Prison was 'anteroom to death'

Mr Chandler said he believed the prison was able to exercise

a high degree of autonomy because of the value put on secrecy

under the regime. -- PHOTO: AFP

AN EXPERT witness told Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes tribunal on Thursday that the most notorious Khmer Rouge prison was a secret 'anteroom to death'.
American professor David Chandler, 76, was testifying at the trial of Duch, the man accused of overseeing the torture and execution of about 15,000 people at Tuol Sleng prison, also known as S-21.
'I use the word anteroom (to death) because... every single person in S-21, except for these handful of survivors and some of the staff, (had a) forceful and violent death,' he said.
Mr Chandler said he believed the prison was able to exercise a high degree of autonomy because of the value put on secrecy under the regime.
The 66-year-old Duch, whose real name is Kaing Guek Eav, has previously accepted responsibility for his role governing the jail and begged forgiveness.
Led by Pol Pot, who died in 1998, the Khmer Rouge emptied Cambodia's cities in a bid to forge a communist utopia. Up to two million people died of starvation, overwork and torture or were executed during the 1975-1979 regime. -- AFP