SEK Dan

Sek Dan was called as a witness to testify on the functioning of S-21.

At age 11, Sek Dan was conscripted by Khmer Rouge militia and sent to the technical school Prek Thnaot in Phnom Penh for three months of training. After having worked in a child unit assigned to build dykes near Phnom Penh, Sek Dan was sent to S-21 where he stayed until the Vietnamese seized Phnom Penh in January 1979. There he was assigned to work as a child medic with three others in Building 3 under the supervision of Pao and Yeun.

As a witness, Sek Dan described the medical situation of the detainees resulting from the interrogation sessions: they were wounded, their fingernails or toenails were missing, and they had lesions on the ears. The medicine distributed to the detainees mainly consisted of "rabbit pellets", which were produced only after 1975. He recalled hearing screams at night and witnessing the disappearance of prisoners. Some detainees died due to illnesses and he and the other medics were assigned to bury them near the S-21 compound. Sek Dan told the Trial Chamber that he was extremely worried at the time that he would be taken away himself to be killed. His supervisor Pao had been arrested on the allegation of killing a detainee. Following this, Sek Danís second supervisor Yeun hanged himself in fear of being arrested.

A lawyer assisted Sek Dan in case an issue of self-incrimination arose.

  • Witness acronym :
    KW-20
  • Age at the time of testimony :
    48
  • Appeared as :
  • Cases : Case 001
  • Date(s) of testimony :

Transcript from testimony

Video recordings

Session 2 - 3 August 2009 - Case 001Date:
Session 3 - 3 august 2009 - Case 001Date:
Session 4 - 3 August 2009 - Case 001Date:
Session 1 - 3 August 2009 - Case 001Date: