ECCC Reparations

This blog is designed to serve as a repository of analyses, news reports and press releases related to the issue of RERAPATIONS within the framework of the Extraordinary Chambers in Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), a.k.a. the Khmer Rouge Tribunal.

Saturday, December 22, 2007

Quality and Potential Effects of the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC)’s Assertions in the Decision on Appeal Against Provisional Detention of Kaing Guek Eav

Quality and Potential Effects of the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC)’s Assertions in the Decision on Appeal Against Provisional Detention of Kaing Guek Eav alias “Duch”

Assertion 1

by Stan Starygin

I wrote on some of the aspects of the PTC’s first decision in the immediate aftermath of its public pronouncement and to a certain degree since. In these posts, I will be trying to address and reflect upon a large number – if not all and over a period of time starting today – of issues associated with this decision and which I believe to be worth discussing further as the tribunal proceeds.

The decision opened up with a preamble in which the PTC stated that “the significant interest in the proceedings and the need for members of the public, without legal training, to understand and appreciate the meaning of this decision, and writing in a style reflecting this need”. Generally, writing decisions that can be understood by most members of the general public is a lofty and noble cause which adds value to the principle of ‘people’s justice’. The pronouncement of this sort, however, is not sufficient in itself, but it is (1) the court’s significant efforts and (2) reason to believe that these efforts will achieve the objectives to attain which they were created. To achieve these ends, the creation of a methodology of delivery of such decisions might be in order. PTC pointed out that it was writing a decision in a style that would be understandable to the public without legal training. It is not clear what ‘without legal training’ meant for the purposes of this decision. Did it mean that the language of the decision was adjusted to be comprehensible to anyone who had received no legal education prior to the issuance of the decision? Did it mean that the language was simplified to accommodate the comprehension needs of with an education, but not necessarily legal education? Did it mean the decision was made to be understandable to anyone who was capable of reading the Khmer, English or French languages to a reasonable degree? By ‘legal training’, did the PTC mean ‘legal training’ by the standards of the developed world or did they mean any type of legal training? Was the PTC referring to formal legal training in the phrase ‘without legal training’? All these questions need answers, which the PTC chose not offer. Another issue here is that of methodology, as discussed above. Did the PTC exert significant efforts to determine the level of understanding of legal issues by an average Cambodian? If so, what specific methods were used to gauge this level and based upon what study (ies) – undertaken by the PTC or an external contractor -- was it determined? Did the PTC make an effort to determine this level by reaching out to the institutions of legal learning of Cambodia? If so, what were these institutions and what were their recommendations? If none of these were accomplished – or at least attempted – what exactly gave the PTC “reason to believe that these efforts will achieve the objectives to attain which they were created” or the language of the Chamber “understand and appreciate the meaning of the decision”? Since I was skeptical from the second I heard this pronouncement that any tangible efforts had been undertaken – which were only reinforced when I heard the language (in its English translation) – and subsequently read it when it was publicized – of the text of the decision – I decided to undertake a little study of my own to see if my gut feeling was correct. I then showed the text of the decision (in Khmer) to officers of several police units we work with and solicited any response as to the contents they might have. They all told me they could not understand much of what was in the decision. I then incorporated the decision into the chapter on legal reasoning which I was at time – and am now – teaching to my Cambodian law students and asked whether the text of the decision was fairly simple and understandable. They seemed to have been able to understand more than the police officers, but still found it difficult to follow. These two inquiries showed me that not only did the PTC fail to meet the threshold of comprehension of those “with no legal training”, but equally failed to get through to those Cambodians who have received or are receiving legal training, and even legal education. This is not to say that the text of the decision cannot be taught to law students, police officers and others, it is merely to point out that the PTC’s assertion that the style of the decision is conducive to its understanding and appreciation by persons with no prior legal training is farfetched at best. Put another way, this assertion seems – barring the appearance of information to the contrary – largely unfounded, unresearched and manifestly flawed. I, too, compared the language of the text of this decision to the various texts produced by the ICTY, the ICTR and the US Supreme Court and found no significant differences in style which the PTC claims to have introduced.

My treatment of other parts of the decision will be appearing on this blog in the coming days.

Friday, December 21, 2007

Khmer Rouge Trial - Man or monster?

The appearance of the first former Khmer Rouge leader in a special court established in Cambodia to bring that movement's surviving leaders to justice provoked a question on which the tribunal's integrity will depend: should an accused mass murderer be released pending his trial?Kaing Guek Eav, commonly known as "Duch", presided over the deaths of more than 14,000 people at S-21, a former Phnom Penh high school turned into a torture centre. He is one of five former senior Khmer Rouge leaders who will be made to answer for their roles during Pol Pot's genocide, in which an estimated 1.7 million Cambodians perished. Until recently, Duch was the only one imprisoned, after being exposed in 1999.The court - with its improbable blend of Cambodian and foreign judges and attorneys as well as laws - is meant to be a model for judicial reform and independent justice in a country where impunity has long been the rule.The five red-robed judges who preside over the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (the official name) are the final arbiters of Duch's detention, but the question they are now considering belongs as much to the people of Cambodia as it does to the court. Should mass murderers be afforded the same rights as everyone else?
One of my aunts has a strong opinion on the matter. Khmer Rouge soldiers beat her father to death, and she remembers being shot at for sport by communist cadres as she and dozens of other peasants scuttled up a mountainside. She now lives one block from S-21. "Human rights are for humans," she said emphatically when I asked her about Duch's case. "He is a monster."I once believed that, too. When I first visited Duch's house of horrors in 1990, I was 15 and full of wonder about the country where I was born but had never lived. My family escaped the Khmer Rouge on April 17, 1975, the day they claimed victory. When my mother and I journeyed home to reunite with relatives who had survived the genocide, S-21 (also known as Tuol Sleng) was among our first stops.By then, the torture facility had been turned into a museum. I remember feeling claustrophobic as I walked down its halls and into classrooms turned into crude cellblocks. The air was stale but heavy with the stench of death in interrogation chambers barren save for a single bed frame, shackles and a chair. Flecks of dried blood peeled up from the floor. This was a place where fingernails of countless victims were ripped out, where others were strung upside down and dunked in barrels of water, where many were brutalised with metal prongs and batons. This was a place of utter brokenness. This was Duch's place.Mostly, I remember the hundreds of black and white mug shots of prisoners and victims that covered every inch of the walls - a ghastly montage of human suffering that haunts me to this day. I couldn't help but think: this was somebody's daughter, somebody's son. This was somebody's mother or sister or brother.Back then, I thought: What monster could do such things?Now, that monster was sitting in a courtroom, looking scared and meek as prosecutors catalogued his alleged war crimes. Sitting in the packed auditorium where snatches of Duch's face flash by on a movie screen, I'm struck by what I see: a face that belongs to someone. This alleged perpetrator of unspeakable misdeeds is, like his victims, someone's son, someone's brother, someone's father.This might have been only a fleeting thought had I not seen Duch's family members, who attended the hearings. Hang Seav Heang, 28, described the defendant as a gentle man, a good father. One of his sisters said he was a caring, protective brother, and she would always love him.Outside the courtroom and in the community, most of the Khmers I talked to were, like my aunt, quick to categorise Duch as something other than human. Duch must have thought much the same thing about his victims when he ordered them to their deaths. When we start to see each other as less than human, we respond with inhuman acts.It is this narrow, black-and-white view of humanity that has perpetuated a cycle of violence in Cambodia, where raging mobs beat to death robbery suspects and young mistresses suffer acid attacks by jealous wives. To say that Duch is a monster who does not deserve rights ignores the grey area between good and evil, between man and monster, where anything is possible. This trial is about that grey area, about that place in us all where morality decays and evil takes root and grows, the way mould prevails given the right conditions. Each of us carries this potential for rot.There is no dispute that Duch violated the rights of thousands of Khmers. But if the basic premise of these trials is to uphold human rights, then we are obliged to extend that same principle to Duch. What does it say to the country and the world if a court convened to mete out justice flouts the law? Isn't lawlessness the plague we are finally trying to eradicate in Cambodia?The judges have offered no indication when they will make a decision. And no one would blame them for taking their time to consider their options. This is, after all, the court's first test of fairness before the trials of Duch and four of Pol Pot's other henchmen begin next year. We all want justice, but that justice should not come at the cost of our humanity.Putsata Reang is a fellow of the Asia Society.By Putsata ReangThe NationPublication Date: 15-12-2007

