Pran speaks on Cambodia

Dith Pran, the Cambodian journalist featured in the movie. The Killing Fields,  spoke as part of Amnesty International's Refugee Action Week Tuesday. His lecture was in conjunction with a screening of the movie.

Pran's lecture focused on the history of Cambodia and the conditions of the Khmer Rouge regime. He spoke of his own personal experiences during the Cambodian crisis in the killing fields in an attempt to convey the atrocities committed, and being committed, by the Khmer Rouge.

"I consider myself a messenger, a witness of the time," Pran said. His speech detailed the historical backdrop of the film and the events depicted in it.

According to Pran in the five-year period from 1975-1979, over 1.5 million, or 20 percent of the Cambodian population, died at the hands of the Khmer Rouge. The number of deaths continues to grow. The Khmer Rouge regime rose in April 1975. During their regime the Khmer Rouge emptied the central urban areas of Cambodia and sent the people to "the killing fields," forcing them to work as slave labor.

Pran told of the events depicted in The Killing Fields  during his talk. He said he and Sydney Schanberg, a New York Times  journalist, after being arrested by the Khmer Rouge and barely escaping execution Pran was eventually banished to the killing fields where he suffered torture and starvation.

Pran described eating insects, snakes and snails to survive in the fields. Pran said he and the rest of the victims of the killing fields "were forced to walk bare foot and live in fear for four years." The only thing the people of the killing fields were able to believe in was prayer, which they were forced to practice underground due to the Khmer Rouge's anti-religion policy. Pran said he "learned to listen and did not complain."

Pran said he and the other victims of the killing fields were forced to "live together, work together and sleep together." Pran said many people died while they worked. All of the workers of the killing fields were forced to wear the same black pajamas which signified the uniformity the Khmer Rouge was attempting to create in the Cambodian people.

Pran also talked about the current situation in Cambodia. He said one of the biggest problems currently plaguing the Cambodians are land mines left over from this period. He said many civilians, including children, are being maimed by the mines.

Pran correlated the land mines with the fact that Cambodia has the highest rate of physical disability in the world. It has been estimated that since 1979, more than 40,000 innocent Cambodian civilians have fallen victim to the land mines.

The amount of land mines currently estimated to be in Cambodia ranges from thousands to millions. Not only are the land mines difficult to find, but the cost of their removal is extremely high. Working with Amnesty International, Pran hopes to organize efforts to remove the land mines and encourage the Cambodian government to respect human rights.