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Pol Pot's security forces turned Tuol Svay Prey High School into Security Prison 21 (S-21), which became the largest detention and torture centre in the country. Between 1975 and 1978 over 17,000 people were taken from here to Choeung Ek for extermination. Only seven prisoners were found alive when the Vietnamese army liberated Phnom Penh in early 1979. Now called Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, it's a deeply forlorn place.

17 photographs - click any one to see an enlargement (Please see the note on the home page about popup blockers).

View of the main square - the former playground
View of the main square - the former playground
Looking along the perimeter
Looking along the perimeter
The graves of 14 prisoners who were found by the Vietnamese to have been tortured to death
The graves of 14 prisoners who were found by the...
Two local girls play innocently, while photos of the victims are on display inside the building
Two local girls play innocently, while photos of the...
The gallows - originally an exercise frame for the students, but 'repurposed' for torture. If you can, read the information board (English at the bottom).
The gallows - originally an exercise frame for the...
A room where one of the last victims was found
A room where one of the last victims was found
One of several rooms containing thousands of photographs of the victims. The KR were very thorough with their documentation.
One of several rooms containing thousands of...
Shackles and a bust of Pol Pot
Shackles and a bust of Pol Pot
Looking through the former classrooms upstairs, where the KR built crude brick cells
Looking through the former classrooms upstairs, where...
Mary by the cells, showing how small they were
Mary by the cells, showing how small they were
There were also wooden cells, this one seen from outside
There were also wooden cells, this one seen from outside
Wooden cells in a classroom
Wooden cells in a classroom
The chair where victims were photographed
The chair where victims were photographed
Various instruments of torture
Various instruments of torture
One of the few survivors painted what he witnessed - the one on the right shows the gallows
One of the few survivors painted what he witnessed...
Two more paintings, showing how children were treated. See the Choeung Ek section for more on the tree in the left-hand painting.
Two more paintings, showing how children were treated...
A shrine to the victims, with skulls in the cabinets behind
A shrine to the victims, with skulls in the cabinets...

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