Cambodian PM says ex-Khmer Rouge officials have comforts in detention

Cambodian PM says ex-Khmer Rouge officials have comforts in detention
The International Herald Tribune
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/12/20/asia/AS-GEN-Cambodia-Khmer-Rouge.php
The Associated Press
Published: December 20, 2007


PHNOM PENH, Cambodia
: A U.N.-backed tribunal is holding former Khmer Rouge head of state Khieu Samphan in a comfortable room that bears no resemblance to the notorious torture cells his regime operated, Cambodia's prime minister said Thursday.
Khieu Samphan, 76, has been detained at the tribunal in the capital Phnom Penh since his arrest Nov. 19. The genocide trials are scheduled to begin next year, and Khieu Samphan is one of five high-ranking former Khmer Rouge members detained.
"He was offered a place with good conditions but he still complains about the difficulties of staying there," Prime Minister Hun Sen said, noting the facility was nothing like the murderous Khmer Rouge's infamous torture center, Tuol Sleng.
"He ordered people jailed at Tuol Sleng for interrogation and torture, but he never discusses the difficulties of those people," Hun Sen said.
Khieu Samphan's lawyer had complained the room was too small, according to tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath.
Detention cells at the tribunal have fans, beds with mattresses, radio, television, a window and a private toilet, he said.
The long-delayed\ntribunal is seeking accountability for atrocities during the Khmer Rouge's\n1975-79 rule, under which an estimated 1.7 million people died from starvation,\ndisease, overwork and execution.Khieu Samphan was\narrested at a Phnom Penh\nhospital after undergoing treatment for a stroke. He has been charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes. He also faces\ncharges related to his support of the Khmer Rouge policy of committing\n"murder, extermination, imprisonment, persecution on political grounds and\nother inhumane acts."Four other\nsurviving Khmer Rouge officials are in custody at the tribunal, including Kaing\nGuek Eav — alias Duch — who ran Tuol Sleng, Ieng Sary, the Khmer\nRouge's ex-foreign minister, and his wife Ieng Thirith, its social affairs\nminister. All three were charged with crimes against humanity; Ieng Sary was\nalso charged with war crimes.Former Khmer Rouge\nideologist Nuon Chea is also awaiting trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity. "Times New RomanCopyright\n© 2007 the International Herald Tribune All rights reserved//-->
The long-delayed tribunal is seeking accountability for atrocities during the Khmer Rouge's 1975-79 rule, under which an estimated 1.7 million people died from starvation, disease, overwork and execution.
Khieu Samphan was arrested at a Phnom Penh hospital after undergoing treatment for a stroke. He has been charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes.
He also faces charges related to his support of the Khmer Rouge policy of committing "murder, extermination, imprisonment, persecution on political grounds and other inhumane acts."
Four other surviving Khmer Rouge officials are in custody at the tribunal, including Kaing Guek Eav — alias Duch — who ran Tuol Sleng, Ieng Sary, the Khmer Rouge's ex-foreign minister, and his wife Ieng Thirith, its social affairs minister. All three were charged with crimes against humanity; Ieng Sary was also charged with war crimes.
Former Khmer Rouge ideologist Nuon Chea is also awaiting trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Copyright © 2007 the International Herald Tribune All rights reserved

