“I never wanted to talk about it [Pol Pot regime]. If I talk about it to the younger generation they don’t believe”.
Nuv Tien
Interview with Nuv Tien
Can you tell me your full name ?
Nuv Tien.
Does it have a meaning?
Tien means candle.
How old are you?
I am 75.
Do you know what month of the year?
I don’t remember when I was born. My parents died when I was young, and all papers were lost during the Pol Pot regime.I used to have a birth certificate but my house was also burnt– like 10 years ago. I was born here (Tonle Sap).
Did you get married?
I married around 1976– it was during the regime. It was an arranged marriage by the Pol Pot organization. I was around 25.
I used to have a different husband before Pol Pot. He was a soldier, a lieutenant, and died in a plane crash during the regime. I worried about my parents, my husband asked me to run away together in a plane to escape when m Pol Pot took over. I was lucky because that plane crashed. A lot of government officials were in that plane. This as in Phnom Penh.
I moved to Phnom Penh with my husband. His name was Aom Loem.
What did you eat for breakfast?
I ate a happy breakfast. I ate a fried rice with fish. And my favorite type of food is dried fish. I also like the Cambodian pancake with mince pork– its called banh chau.
What is your every day like?
What do you do in a regular day?
I weave every day– this is my only job. I leave from 7 to 9, and I rest onlyt a couple of hours.
Do you have a close friend?
since I was single and never been outside, I have always stayed around the village. I I didn’t every make friends. We were banned from going out, because I was a woman. A tradition of being a good woman is not going out. I only go to religious ceremonies. They take me on a boat.
What about having children?
My first child from my first marriage died when she was 6 years long. During the regime they separated kids from their parents. I know that she died because someone informed me. She died by sickness. I didn’t know she was sick. I was not allowed to visit her. Her name was Aveasna.
Can you tell me about giving birth?
It was hard for the first baby. To deliver the first baby. But you know, actually at the time we used to have a midwife, who would come to our home to deliver the baby. But for me, the midwife hadn’t come, and I delivered my baby. I was with my mom. The midwife was not far a lot, she was next door. But when babies are born here there is a ritual– and you must invite the midwife. And so, they had to go buy the incense, and some offerings. We got these from Chinese store. Until that person came back to invite the midwife my child was already born. She was born in this village. We had a rowing boat to go to the store. It was during the rainy season, and the store was very far, and the rowing boat took a long time. My brother went there. My mother touched my belly a little. She knew nothing about giving birth. I was okay, but it felt very hard and very painful. Sometimes I felt like I was going to die– I felt like I was suffocating. It was hard to breathe.
The I had four more babies. I’ve never been to the hospital– always used a midwife. It was always safe for me. They used a nest to apply to the stomach when they cut the umbilical cord. Sometimes they apply python liver mixed with rice liquor and apply it on the belly button. But now we are not supposed to use it anymore, because of infection.
Do you know what your parents did for work?
They were fishermen. They made fish traps to sell.
What about your grandparents?
I never net my grandparent. They passed away before I was born. My grandparent were also fishermen.
Do you remember anything your mother taught you?
I never went to school. My family was very poor. We had no shelter. My parents were doing fishing and I just helped them with the business.
Can you talk about what happened to you during the Pol Pot regime?
Everyone was getting killed. I dint know if I was going to live another day. I was evacuated to live in Batanbong. I was responsible for harvesting; I would cut the rice from the field. On hectare was for 2 people. You would have to do the area completely, otherwise you wouldn’t get food. Only twice a day we would get food– a very little amount of rice in the morning and then at night. We never had any meat. Sometime rice with salt, sometimes we would get a little fish.
During Pol Pot I had my second marriage arranged by the regime. This happened in Batanbong. There was no celebration. He died only 10 years ago. We were cousins, but the soldiers didn’t know. We just kept silent about it– the soldiers didn’t know. Even if you don’t love him. If you denied your partner, you would get chained and get killed.
Do you think it’s important to talk about the Pol Pot regime, or better to forget?
I never wanted to talk about it. If I talked about it to the younger generation they don’t believe. The small children, the babies were smashed into trees to kill them, or they were burnt alive. When I explain they never believe. I don’t want to talk about it. Even when I hear the name of Pol Pot I get very upset.
Can she remember a happy memory?
I have never felt happy in life. You can’t be happy if you don’t have enough money. For me, I live day by day. Children also have bad life. The kids have to go fishing. For example, today they didn’t find any fish and that made us lose money. If it’s a bad day, we lose money. When the water is very polluted the fish just go away. They usually go around the bush, because if you go through the middle of the lake, it is very dangerous– if the boat sinks how can they come back? It’s risky, so better to spread the net around the flooded forest.
We spend a lot of gasoline because we have to travel far. They leave at 7 and come back the next morning. They spend the entire night there. They sleep on the boat without a mosquito net. They use incense. My son is the one who goes– the oldest one. He’s around 43 years old. Usually both od my sons go together. My daughters get water hyacinth. The one we use for weaving. It has to dry for two weeks for us to use it.
Do you have any advice for people?
I have advice for children. I don’t want my children to do illegal things. Do drugs or do illegal fishing. For my daughters, they shouldn’t go against our traditions. They shouldn’t be spoiled with city life. Women can fall into traps in the city life. This are my advice, but I can’t control if they follow it. But until now they have been following what I tell them.
Nuv Tien
Tonle Sap, Cambodia
The Wise Women Project 