Tuol Sleng, Genocide memorial museum in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Tuol Sleng is a former high school that was converted into a prison during the Khmer Rouge rule and now displays preserved cells, interrogation equipment, and extensive prisoner documentation. The rooms contain guard desks, torture devices, and walls covered with thousands of portrait photographs of those detained here.
The school was converted into a secret detention center known as S-21 in 1976, where approximately 20,000 people were held over several years. It functioned as a center for interrogation and prisoner registration before people were transported to execution sites.
The site functions as a place where visitors and survivors come to remember and bear witness to what happened. Personal items and photographs on display connect people to the stories of those who were held there.
Visiting is emotionally demanding and requires time to move through the exhibitions and read the detailed information provided. Many visitors benefit from using a guide or audio help to better understand the context and details shown throughout the site.
Of the thousands of people held here, only about a dozen survived the prison and later returned to their communities. Their testimonies form an important part of today's documentation about how the system operated.
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