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

In US, Questions Linger Over Tribunal Legitimacy

In US, Questions Linger Over Tribunal Legitimacy
By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer Original report from Washington
http://www.voanews.com/khmer/2007-12-18-voa1.cfm
18 December 2007
As US officials consider funding for the cash-strapped Khmer Rouge tribunal, some observers in the US say the courts may not have done enough to guarantee a international standards. Others say US participation and funding can help the courts reach those standards. So far, there is no guarantee the US will contribute direct funding.
The US was a main supporter of early tribunal negotiations between the UN and Cambodia, in a process mediated seven years ago by US Senator John Kerry. But the US has yet to provide any direct funding to the courts, which have been up and running for more than a year.
The US has supported the tribunal through non-governmental organizations, but officials have warned that a lack of transparency and charges of corruption and politicization in the courts have precluded direct funding.
Direct funding for the courts remains a contentious issue. For legal experts, rights groups and government officials, the question is one of justice, and whether US funding can help provide it or not.
For Sophie Richardson, deputy director of the Asia program for Human Rights Watch, this should not mean "second-rate justice."
A lot of donors already feel "burned" by contributing to the tribunal, only to witness revelations of "corruption, kickbacks and political manipulation of the court," Richardson said.
For that reason, it is important the US remain outside the process, seeking other avenues for participation, such as support of the Victim's Unit, she said.
The courts had shown bias toward the ruling Cambodian People's Party, which continues to rule with "oppression and manipulation and abuses," Richardson said, "and that's not something that US taxpayers should be supporting."
However, a struggling court could benefit from US participation, said Kelly Askin, a senior legal officer for international justice at the Open Society Justice Initiative.
"It is critically important that the United States get involved with the court, fund the court, and help improve the court," she said.
"But the United States, like any country thinking about supporting the ECCC, will want to be sure the court is operating as effectively and efficiently as possible," she said, referring to the tribunal by its official name, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia. "That means fully investigating allegations of corruption and mismanagement and establishing certain financial controls to ensure funds are being well spent."
The government and the courts have denied as "groundless" allegations put forward last year by OSJI that judges were paying kickbacks to high-ranking officials in order to sit on the tribunal. A subsequent UNDP audit found mismanagement and other questionable practices within the courts, but in public documents the audit did not find evidence of kickbacks. The full audit results have not been released.
Askin said the courts have made "great progress" following the allegations, "but there are some concerns."
OSJI was encouraging donors to put benchmarks in place for funding, to ensure concerns are addressed, he said. The tribunal will cost at least $56 million, most of it coming from the UN and other donors. The government is seeking more funds, claiming the tribunal could last into 2010. So far five former Khmer Rouge leaders have been arrested and charged with atrocity crimes. The arrests led to some optimism in the court proceedings and a visit to Cambodia in December by the US ambassador at large for war crimes, Clint Williamson, who said a US funding decision should be made in January, following his tour of the courts.
Charles Twining, who was the US ambassador to Cambodia from 1991 to 1995, said Cambodia had shown a willingness to fight corruption.
Now was the time for US support and funding, he said, adding that "an imperfect tribunal is better than no tribunal."
Schanly Kuch, an analyst of Khmer Rouge issues who is based in the US state of Maryland, said in order for the US to help the tribunal, there must be "clear conditions," but the US should not support a tribunal that does not meet international standards.
Kuch's assessment echoes concerns for most parties involved in the tribunal. So far, the biggest question is one of credibility.
For Tung Yap, vice president of the Cambodian American National Council, US participation in the tribunal was crucial, because the US could demand political independence in the courts.
"The US should demand the court to function properly in order to find, to dig up the root, for people to be satisfied and find out why the Khmer Rouge committed the atrocities when they were in power in Cambodia," Yap said.

Profile: Michael Karnavas (circa 2005)

Michael Karnavas is a Criminal Defence Lawyer with over 20 years of experience. He has
worked as State and Federal Public Defender in Alaska, USA. Before the ICTY, Karnavas
was Lead Counsel during the trial phase for Vidoje Blagojevic, and is currently Lead Counsel
for Jadranko Prlic at the ICTY. He is presently serving as Chairman of the Training Committee
and as a member of the Rules Committee of the Association of Defence Counsel-ICTY.

Pic: Michael Karnavas


KR leader gets US lawyer

KR leader gets US lawyer
Bangkok Post
http://www.bangkokpost.com/topstories/topstories.php?id=124516
19 December 2007
Former Khmer Rouge deputy prime minister Ieng Sary has selected a highly experienced American lawyer who defended communist-era Yugoslav leaders as his foreign defence attorney, a Cambodian court said.
Michael Karnavas, a member of the Alaska Bar, is Ieng Sary's choice to work with his Cambodian co-lawyer, Ang Udom, to represent him before the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), the court said in a statement.
Karnavas is president of the Association of Defence Counsel of the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and has spent the past seven years defending clients in that court, it said.
"Mr Karnavas has practiced as a defence lawyer since 1986. He has also taught trial advocacy skills for the past 18 years and lectured widely on international criminal law around the world," the ECCC said in a statement.
"In 1995 and 1996 he worked in Cambodia with (local legal aid organization) Cambodian Defender Project and the Cambodian Court Training Project," it added.
"Mr Karnavas' application for registration with the Bar Association of the Kingdom of Cambodia is currently being considered by the Bar Council, and so he will act as Legal Consultant in the case until the process is concluded," the statement said.
Ieng Sary was pardoned of genocide in 1996 by former king Norodom Sihanouk in exchange for defecting to the government and breaking the back of the movement, but was subsequently charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity by the ECCC - charges he denies.
Up to 2 million Cambodians died under the 1975-79 Khmer Rouge regime. dpa
© Copyright The Post Publishing Public Co., Ltd. 2006

Monday, December 17, 2007

The Cambodian Genocide Court: Lessons for the ICC in Uganda?

The Cambodian Genocide Court: Lessons for the ICC in Uganda?

Jurist Legal News & Research

http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/forumy/2007/12/cambodian-genocide-court-lessons-for.php

December 03, 2007

JURIST Guest Columnist Wes Rist of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law says that especially in the context of its troubled pursuit of Ugandan rebels, the International Criminal Court in The Hague might take a leaf from the book of the new Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia and pursue a more cooperative attitude with local governments instead of simply seeking to enforce its writ regardless of potential domestic costs or consequences...



Late last month the first formal arguments were heard before the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), as former Khmer Rouge official Kaing Guek Eav - also known as Duch - filed an appeal for bail before the body and Cambodian prosecutors opposed the motion. While the Duch case is a fascinating one, the real importance of this first step for the ECCC is its reflection of the cooperation that has existed between the United Nations and the government of Cambodia in the establishment and operation of the tribunal, and the example that sets for international involvement in the punishment of domestic human rights abuses generally. This cooperative spirit is exactly the kind of attitude the International Criminal Court (ICC) should adopt in its interactions with Uganda concerning the recent indictment of senior Lord’s Resistance Army officials, instead of the rather hostile tone it has taken since President Yoweri Museveni requested that the ICC reconsider its indictments against Joseph Kony and his four senior lieutenants.



There is little doubt in anyone’s mind that the Khmer Rouge in the late 1970s committed some of the worst crimes against humanity ever perpetrated in the modern world. With an estimated 1.7 million individuals dead or missing from that time period, the staggering sociological impact is still felt in Cambodia today. An entire generation of workers, educators, and spiritual leaders was wiped out. Not only did this deprive Cambodia of those people and their skills, but it also ensured that the current generation of Cambodians had no one to train them in the careers represented. There are no well-staffed medical schools to train new doctors, no law professors to train new lawyers, no monks and priests to train the next generation of devotees; they were all eliminated by the Khmer Rouge.



