Enemies of the People Questions
Directions: Watch the film and respond to the questions below. Use a separate piece of paper for your answers.
Background: Under the communist rule of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, an estimated 2 million people were killed because the regime considered them to be traitors in some way to its goal of establishing a pure, agrarian utopia in which there would be no private ownership or anything foreign or modern. One of those killed was the father of Cambodian journalist Thet Sambath.
Why: Sambath describes his father's death in the clip - “That Belongs To Us” - The clip begins at 12:56 with the words "My father, he didn't want to join..." It ends at 13:43 with the words "...by thrusting with a knife."
- In your own words why was Sambath’s father killed?
The Executioners: Video Clip: “I Want You to Know the Exact Spot” - The clip shows two low-ranking men who go with Sambath to some rice farms that are referred to as "killing fields" because so many people died there. These men brutally executed a large number of people for the regime.The clip begins at 22:26 with a shot of the water and lily pads. It ends at 25:15 with the words "I want you to know the exact place."
- What risks are these men taking by revealing their roles as executioners?
- What do you think motivated them to kill?
- Why would they come forward so many years later and explain their role in the genocide?
- Do you think the men who did the actual killing should be held accountable for these murders when they were following orders from people higher in the regime? Why or why not?
Mid-level Commander: Video Clip: “We Had No Choice” - The clip is from an interview with a woman who gave orders to the men who did the killing. The Khmer Rouge killed many members of ethnic minority groups, because they were believed to be spies for the Vietnamese.The clip begins at 41:39 with the words "Khoun said he got the order from you..." It ends at 44:35 with the words "Me, too!"
- What do the people in the video mean by the phrase “find the solution”?
- Who do the people in the video think should be held accountable for the killings?
- The woman in the video says, “If we didn’t obey (your orders), we would have been killed… We felt pity for the victims, but what could we do? We had no choice.” Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Explain.
Brother Number Two: Video Clip: “The Individual I Cast Aside” - This clip is with Nuon Chea, known as "Brother Number Two." In the Khmer Rouge hierarchy, Chea was second only to Pol Pot, the leader. The clip begins at 59:08 with the words "You were saying you talked to Pol Pot about sweeping out traitors..." It ends at 1:02:03 when Nuon Chea says, "They must be solved first."
- Why does Nuon Chea think that killing those perceived to be against the regime was the only way to solve the “traitor problem? How do you think this motivation for killing might have differed from that of the executioners or the mid-level commander?
- Nuon Chea said if he had to choose between the nation and the individual, he would choose the nation. Which do you think is more important? Why?
- Should someone like Nuon Chea, who ordered the killings but did not personally carry them out, be held accountable for the genocide in Cambodia? Explain.
