Cao Pech Hoa 高碧華

I am very honoured to have had an interview with Hung Cau who is searching for her precious missing sister Cao Pech Hoa.

My heart hurt for Hung as I could feel how hard it was for her to talk about the horrible time when they were younger and her sister was taken from a very loving family during the brutal genocide in Cambodia. 

Hung also spoke Chinese so the chances are better for her sister to hear her heart felt message. I am praying and really hoping this Podcast will help to locate Cao Pech Hoa! 

Full Story – In 1975, the Cao family were caught in the brutal genocide that engulfed CAMBODIA during the harrowing Khmer Rouge period (Killing Fields). The oldest sister, named Cao Pech Hoa, 16 years old at the time, was taken away from her family.

Mom, Dad, and eight of their ten children at the time were removed from their home in Phnom Penh and sent to live in a remote village. Adults and children were forced to perform hard labour under inhumane conditions. The family managed to stay together until one day, sister Hoa was removed and taken to a neighbouring village. She continued to meet with the family for supper, but one day she did not show up for work. Residents from the sister’s village told the family that she and two other women were removed from the village for reasons unknown. Hoa was last seen by her family in the fall of 1976 in Phum Prey Kmao, a remote village in the area of Kong Srea Knong, which is in the district of Srok Chhuk. 

The family survived the war and went back to the city in 1979. The city was in ruins. With no future for the family, they made the difficult decision and risky journey to leave their home. Travelling trepidatiously, they reached Khao Y-Dang refugee camp in Thailand and arrived in Canada on June 20th, 1980. Over the past 40 years, several attempts have been made to contact their missing sister. They imagine she would have struggled significantly if she did survive. 
The family is not giving up. 
There is a good chance Hoa may be still alive today! 

Diana Trepkov, forensic artist, Cao Pech Hoa
Diana Trepkov, forensic artist, Cao Pech Hoa
Diana Trepkov, forensic artist
Diana Trepkov, forensic artist

Please click on the link below to listen to this podcast episode.