Mr. Van Mat
2-TCW-893, Mr Van Mat, alias Mat Tauch, was born on November 9, 1953, in Chumnik village, Chumnik commune, Krouch Chhmar district, Kampong Cham province. He is Cham and current lives in Kratie province, where he is a military officer working as a bodyguard of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. Before the Khmer Rouge the population of his village was half Cham and half Khmer. He estimates some 10,000 villagers were Cham. At the time there were other ethnic groups such as hakims, hajis and tuons, who were later sent away and killed. Mr Van Mat studied at the mosque until the Khmer Rouge arrived in 1976. Religion, Cham language, and ethnic practices were banned, and his village was evacuated to Kampong Thom. All Korans were collected and burned, and the mosque became the place to keep cattle. According to the witness, religious people, teachers and most Cham people were arrested accused of being CIA agents, and were sent to a security centre located in Khsach Prachheh, in Krouch Chhmar district. He remained in the village with half of the Cham population until his relocation in 1978, after the liberation of Phnom Penh. He was relocated for three months with his family to work in the jungle next to Boeng Krachab, in Tboung Khmum district, where he worked in a mobile unit building dams. His unit had both Khmer and Cham people. Mr Van Mat recalls the purge of Eastern zone cadres who were accused of betraying Angkar and fought against the Central Zone.
- Alias :
Sales Ahmat
- Witness acronym :
2-TCW-893
- Age at the time of testimony :
- Appeared as :
- Cases : Case 002, Case 002/02,
- Date(s) of testimony :