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There has been widespread condemnation over “sickening” images published by news outlet Vice Asia, which show colourised photos of victims of the Khmer Rouge regime from the S-21 archives in Tuol  Sleng, Phnom Penh, whose expressions have been altered to show them smiling. After the outcry from the Royal Government and readers, the post was deleted by the artist but the damage was done.

The original images were originally taken as part of the induction into the infamous S-21 prison – which operated between 1975 and 1979 and is estimated to have sent over 20,000 Cambodians to their deaths at the hands of the notorious Duch and his Khmer Rouge henchmen. These original images now form a central part of the sombre display at the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum and have achieved an iconic status as a symbol of the horror of the Pol Pot era.

The new images, “restored” by Matt Loughrey, “a self-taught artist living in Ireland,” appear to have not only had colour added to them but also, in a horrific twist, have been digitally altered so that some of the victims appear to be smiling.