, alias Cheam: Of Jarai nationality. Joined the revolutionary movement in Ratanakiri while a teenager. In 1968 served as a bodyguard to Pol Pot and later his aide-decamp, a post which he conserved until the Khmer Rouge victory. Chief of Security under Ieng Sary at the Foreign Ministry 1975–79. Defected to Hun Sen in 1996. Currently deputy governor of Malay.

  Pich Chheang (b.c.1945), alias Tho: A protege of the Northern Zone Secretary, Koy Thuon. Founded a guerrilla force in 1969, rising to the post of Zone Chief of Staff. In 1975 succeeded Non Suon as director of the National Bank. Subsequently Ambassador to China. Survived the purge of Northern Zone officials thanks to his marriage to Pol’s former cook, Moeun. Defected to Hun Sen in 1998. Now lives in Anlong Veng.

  Ping Sây (b. 1926), alias Sang, Chheang: Member of the Cercle Marxiste and the French Communist Party. In the 1950s, editor-in-chief of the Democratic Party newspaper, Ekhepheap. Twice imprisoned by Sihanouk. Attended the CPK’s founding congress in 1960. Subsequently a member of the communist underground in Phnom Penh. Entered the maquis in 1973 but fell into disfavour. Now lives as a private citizen in Phnom Penh.

  Rath Samoeun (1930–c.1972): Co-founder of the Cercle Marxiste and member of the French Communist Party. Returned to Cambodia to join the Khmers Viet Minh. After the Geneva accords in 1954, lived in Vietnam. Died, probably of illness, in the ‘liberated zone’.

  Ruos Nhim (1922–78), real name, Moul Oun, alias Moul Sambath: Ex-Issarak. Aide to Sieu Heng in 1948. Member of the CPK CC from 1963 and Secretary of the North-Western Zone. With Kong Sophal, instigated the Samlaut uprising in 1967. CPK Standing Committee member from 1975. Purged and killed at Tuol Sleng.

  Siet Chhê (1932–77), alias Tum: Buddhist monk, worked as a schoolteacher in Phnom Penh 1954–64. Joined Office 100 at Ta Not. Subsequently an Eastern Zone regional secretary. Accompanied Pol to meet Mao in 1975. The same year appointed Logistics Chief at General Staff HQ. Purged and killed at Tuol Sleng.

  Sieu Heng (c. 1920–75): Ex-Issarak. Cousin of Nuon Chea. Founding member of the PRPK in 1950. After the 1954 Geneva accords, appointed by the Vietnamese to head the provisional Cambodian communist leadership with responsibility for the rural areas. Defected to Sihanouk’s government in 1959. Killed after the Khmer Rouge victory in 1975.

  Sirik Matak (1914–75): Cousin of King Sihanouk. Minister of Defence and of Foreign Affairs in the 1950s. Subsequently Cambodian Ambassador to China. Principal architect of Lon Nol’s coup against Sihanouk in March 1970. Killed immediately after the Khmer Rouge victory.

  So Phim (c. 1925–78): Ex-Issarak, military leader of the Eastern Zone. Founder member of the PRPK in 1951. Alternate member of the CPK Standing Committee, ranking fifth in the hierarchy, from 1960; full member three years later. CPK Secretary of the Eastern Zone from 1960 onwards. Committed suicide to avoid arrest after Pol Pot ordered a massive purge of the Zone hierarchy.

  Son Ngoc Minh (c. 1910–72), real name allegedly Pham Van Hua, alias Achar Mean, Kim Bien: Born in South Vietnam of mixed Khmer-Vietnamese parentage, became the first authentic Cambodian communist. Inducted into the ICP in 1949. Leader of the PRPK from its formation in 1951. After the Geneva accords, withdrew to Vietnam. Elected in absentia to the CPK CC in 1960. Died in Beijing after a stroke.

  Son Ngoc Thanh (1908–77): Early Cambodian nationalist. Co-founder of the first Khmer-language newspaper, Nagaravatta, in 1936. Prime Minister in August 1945. Arrested and exiled by the colonial authorities. Returned in triumph to Phnom Penh in 1951. Led a right-wing rebel group, the Khmer Serei, initially against the French, then against Sihanouk. Afterwards based in Thailand and South Vietnam. Prime Minister under Lon Nol 1972–73. Died under house arrest in Vietnam.

  Son Sen (1927–97), alias Khieu, Khamm, Aum: Schoolteacher. Member of the Cercle Marxiste in Paris. CPK CC member from 1963. With Pol Pot at Office 100 in Ta Not and Ratanakiri. CPK North-Eastern Zone Secretary 1970–71, then Chief of the General Staff of the Khmer Rouge army Minister of Defence from August 1975. Alternate Standing Committee member, responsible for the Tuol Sleng interrogation centre. Chosen by Pol Pot as his successor in the 1980s but then fell from favour. Killed as a traitor on Pol’s orders near Kbal Ansoang.

