Photo caption: Young train drivers, most of whom were teenagers, took hundreds of thousands of Cambodian people from other parts of the country to the Northwest zone of Pursat and Battambang provinces during the Khmer Rouge regime. (Documentation Center of Cambodia Archives)
On Sunday, 17 April 2022, the ICMGLT joined our Honorary Board Member, Mr. Youk Chhang, director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-CAM) and a Khmer Rouge killing fields survivor, to observe the Cambodian Genocide Remembrance Day in memory of the over 1.7 million people (one-fifth of the nation’s population) murdered by the brutal Pol Pot regime of the Khmer Rouge between 1975 and 1979.
The Crocodile Star — the memory of 17 April, 1975
by Youk Chhang
Forcibly transferred from Phnom Penh, we settled in our mother’s home village in Takeo. It was 1975, and rumors circulated that we would be able to return to our home.
One day, the Khmer Rouge came and told us to pack up and move. We were hopeful that our journey home had now begun. We were put on a train. There were so many people on the train that we could not even sit. One of my sisters had a daughter (Tan Keoketana) who was only a few months old. We were all worried about what would happen next.
One night, my uncle (Keo Chhoeun) looked up at the stars and he reminded us of the Crocodile Star. The Crocodile Star is a story that we learned as kids. It is an old story about a crocodile that did good deeds and as a result was made a star in the sky. The Crocodile Star was always seen as a beacon of hope, direction, and good things. People could look to the ‘Big Dipper’ and find the Crocodile Star who would show them the way.
Riding in the train, in the darkness of night, my uncle looked for the Crocodile Star and pointed it out to us. He told us we were heading in the direction of Phnom Penh. We became so excited and happy because we believed we were truly heading home.
Day and night we continued onward, always stopping in different places, but none of this mattered if we were going in the right direction. Suddenly, though, reality sunk in. Upon reaching Pursat province, many people were removed from the train. The rest of the passengers continued onward until reaching Battambang province near the Thai border.
Our journey had not ended, it had only just begun.
I often thought about the Crocodile Star. I still think about it today. For a brief period of time, the Crocodile Star gave us hope and happiness, even though, ultimately, it was all just a dream. My family became separated, and we entered a new life of starvation, hard labor, and genocide. I feel fortunate to have survived this horrific period. Many family members, including my sister’s baby daughter and my uncle, did not survive.
I can never look upon the Crocodile Star in the same way again.
End.
‘Although two millions were killed, five millions more survived to tell their story.’ Justice and Memory
YOUK CHHANG
Director
Documentation Center of Cambodia
e: dccam@online.com.kh
t: +855 (0) 12 90 55 95
