Tuol Sleng Museum (S-21)

Tuol Sleng — The Darkest Chapter

The Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum is one of the most harrowing places in the world. In a former high school, the Khmer Rouge established the S-21 security prison in 1975 — an interrogation, torture, and execution center through which an estimated 17,000 to 20,000 people were processed. Only 12 survived.

What makes the place so distressing: It looks like an ordinary school. Classrooms were turned into torture chambers, corridors into cell blocks (tiny brick enclosures). On the walls hang the mugshots of the prisoners — men, women, children, some with a number on their chest. The faces look at you. It's almost unbearable.

What You See

• Building A: Large rooms with iron beds — this is where interrogations and torture took place. The original furnishings are preserved. On the walls, photos of the last victims.
• Building B: Photos. Thousands of mugshots of the prisoners — the Khmer Rouge meticulously documented every detainee. The faces range from composed to terrified.
• Building C: The cells. Classrooms divided into tiny enclosures made of brick and wood. The prisoners lay chained on the floor.
• Building D: More photos and testimonies. Paintings by survivor Vann Nath depicting the torture.

The audioguide (included in the entrance fee) is outstanding — it contains accounts from survivors and the former prison director Duch (convicted in 2010). Plan at least 2 hours.