With the last decade and a half of focus on prosecuting perpetrators of crimes against humanity, there was finally enough international attention on the issue for the Cambodian government to consider the possibility of pursuing justice against these individuals. Many of the worst offenders had been arrested and detained in the late 1990s as the Cambodian government sought to demonstrate that atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge were unacceptable. But the Cambodian government lacked the resources to pursue a large scale prosecution of Khmer Rouge officials on its own. Enter the United Nations. Interest in creating a Special Tribunal for Cambodia was growing and the UN originally seemed to consider something like the ICTY or ICTR to be the way to go.



But Cambodian officials had watched the events in the ICTY/R carefully and they were aware of the complaints against the tribunals for imposing Western concepts of justice on a people that were looking for something relevant to their culture, not to an official in Geneva or New York. Cambodia held out for a fully domestic court system to hear the Khmer Rouge cases and eventually, the Agreement Between the United Nations and the Royal Government of Cambodia was signed in 2003. The Agreement specified that the trials would occur under Cambodian domestic criminal law, but with assistance from international experts and guidance. The agreement also set out the legal authority for the court, later formalized in Cambodia’s Law on the Establishment of Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, and the procedures that would be used, which represented a careful agreement concerning international standards on judicial guarantees.



The ECCC’s hearing concerning Duch’s detention is merely the first step in a long road. Circumstances demand that it be a rapid road, too, as many of the worst offenders are nearing the end of their natural life spans. But the work the ECCC has been doing in the short time since its creation is encouraging. Provided funding stays strong, the opportunity for the Cambodian people to see justice done is very strong. This cooperative approach to solving issues of national justice and international concern for procedural fairness and judicial guarantees is the true value of the ECCC in a rapidly globalizing legal community. And the ECCC represents more than just a solid collaboration between a national government and the UN, it is a sound guide for the International Criminal Court as well.



The ICC itself is barred from hearing Khmer Rouge cases, as it can only try crimes that occurred after the Rome Statute entered into force. However, even with its current cases, the ICC is running into criticism over Westernized justice that the ICTY/R faced. Specifically, in the Court’s Uganda case against leaders of the Lord’s Rebellion Army, growing numbers of Ugandans wish to see the ICC withdraw its indictments of Joseph Kony and his top lieutenants, who have publicly stated that they will not pursue further peace talks unless the ICC arrest warrants are withdrawn. The ICC has repeatedly declined to review the indictments and just last week issued a strong statement claiming that any consideration of withdrawing the indictments would amount to throwing justice out the window.



While there is certainly a justified reluctance in the international community to allow for grants of amnesty or immunity in cases of ongoing conflicts involving war crimes or crimes against humanity, the ICC seems to be ignoring the lesson that the ECCC offers. By working with, rather than against, a domestic government, the international community has a much more valuable role to play in seeing justice done for the worst crimes committed against humanity. Would amnesty for Joseph Kony and his lieutenants be a sad alternative to seeing them in the dock before judges at the ICC? Certainly. Is it a worthwhile price to pay to end the killings currently continuing in Uganda? That's an issue that the Ugandan people and government should be able to decide.

The ICC’s writ is based on complementarity. Since the Ugandan government invited the ICC to investigate the crimes committed by the Lord’s Resistance Army, that initial determination of complementarity was waived. But I strongly doubt that there is a sufficient legal argument to be made that once a government invites ICC involvement, it no longer has a say in the internal affairs of its own country relating to that involvement, especially when the lives of its citizens are at stake. At this point, there needs to be a discussion of when the ICC’s desire for justice is becoming an institutional goal that is accomplished at the expense of the people the Court is supposed to be seeking justice for. When the ICC is sacrificing lives, albeit indirectly, in order to accomplish the prosecution of five men, I begin to question what definition of “justice” is being served.



As a lawyer, the idea of an amnesty for Kony and his men troubles me greatly. As a human being who has talked with victims of crimes similar to those of the LRA in Uganda, I have to wonder if the ICC cannot find another way to work towards justice that will not result in greater loss of human life in Uganda. There is sufficient leeway in the ICC statute for the Office of the Prosecutor to work with the Ugandan government in seeking an immediate end to a conflict that has raged for decades and has claimed much of the youth of the country. There are certainly valid arguments that obtaining justice in a court will go further towards accomplishing long term peace than any cease fire or political truce. But I question the impact of that justice in obtaining long term peace when the trial is not in Ugandan courts, not in Uganda at all, and will most likely never be seen or experienced by the majority of the Ugandan people. Outside of domestic prosecution of Kony, the long term benefits of courtroom justice pale in comparison to the very real benefits of preventing any more children being kidnapped and employed as child soldiers.



Instead of championing its own causes and reaffirming the need for its own existence, the ICC should be considering what “justice” it was created to serve. If the Office of the Prosecutor can look Ugandans in the face and tell them that it is better that they die and Kony is tried than that they finally find peace in their country, maybe they are pursuing the right track. Otherwise, perhaps they should consider the ECCC and the example it sets for cooperation between international organizations and domestic governments.



Wes Rist is an Adjunct Professor and Assistant Director of the Center for International Legal Education at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. He was a member of JURIST's student staff from 2004-2006, and served as JURIST's International Law editor from 2005-2006.



© Bernard J. Hibbitts 2007. E-mail changes, news tips, URLs, corrections, etc. to JURIST@pitt.edu. This site is not an official site of the University of Pittsburgh. The University of Pittsburgh is not responsible for its content. Nothing on this site is intended as legal advice. If you have a legal problem, please consult an attorney. JURIST news tickers powered by Yahoo! News.

Another Detention Appeal Is Filed with the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC)

Khmer Rouge leader appeals UN detention
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22927164-401,00.html
From correspondents in Phnom Penh
Article from: Agence France-Presse
December 14, 2007 10:26pm

THE Khmer Rouge's former head of state has appealed against his detention by a UN-backed tribunal over his alleged role in Cambodia's genocide.
Khieu Samphan, 76, was the last of five top regime cadres arrested by the court in November. He has been charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Famed French lawyer Jacques Verges, who has defended some of the world's most notorious figures, and his Cambodian co-lawyer Say Bory filed the appeal, the tribunal spokesman said.
"Khieu Samphan's co-lawyers have filed an appeal against the detention order," spokesman Reach Sambath said.
The appeal has already been forwarded to the tribunal's pre-trial chamber, which will decide whether to grant him bail.
The spokesman declined to say on what grounds the appeal was filed, and Khieu Samphan's lawyers were not immediately available for comment.
Khieu Samphan has denied his alleged role in the regime's atrocities, saying he was never part of Khmer Rouge's inner-circle and had no decision-making powers.
The court's investigating judges said he "facilitated and legitimated, at the highest level, the continued perpetration of criminal acts throughout Cambodia."
They said Khieu Samphan could flee the country or intimidate potential court witnesses if he were free.
Up to two million people were executed, or died of starvation and overwork as the communist regime emptied Cambodia's cities, exiling millions to vast collective farms in a bid to forge an agrarian utopia.
The Khmer Rouge also abolished money, religion and schools.
Five former regime leaders have been detained so far by the tribunal alleged roles in the Khmer Rouge's brutal 1975-79 rule. Trials are now expected to begin in mid-2008.
Copyright 2007 News Limited. All times AEDT (GMT +11).

Saturday, December 15, 2007

A Popular Discussion of Duch's Ethnicity and Other Related Issues

It is important to remember that the link below represents the opinions of its individual authors -- and not the proprietor of this blog -- which, for the most part are non-academic, but might be of interest to those readers of this blog who are trying to gauge the current public opinion on the various issues surrounding the prosecution of the Khmer Rouge.

http://groups.google.com/group/camdisc/browse_thread/thread/89e6f68461c92af6/c74a931eb432fb83?lnk=raot

Friday, December 14, 2007

Detained Khmer Rouge cadres appeal detention: court

Detained Khmer Rouge cadres appeal detention: court
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jJ3e1bkTBgjEA0zKZ2VQDfsjPcxg

PHNOM PENH (AFP) — Detained Khmer Rouge ministers Ieng Sary and his wife Ieng Thirith have appealed against their detention by a UN-backed tribunal in Cambodia, court officials said Thursday.
The pair were arrested last month and charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity. Since then they have been detained by the genocide tribunal for their alleged roles in the Khmer Rouge's brutal 1975-79 rule.
Tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said lawyers for Ieng Sary, 82, and Ieng Thirith, 75, filed their appeals with the court on Wednesday.
\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>"The\ncourt has already received their appeals," Reach Sambath told AFP.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>Ieng\nSary's lawyer Ang Udom said the appeal cited his client's fear that he could\ndie in detention. "We are worried about his health," he told AFP.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>The\ncourt earlier said that both Ieng Sary and his wife were flight risks,\nrejecting arguments that they were too frail to leave Cambodia.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>The\ncourt also said their detention was necessary to prevent any acts of revenge by\nvictims of the regime and any pressure being put on witnesses.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>"What\nthe court ruled is all wrong," Ang Udom said, insisting that Ieng Sary\nwould not flee the country.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>Ieng\nThirith's lawyer Phat Pouv Seang said he submitted an appeal on the grounds\nthat his client is "mentally ill." He declined to give more details\non her health condition.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>Ieng\nSary and his wife have rejected the accusations against them.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>Both\nhave been widely implicated in the crimes committed by the Khmer Rouge during\none of the 20th century's worst atrocities, including murder, extermination,\nimprisonment, enslavement and forced labour, court records said.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>Up\nto two million people were executed, or died of starvation and overwork as the\ncommunist regime emptied Cambodia's\ncities, exiling millions to vast collective farms in a bid to forge an agrarian\nutopia.",1]
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"The court has already received their appeals," Reach Sambath told AFP.
Ieng Sary's lawyer Ang Udom said the appeal cited his client's fear that he could die in detention. "We are worried about his health," he told AFP.
The court earlier said that both Ieng Sary and his wife were flight risks, rejecting arguments that they were too frail to leave Cambodia.
The court also said their detention was necessary to prevent any acts of revenge by victims of the regime and any pressure being put on witnesses.
"What the court ruled is all wrong," Ang Udom said, insisting that Ieng Sary would not flee the country.
Ieng Thirith's lawyer Phat Pouv Seang said he submitted an appeal on the grounds that his client is "mentally ill." He declined to give more details on her health condition.
Ieng Sary and his wife have rejected the accusations against them.
Both have been widely implicated in the crimes committed by the Khmer Rouge during one of the 20th century's worst atrocities, including murder, extermination, imprisonment, enslavement and forced labour, court records said.
Up to two million people were executed, or died of starvation and overwork as the communist regime emptied Cambodia's cities, exiling millions to vast collective farms in a bid to forge an agrarian utopia.
\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>The\nKhmer Rouge also abolished money, religion and schools.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\>Five\nformer regime leaders have been detained so far by the tribunal. Trials are now\nexpected to begin in mid-2008\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Arial\"\> \u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003c/div\>\n\n\u003c/div\>\n\n\n",0]
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The Khmer Rouge also abolished money, religion and schools.
Five former regime leaders have been detained so far by the tribunal. Trials are now expected to begin in mid-2008

