Daughter of The Killing Fields Asrei's Story by Theary C. SengIt is a real life story of a Khmer-American girl and her family during the Khmer Rouge Era. While Seng, also known as Asrei, was still a toddler, she suffered the loss of parents. Her parents disappeared (at different times) and were never to be found again. Apart from grieving over her new identity, orphan, her relatives also suffered under the torturous Khmer soldiers. Her childhood was an unstable one; she led a nomadic life, moving from province to province and country to country. Her haunting experience from the Khmer Rouge Era instilled a thought deeply in her, that is "life is but a breath." Her family was considered few of the lucky ones to find refugee in Thailand and ultimately USA. Smart Asrei then turned into a lawyer and gained more power to help her Cambodian fellows. When given an opportunity to meet one of the perpetuators during the genocide, Khieu Samphan, it was basic human instinct to feel the anger boiling within. Nevertheless, time has caused most of the anger to fade. But an answer to those murderous actions was the most wanted. Yet, the perpetuator claimed not to know of those killings while living luxuriously in capital Phnom Penh. Author Asrei urges for a tribunal to those war crimes.
This book is addicting; it has the capability of keeping me into the nights to read it. At the same time, it can also serve as a history and geography book; giving details of the Khmer Rouge genocide and the various locations of Cambodia's provinces. It shocked me by how the Khmer Rouge managed to revert Phnom Penh to Year Zero by lying to the large population and caused them to evacuate. Communism meant good at the basics, however communists gravely underestimated human nature; laziness and greed.
The author's family was considered one of the wealthier ones in Cambodia before the genocide, judging from the amount of golds, diamonds and other jewels they had. Imagine that their lives were so terrible even when they were rich, what about those poorer ones. I guess the poor suffered even more. The author and family were fortunate to seek refugee in USA which in turn got them educated and returned to help Cambodia struggling away from the Third World Country tag. I anticipated vigorous confrontation with Khieu Samphan in this book (typical KPO!), but the author confronted him in the most intellectual manner; trying to fish out any loopholes in his words. I salute to the author's courage and forgiveness in facing the perpetuator.
Engaging, but read with discretion as biasness involved. (3 stars)