  Suong Sikoeun (b. 1937): Member of the Cercle Marxiste in Paris in the 1960s. Joined Sihanouk in Beijing after the 1970 coup. Inducted into the CPK by Ieng Sary, with whom he was associated throughout his career. After 1975, head of the press section of the Democratic Kampuchea Foreign Ministry. Defected to Hun Sen in 1996. Now lives as a private citizen in Malay.

  Thiounn Mumm (b. 1925): The second of four brothers from one of Cambodia’s wealthiest aristocratic families, all of whom espoused the Khmer Rouge cause. The eldest, Thiounn Thioeunn, became Minister of Health. Thiounn Chum was notional Finance Minister 1979–81. Thiounn Prasith was Ambassador to the UN. In Paris, Mumm was co-founder of the Cercle Marxiste and its head throughout the 1960s. Joined Sihanouk in Beijing following the 1970 coup and returned with him to Phnom Penh after the Khmer Rouge victory. Notional Minister of Science 1979–81. He and Chum then returned to France. Mumm now holds French citizenship and lives near Rouen; Chum lives just outside Paris; Prasith lives in New York State; Thioeunn, who defected to Hun Sen in 1998, lives in Phnom Penh.

  Tiv Ol (1933–77), alias Penh: Student activist, then secondary school teacher, in the 1950s and ‘60s. Joined Pol Pot in Ratanakiri in 1968. From 1970, Deputy Minister of Information in the GRUNC. Purged and killed at Tuol Sleng.

  Tou Samouth (c. 1915–62): Former Buddhist preacher. Ex-Issarak. Founder member of the PRPK in 1951. Head of the Urban Committee of the communist movement from 1954. Elected CPK Secretary at the founding congress in 1960. Detained and killed on the orders of Lon Nol.

  Vorn Vet (c. 1934–78), real name Pen Thuok, alias Sok, Mean, Te, Kuon, Veth and Vorn: Joined the Khmers Viet Minh in 1954 after dropping out of secondary school. CPK CC member and head of the Phnom Penh CPK Committee from 1963. CPK Secretary of the Special Zone from 1971. Member of the Standing Committee. After 1976, Vice-Premier for the Economy. Purged and killed at Tuol Sleng.

  Yun Yat (c.1937–97), alias Ath: Schoolteacher. Married to Son Sen. From the early 1970s, responsible for the Party journal, Tung Padevat. In 1976, Minister of Culture, Education and Propaganda. Spent the 1980s in Beijing as director of the Khmer Rouge radio station. Killed as a traitor with her husband on Pol Pot’s orders near Kbal Ansoang.

  Notes and Sources

  This book is based in large part on primary sources, notably several hundred hours of interviews with former members of the Khmer Rouge movement—anging from Khieu Samphân, the Head of State of Democratic Kampuchea, and Ieng Sary, the Foreign Minister, to bodyguards and cooks—s well as original documents in Chinese, Khmer, French, Russian and Vietnamese, held in state and Party archives in Aix-en-Provence, Beijing, Hanoi, Moscow, Paris and Phnom Penh. The aim has been to tell the story of the Cambodian nightmare, to the extent that that is feasible, from the vantage point of those who created it, rather than solely from that of the victims. Such an endeavour would have been impossible without the substantial body of scholarship on the Khmers Rouges and their antecedents produced over the past quarter-century by historians like David Chandler, Stephen Heder, Ben Kiernan, Serge Thion and Michael Vickery.
Many others have also put their shoulders to the wheel. The bibliography that follows is far from comprehensive. It is intended essentially as a vade mecum for the notes, detailing those works which are referred to so frequently as to make the use of a short title desirable. Other titles, to which reference is made more rarely, are cited as they occur. Most have been quoted for the primary source material they contain. With few exceptions, works of analysis based on secondary sources are not listed, even though in some cases they may offer illuminating insights.

  The notes which follow provide sources for citations and give an overview of the reference materials and arguments which underpin the narrative. Complete archival and source notes may be obtained on request by e-mail from anatomy-ofanightmare@wanadoo.fr.

  Ablin, David A., and Hood, Marlowe (eds.), The Cambodian Agony, M. E. Sharpe, Armonk, NY, 1987 (Agony)

  Allman, T. D.,‘Anatomy of a Coup’, in Grant et al., Widening War (Anatomy)

  Ang Chouléan, Les êtres surnaturels dans la religion populaire khmère, Cedoreck, Paris, 1986 (Etres surnaturels)

  Annotated Summary of Party History, issued by the Eastern Zone Military-Political Service, n.d. but 1973, translated in Jackson, Rendezvous, Appendix A.

  Ayres, David, ‘The Khmer Rouge and education: beyond the discourse of destruction’, History of Education, vol. 28, no. 2, 1999 (Education)

  Becker, Elizabeth, When the War Was Over: Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge Revolution, Simon & Schuster, New York, 1986 (When the War)

  Bektimirova, N. N., Dementiev, Yu. P., and Kobelev, E.V., Noveishaya Istoriya Kampuchii, Nauka, Moscow, 1989 (Istoriya)