US to consider funding Cambodian genocide tribunal after problems cleared up

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia: The United States will consider giving money to fund Cambodia's U.N.-backed genocide tribunal only after the court properly addresses allegations of corruption and mismanagement against it, a U.S. diplomat said Friday.
\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>Clint Williamson, the U.S. ambassador for war crimes\nissues, said the arrests of five Khmer Rouge suspects have shown that the\ntribunal, after repeated delays, "is making progress and moving in a very\npositive direction."\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"line-height:14.25pt;background:#FCFCFC\"\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" color\u003d\"#333333\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>"How that plays out in terms of direct funding to the\ncourt, we'll have to see," he said at a press conference at the end of a\nthree-day visit assessing the tribunal's work to help decide whether or not Washington should\nprovide funds for it.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"line-height:14.25pt;background:#FCFCFC\"\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" color\u003d\"#333333\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>The communist Khmer Rouge, who held power in 1975-79, are blamed\nfor the death of estimated 1.7 million people from hunger, diseases, overwork\nand execution. None of its leaders have been tried.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"line-height:14.25pt;background:#FCFCFC\"\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" color\u003d\"#333333\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>The tribunal plans to begin its first trial in mid-2008 but it\nhas not yet set a date.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"line-height:14.25pt;background:#FCFCFC\"\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" color\u003d\"#333333\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>Williamson said any decisions about U.S. funding "are going to be\ncontingent" on how the U.N. and the Cambodian government deal with its\ninternal problems and on the court's ability "to deliver justice at\ninternational standards."\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"line-height:14.25pt;background:#FCFCFC\"\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" color\u003d\"#333333\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>Early this year, the tribunal, staffed by Cambodian and\ninternational officials, was shaken by allegations of kickbacks from Cambodian\njob applicants and an internal audit alleging that Cambodian staff members\nwithout proper qualifications had been hired.",1]
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Clint Williamson, the U.S. ambassador for war crimes issues, said the arrests of five Khmer Rouge suspects have shown that the tribunal, after repeated delays, "is making progress and moving in a very positive direction."
"How that plays out in terms of direct funding to the court, we'll have to see," he said at a press conference at the end of a three-day visit assessing the tribunal's work to help decide whether or not Washington should provide funds for it.
The communist Khmer Rouge, who held power in 1975-79, are blamed for the death of estimated 1.7 million people from hunger, diseases, overwork and execution. None of its leaders have been tried.
The tribunal plans to begin its first trial in mid-2008 but it has not yet set a date.
Williamson said any decisions about U.S. funding "are going to be contingent" on how the U.N. and the Cambodian government deal with its internal problems and on the court's ability "to deliver justice at international standards."
Early this year, the tribunal, staffed by Cambodian and international officials, was shaken by allegations of kickbacks from Cambodian job applicants and an internal audit alleging that Cambodian staff members without proper qualifications had been hired.
\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"line-height:14.25pt;background:#FCFCFC\"\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" color\u003d\"#333333\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>"Obviously, we're troubled when we hear reports of\nmismanagement or improprieties in the institution," Williamson said.\n"We feel very strongly that such allegations have to be investigated,\nexplored and dealt with."\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"line-height:14.25pt;background:#FCFCFC\"\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" color\u003d\"#333333\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>The tribunal has been appealing for more funding on top of its\nalready budgeted US$56.3 million (€38.7 million), saying its original planned\nthree years of operation through 2009 will likely be extended for one more\nyear.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"line-height:14.25pt;background:#FCFCFC\"\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" color\u003d\"#333333\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>The U.S.\nhas so far not donated any funds to the tribunal, though it has spent more than\nUS$7 million (€4.8 million) over the past decade to support the work of the\nDocumentation Center of Cambodia, in independent group that collects evidence\nof the Khmer Rouge crimes.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"line-height:14.25pt;background:#FCFCFC\"\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" color\u003d\"#333333\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333\"\>The group has given many documents to the tribunal to assist it\nin investigating cases against the Khmer Rouge suspects.\u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"text-align:justify\"\>\u003ci\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"3\" face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:12.0pt;font-style:italic\"\> \u003c/span\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/i\>\u003c/p\>\n\n\u003cdiv style\u003d\"border:none;border-top:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:1.0pt 0in 0in 0in\"\>\n\n\u003cp style\u003d\"text-align:justify;border:none;padding:0in\"\>\u003ci\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"3\" face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:12.0pt;font-style:italic\"\>This\ninformation list was set up by the Open Society Justice Initiative for\ninformation exchange about the Khmer Rouge Tribunal and its effects on\nCambodian society. For more information, please contact "
"Obviously, we're troubled when we hear reports of mismanagement or improprieties in the institution," Williamson said. "We feel very strongly that such allegations have to be investigated, explored and dealt with."
The tribunal has been appealing for more funding on top of its already budgeted US$56.3 million (€38.7 million), saying its original planned three years of operation through 2009 will likely be extended for one more year.
The U.S. has so far not donated any funds to the tribunal, though it has spent more than US$7 million (€4.8 million) over the past decade to support the work of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, in independent group that collects evidence of the Khmer Rouge crimes.
The group has given many documents to the tribunal to assist it in investigating cases against the Khmer Rouge suspects.

Cambodia's PM criticises UN

Cambodia's PM criticises UN
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen has criticised the United Nations for not renouncing its past relations with the Khmer Rouge.Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen has criticised the United Nations for not renouncing its past relations with the Khmer Rouge.During that period, the United Nations still allowed the regime to represent the country before the world body.Opening a student building, Hun Sen made the statement that in the past, the UN supported the Khmer Rouge, but now it will try the regime's surviving leaders in court.He says the UN has never said its past policy to allow Khmer Rouge leaders to represent Cambodia at the United Nations was wrong.Established in July 2006 after nearly a decade of negotiations between Cambodia and the UN, the joint Cambodian UN tribunal seeks to prosecute crimes committed by senior Khmer Rouge leaders.

Sunday, December 9, 2007

Popular Voices (Cambodian Americans) on the Prosecution of the KR and Other Related Issues

CNN hahahahaha
Ryan Boston wrote:
"PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (CNN)-- The U.N.-backed genocide tribunal opened its first formal hearing in the Cambodian capital on Tuesday with the alleged chief torturer of the Khmer Rouge the first to appear...In all, more than 2 million people died during the party's efforts to transform Cambodia into an agrarian utopia before troops from neighboring Vietnam overthrew the regime."URL: http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/11/20/k...



Bella Mafia
Minneapolis, MN

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#662
Tuesday Nov 20

khmerNa wrote:
Lao and Cambodia had helped North Vietnam as a friendly neighbors during the Vietnam War, but after the communist of North Vietnam won the war, Lao's government was overthrew by the communist government and exiled Laotian king. And Cambodia was under going a deadly revoluationary, one of the targets of this regime was educated people./. When you lay down with dogs, you catch fleas. Couldn't have happened to a more deserving bunch.


abc
Fort Lauderdale, FL

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#663
Tuesday Nov 20

khmerchampa wrote:
OOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH........and you are??? What are they going to get me for? What is a Khmer Rouge? The last time I checked I was Khmer yellow mixed with a little bit of everything like most Asians are. What are you? What are they going to get you for? As for me, I am not worried about a damn thing.....sad, but true, I've never even gotten a parking ticket so what do I care? Hhahaahhahhaahahahaa what a joke!!!!! You still haven't told me which school you went to smarty. FBI Notice!!!!Right now, We short people... tell me your real name and address, and will talk to you about your relation with Kmer Rouge. FBI signed and sealed.



