Kamping Pouy Basin
is located between two mountains Phnom Ku or Phnom TaNgen and Phnom Kamping
Pouy-in TaNgen Village, Ta Kream Srok commune, about 36 kilometers west of the
provincial town. His gigantic civil-engineering project was central to the
Khmer Rouge’s plan to irrigate the countryside around Battambang. Tragically,
the construction of the Kamping Pouy Resevior resulted in the deaths of tens of
thousands of people. Unlike the victims of S21 and Choeung Ek most of the
deaths on the Kamping Pouy project were caused by malnutrition, disease,
overwork or mistreatment. The deaths were in short, preventable.
Kamping Pouy (1977)
A gripping, visceral and painfully honest account of life in Battambang under the Khmer Rouge was written by Haing S. Ngor, the Cambodian doctor, actor and community worker who won an Oscar for the film The Killing Fields. His Book Survival in Cambodia’s Killing Fields is perhaps the most eloquent account of day-to-day life during the Pol Pot period. It is laced with insights into the Khmer psyche and is ultimately a heartbreaking read. Kamping Pouy Basin is 6 meters long and 1900 meters wide. During the rainy season the basin can hold 110 million cubic meters of water, which is used primarily for agriculture. Kamping Pouy Basin is vital to this area. It is now a popular picnic site for residents of Paillin and Battambang because of its fresh air. Lotus flowers grow in the water and nearby you can buy lotus seeds to eat (they care delicious and taste a bit like sweet, uncooked peas).
Ta Kream Commune in Banan District is the
nearest settlement. These days, thanks to the dam, the Kamping Pouy area is one
of the few parts of Cambodia to produce two rice crops a year. Kamping Pouy is
about 36km west of Battambang (go via NH5 and follow the irrigation canal). It’s
easy to combine a visit here with a stop at Phnom Sampuev.
