Papi.licio.us

I was reminded of this haunting passage (bottom of the page) after seeing an article on cnn.com about a new documentary concerning Cambodia’s merciless Khmer Rouge.  I look forward to seeing it, though it’s undoubtatbly depressing.

While in Cambodia, we visited a non-profit dedicated to helping victims of landmines.  During the Khmer Rouge reign, and subsequent fights with neighboring Vietnam, countless land mines were laid to stop oncoming troops.   As you may have guessed, these mines were so numerous that they hurt many innocent victims.

The leader of this non-profit was a man who fought against the Khmer Rouge.  This passage tells about one episode in particular.

We moved towards the enemy in the dark through the rice fields, changing places many times and firing different weapons.  I crept up on the Khmer Rouge unit, fired my rocket, and killed all five of them.  

When we returned to our camp, I told my boss that no one was injured, and he was very angry with me.  Then I explained that no one was injured because I killed them all.