Three locations that once served as torture and execution sites for Cambodia’s brutal Khmer Rouge regime have been added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List, marking the 50th anniversary of the regime’s rise to power. The inscription, carried out by the UN cultural agency during the 47th session of the World Heritage Committee in Paris, recognizes the significance of these sites in human history.
The Khmer Rouge, known for causing the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million Cambodians through starvation, torture, and mass executions during its four-year reign from 1975 to 1979, utilized these sites for their violent acts. The three locations, including two notorious prisons and an execution site, are now acknowledged as important reminders of humanity’s dark history.
The Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, located in Phnom Penh, was a former high school transformed into a notorious prison known as S-21, where around 15,000 people were imprisoned and tortured. The M-13 prison, situated in rural Kampong Chhnang province, also served as a main prison for the early Khmer Rouge. Choeung Ek, located 15km south of the capital, was an execution site and mass grave, immortalized in the 1984 film The Killing Fields based on the experiences of New York Times photojournalist Dith Pran and correspondent Sydney Schanberg.
Cambodia’s prime minister, Hun Manet, directed people to beat drums simultaneously across the country on Sunday morning to commemorate the UNESCO listing. He emphasized the importance of defending peace and learning from the painful legacies of genocide, torture, and mass atrocities represented by these sites. Youk Chhang, executive director of the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, highlighted the significance of this recognition in educating younger generations both within Cambodia and around the world, pointing to the potential of these sites to contribute to healing the wounds inflicted during the Khmer Rouge era.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/12/the-killing-fields-execution-site-and-two-former-khmer-rouge-prisons-added-to-unesco-heritage-list