Stateless
Coudersport, PA

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#664
Tuesday Nov 20

What a REAl BIG JOKE!!!
khmerNa wrote:
My friend welcome to the forum. First of all let me begin with a history of Vietnam and Cambodia. Vietnam and Cambodia never get along since the ancient time, by all means Vietnam tried to disguise its friendliness toward Khmer people for only one benefit of territorial expansion. The Khmer Rouge regime and the Vietnam war were the game played to fool the world. My friend, it's more complexity than just reading the articals. Lao and Cambodia had helped North Vietnam as a friendly neighbors during the Vietnam War, but after the communist of North Vietnam won the war, Lao's government was overthrew by the communist government and exiled Laotian king. And Cambodia was under going a deadly revoluationary, one of the targets of this regime was educated people. By the way, Cambodia was considered stronger ressistance than Lao. Anyway, long story short, Southeast countries were just a chess game board of North Vietnam (Hanoi Government) and you'll will know who was behind the killing of 2 million cCambodians/.


abc
Fort Lauderdale, FL

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#665
Tuesday Nov 20

Stateless wrote:
What a REAl BIG JOKE!!! As I remember, Only Pol Pot is real Khmer another 12 members of Khmer Rouge are 1/2 Khmer and Chinese ethnic, that why they wanted to kill all the Khmer people then import Chinese come over take control the country and surounding Vietnam, but Vietnamese knew about it then what happeninged is happened.


abc
Fort Lauderdale, FL

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#666
Tuesday Nov 20


Stateless wrote:
What a REAl BIG JOKE!!! Hi, Read this.http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/20/asia/c...
abc
Fort Lauderdale, FL

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#667
Tuesday Nov 20

khmerchampa wrote:
CNN hahahahaha You can laugh, and keep running bay. Read this may be this old guy told the FBI your name. Read this link,:http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/20/asia/c...
abc
Fort Lauderdale, FL

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#668
Tuesday Nov 20

khmerchampa wrote:
CNN hahahahaha You can laugh all day, but read this and tell me ....The fifth defendant, Nuon Chea, 82, the movement's chief ideologue, was arrested in September. He had been living quietly next door to Khieu Samphan in a former Khmer Rouge stronghold where most of their neighbors were also former members of the Khmer Rouge.All the defendants have complained of medical ailments, and through the years of delays, fears have grown that some might die before being brought to justice. The top Khmer Rouge leader, Pol Pot, died in 1998.In his interview in 1999 with the journalists Nic Dunlop and Nate Thayer, Duch gave what could be a preview of some of his testimony in the trial.Confirming the authenticity of documents recovered in Tuol Sleng, he pointed out notations made by his superiors."This is the handwriting of Noun Chea," he said. "You see his handwriting is square. Mine is more oval."He admitted his own part in the atrocities but said that he acted under direct orders from above and that the entire leadership was aware of the killings."The decisions to kill were made not by one man, not just Pol Pot, but the entire central committee," he said.


Reality_11
York Springs, PA

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#669
Tuesday Nov 20

abc wrote:
You can laugh all day, but read this and tell me ....The fifth defendant, Nuon Chea, 82, the movement's chief ideologue, was arrested in September. He had been living quietly next door to Khieu Samphan in a former Khmer Rouge stronghold where most of their neighbors were also former members of the Khmer Rouge.All the defendants have complained of medical ailments, and through the years of delays, fears have grown that some might die before being brought to justice. The top Khmer Rouge leader, Pol Pot, died in 1998.In his interview in 1999 with the journalists Nic Dunlop and Nate Thayer, Duch gave what could be a preview of some of his testimony in the trial.Confirming the authenticity of documents recovered in Tuol Sleng, he pointed out notations made by his superiors."This is the handwriting of Noun Chea," he said. "You see his handwriting is square. Mine is more oval."He admitted his own part in the atrocities but said that he acted under direct orders from above and that the entire leadership was aware of the killings."The decisions to kill were made not by one man, not just Pol Pot, but the entire central committee," he said. Good analogy there friend!Understandably, they will least likely to admit of having such knowledge of this horrific atrocity, but on the other hand, it quite apparent that the KR committee (Ang Kar) would not spare his live__Should he decide to go or do it alone.It makes my blood boiled, just to see their faces in the news columns.They simply have created too many orphans amongst us and for the world humanity.


Speak Truth - ALWAYS
Saint Paul, MN

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#670
Tuesday Nov 20

WHATEVER THE STORY OF WHO IS BEHIND TO POL POT MASACRE, NO ONE CARES. THE PAST IS THE PAST, AND TOUGH LUCK IS TOUGH LOVE. YOU KHEMS ARE NOW SAFE/WELL FED WITH DECENT ROOF OVER UR HEAD. U SHOULD BE THANKFUL FOR THE VIET WHO TAKE CARE OF UR COUNTRY NO MATTER WHAT. WHO CARE ABOUT UR GLORIFY PAST OF DANCING LIKE MONKEYS IN HINDI COSTUMES. UR PPL MIGHT ONCE HAD SOME GLORY PAST, BUT MODERN DAYS ARE HERE. CAN'T LIVE IN PAST UNLESS U SURVIVE THE FUTURE. VIETNAM IS THE RIGHFUL OWNER OF INDOCHINA...LIKE IT OR NOT..


Battambong-Washi ngton
Williamsburg, KY

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#671
Tuesday Nov 20

Speak Truth - ALWAYS wrote:
WHATEVER THE STORY OF WHO IS BEHIND TO POL POT MASACRE, NO ONE CARES. THE PAST IS THE PAST, AND TOUGH LUCK IS TOUGH LOVE. YOU KHEMS ARE NOW SAFE/WELL FED WITH DECENT ROOF OVER UR HEAD. U SHOULD BE THANKFUL FOR THE VIET WHO TAKE CARE OF UR COUNTRY NO MATTER WHAT.WHO CARE ABOUT UR GLORIFY PAST OF DANCING LIKE MONKEYS IN HINDI COSTUMES. UR PPL MIGHT ONCE HAD SOME GLORY PAST, BUT MODERN DAYS ARE HERE. CAN'T LIVE IN PAST UNLESS U SURVIVE THE FUTURE. VIETNAM IS THE RIGHFUL OWNER OF INDOCHINA...LIKE IT OR NOT.. I am curious, is there anything good ever came out of you

ignorant mouth?
khmerchampa

Joined: Sep 24, 2007
Comments: 127
Earth
ISP Location: United States

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#672
Tuesday Nov 20

Don't count on it they are what they are!!!
Battambong-Washington wrote:
I am curious, is there anything good ever came out of you ignorant mouth?


Stateless
United States

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#673
Tuesday Nov 20

Yes sir.KR belonged to Sihanouk and were fed by China.Cambodia has been a China's dream land long long ago. That is the 1st piece of a pie, Laos is the 2nd then Thailand or Vietnam. It was Mao Trach Dong old dream. His dream was also included with New Zealand and Australia but he did not have "truong sanh bat tu" medicine.
abc wrote:
As I remember, Only Pol Pot is real Khmer another 12 members of Khmer Rouge are 1/2 Khmer and Chinese ethnic, that why they wanted to kill all the Khmer people then import Chinese come over take control the country and surounding Vietnam, but Vietnamese knew about it then what happeninged is happened.


