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The name Dith Pran probably means nothing to you. His death on Sunday from pancreatic cancer is likely just another name among the obituaries in newspapers everywhere. But whether you know his name or not, the contributions he has made toward understanding the value of peace in our time cannot be underestimated.
Born in Cambodia in 1942, Dith led a normal life as an interpreter for New York Times correspondent Sidney Schanberg. When the Khmer Rouge, a Communist regime led by ruthless dictator Pol Pot, seized Cambodia in 1975, Dith and millions of fellow Cambodians were forced to work in brutal labor camps.
Miraculously, Dith escaped to Thailand in 1979; he then began a new life in America devoted to raising awareness of the Cambodian genocide and bringing Pol Pot to justice. This movement gained prominence in 1984 with the release of “The Killing Fields,” the Oscar-winning biopic of Dith’s experiences.
In the years since, Dith took pictures for The New York Times and served as the international figurehead for bringing the Khmer Rouge to justice.
In 2005, I was lucky enough to interview Dith about his experiences for my local paper. It was a formative moment for a young journalist, but it was also fascinating hearing him recount experiences I could wish upon nobody.
Dith’s recollections were not what you would expect from a survivor of a tragedy, such as a train wreck or the Sept. 11 attacks. He did not grieve for the brothers he lost to the Khmer Rouge. More importantly, he did not express a hatred for his captors, just a desire to see justice served.
The fact that Dith was a peacemaker and humanitarian after those grueling years of suffering is overwhelming. In 1996, fellow survivor Haing S. Ngor, who won an Oscar playing him in “The Killing Fields,” was shot to death by Asian gang members. In 1998, Pol Pot died without ever facing a court for his war crimes - and in only a few months, Khmer Rouge leaders finally stood up for their wrongdoing.
But he showed no anger or remorse, only a sense of upbeat determination that someday these wrongs would be righted.
“I never give up,” he told me, “and I believe that evil will never live forever.” It is as crazy a sentiment now as it was then, but he believed it.
In his time on Earth, Dith Pran carried out messages of peace and understanding with a grace that seems too good to be true - but somehow is. And if we can muster one-tenth of his grace and courage in this mixed-up world, then evil may someday be as short-lived as Dith had hoped.
The name Dith Pran probably means nothing to you. His death on Sunday from pancreatic cancer is likely just another name among the obituaries in newspapers everywhere. But whether you know his name or not, the contributions he has made toward understanding the value of peace in our time cannot be underestimated.
Born in Cambodia in 1942, Dith led a normal life as an interpreter for New York Times correspondent Sidney Schanberg. When the Khmer Rouge, a Communist regime led by ruthless dictator Pol Pot, seized Cambodia in 1975, Dith and millions of fellow Cambodians were forced to work in brutal labor camps.
Miraculously, Dith escaped to Thailand in 1979; he then began a new life in America devoted to raising awareness of the Cambodian genocide and bringing Pol Pot to justice. This movement gained prominence in 1984 with the release of “The Killing Fields,” the Oscar-winning biopic of Dith’s experiences.
In the years since, Dith took pictures for The New York Times and served as the international figurehead for bringing the Khmer Rouge to justice.
In 2005, I was lucky enough to interview Dith about his experiences for my local paper. It was a formative moment for a young journalist, but it was also fascinating hearing him recount experiences I could wish upon nobody.
Dith’s recollections were not what you would expect from a survivor of a tragedy, such as a train wreck or the Sept. 11 attacks. He did not grieve for the brothers he lost to the Khmer Rouge. More importantly, he did not express a hatred for his captors, just a desire to see justice served.
The fact that Dith was a peacemaker and humanitarian after those grueling years of suffering is overwhelming. In 1996, fellow survivor Haing S. Ngor, who won an Oscar playing him in “The Killing Fields,” was shot to death by Asian gang members. In 1998, Pol Pot died without ever facing a court for his war crimes - and in only a few months, Khmer Rouge leaders finally stood up for their wrongdoing.
But he showed no anger or remorse, only a sense of upbeat determination that someday these wrongs would be righted.
“I never give up,” he told me, “and I believe that evil will never live forever.” It is as crazy a sentiment now as it was then, but he believed it.
In his time on Earth, Dith Pran carried out messages of peace and understanding with a grace that seems too good to be true - but somehow is. And if we can muster one-tenth of his grace and courage in this mixed-up world, then evil may someday be as short-lived as Dith had hoped.
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