Pol Pot Rises

On April 3rd, 1970, a former maths teacher named Kaing Guek Eav walked out of prison in the general amnesty that followed the coup. He is better known as Duch. Within a year he would be running a jungle prison called M-13, and within five, the interrogation centre at Tuol Sleng.

Time Period Covered: April 1970 to July 1971

Why was Duch released from prison on April 3rd, 1970? How did Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge transition from small guerrilla enclaves to administering huge areas of Cambodia? What exactly was 'Independence Mastery', and why was it so central to the Khmer Rouge mindset?

In this episode, we pivot from Lon Nol's takeover to the Cambodian communist perspective, exploring how Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge navigated the chaotic months following the coup. We follow Duch's unexpected release from prison, track Pol Pot's return journey from Beijing and Hanoi, and see how the Khmer Rouge began absorbing millions of Cambodians into so-called 'liberated zones'. Along the way we look at the principle of Independence Mastery, the uneasy alliance with the Vietnamese, and the early precursor to S-21 known as M-13. We also uncover the paranoid mindset driving the Khmer Rouge's suspicion of outside influence, including alleged assassination plots and forced confessions, shadows of the horror to come.

Sources

Chandler - Tragedy of Cambodian History and Voices From S21
Short - Pol Pot
Kiernan - How Pol Pot Came To Power
ECCC Archives - Duch Trial 2009
Heder - Cambodian Communism and the Vietnamese Model
Edwards - Cambodge
Harris - Buddhism Under Pol Pot