Battambong-Washi ngton
Williamsburg, KY

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#674
Tuesday Nov 20

khmerchampa wrote:
Don't count on it they are what they are!!! I guess when you open it too many times, the flies will s#%ts in it.


abc
Lake Worth, FL

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#675
Tuesday Nov 20

khmerchampa wrote:
Don't count on it they are what they are!!! May you read this, and let talk about it, if it lie then you have the right to defend your people.You can't run away from this.http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/20/asia/c...


khmerNa
Harmac, Canada

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#676
Wednesday Nov 21

First of all it wasn't Cambodians' idea to the communist North Vietnam, it was one individual king who was as well clumcy leader. He was stubornly insist of helping. The Cambodians people were protested against this action.


Bella Mafia wrote:
When you lay down with dogs, you catch fleas. Couldn't have happened to a more deserving bunch.
khmerchampa

Joined: Sep 24, 2007
Comments: 127
Earth
ISP Location: United States

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#677
Wednesday Nov 21

Shut your mouth ignorant being!!! Don't believe everything you read. Hey, actually I do recognize that person, THAT's YOU!!!!! Hahhahaahahaa!!!!Oh ignorant one, what else have you got?
abc wrote:
May you read this, and let talk about it, if it lie then you have the right to defend your people.You can't run away from this.http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/20/asia/c...


abc
Fort Lauderdale, FL

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#678
Wednesday Nov 21

khmerchampa wrote:
Shut your mouth ignorant being!!! Don't believe everything you read. Hey, actually I do recognize that person, THAT's YOU!!!!! Hahhahaahahaa!!!!Oh ignorant one, what else have you got? How You said I am a ignorant when you rufuse to accept the truth...I did not make that news it all over the world. You can made mistake and changed to be a good person, why and what make you un-accept the truth, you can not lie to youself, do you???? You hate Veitnam because Vietnam stoped the killing from Pol Pot, are you Chinese mix with Khmer ???? You want all Khmers treminated......


abc
Fort Lauderdale, FL

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#679
Wednesday Nov 21

I mis spell..How you said I am a ignorant when you refuse to accept the truth...I did not make that news it all over the world. You can made mistake and changed to be a good person, why and what make you un-accept the truth, you can not lie to youself, can you???? You hate Vietnam because Vietnam stoped the killing from Pol Pot, are you Chinese mix with Khmer ???? You want all Khmers terminated......


khmerchampa

Joined: Sep 24, 2007
Comments: 127
Earth
ISP Location: United States

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#680
Wednesday Nov 21

I want all Khmer terminated? What are you on CRACK? Get off that pipe!!!! My family was brutally killed and I was raped....and I want all Khmer terminated? Hahhahahahahaa your problem is much deeper than your spelling and grammar if that's what you think. Ignorant isn't even the word to describe your pitiful excuse for a human. The truth is you love killing living beings including your own people and blame it on someone else. Why don't you accept that truth killer!!!!!
abc wrote:
How You said I am a ignorant when you rufuse to accept the truth...I did not make that news it all over the world. You can made mistake and changed to be a good person, why and what make you un-accept the truth, you can not lie to youself, do you???? You hate Veitnam because Vietnam stoped the killing from Pol Pot, are you Chinese mix with Khmer ???? You want all Khmers treminated......

Moneas Seka Khmer: Noun Chea should be hanged like Saddam Hussein

By O keo:
In 1998, at a press conference at Le Royal Phnom Penh Hotel, when the Khmer Rouge Big Brother 2 Noun Chea joined with the Hun Sen government, he said that he had no regrets about what he had done in the Democratic Kampuchea regime. His claim frustrated the public very much.
Nearly ten years later, as the Khmer Rouge Tribunal is progressing, Noun Chea said to the Phnom Penh Post Newspaper that the evidence of photos of the bones and skulls related to the mass killings are fake and have been created using new technology.
It is not sure whether he was mocking the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, but the Cambodian general publics have criticized him vigorously. Chhang Youk, director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, considered him[Noun Chea] as a disrespectful and cruel man.
Everyone knows that nearly 2 million people were killed in the Khmer Rouge regime. The evidence of Khmer Rouge killings are scattered around the country. The mass graves, bones and skulls, and victims around the country are the evidence. Noun Chea said shamelessly that the photos of skulls are not real. So can we ask him about the several thousand of skulls collected after 1979 and whether they are fake and have been created by new technology too?
Moneas Seka Khmer thinks that the government should hire a van and bring the former Khmer Rouge leader[Noun Chea] from Pailin to visit the memorial places around the country not forgetting to bring materials which can prove whether the skulls are real or not.
Noun Chea asked why the Khmer Rouge killed their own the people. We think that no one can answer this question for the Khmer Rouge. As Cambodians, we can only say that the regime definitely killed nearly 2 million Cambodians. We think the evidence doesn’t solely depend on the photos. Thousands of joint mass graves and bone skulls are also the evidence. Also official documents revealing the killings in the Khmer Rouge regime can also serve as evidence for the tribunal.
Is Noun Chea really wondering why the Khmer Rouge killed their people? It’s remembered that in the Pol Pot regime, the word ‘destroy’ was repeated on Khmer Rouge radio and newspaper. In Khmer Rouge collectives, there were no other words besides ‘destroy enemies’, ‘destroy American CIAs’ and ‘destroy KGPs’. In the Khmer Rouge regime, when Khmer Rouge spies killed people, they accused those people of serving as CIA or KGP agents. Might it be the reason that the Khmer Rouge killed the people?
No matter the reasoning, the killing of nearly 2 million people is not a joke. The leaders of the regime which killed nearly 2 million people must be held responsible for it. Noun Chea’s question is only an excuse and is disrespectful for the spirits of the dead victims. Noun Chea should be hanged like Saddam, for his deeds.
Adopted from Moneas Seka Khmer. Vol14, #3063. Tuesday, 16 January 2007.

Friday, December 7, 2007

Defense Support Section (DSS): Legal Consultants Sought

Dear All,

The Defence Support Section (DSS) is seeking Legal Consultants to work on defence teams. In particular, we are currently looking for applicants who can work in both French and English. Here is a bit more info: At the ECCC, each defence team is made up of two Co-lawyers (one Cambodian one foreign), a foreign Legal Consultant, and a Cambodian Case Manager. Legal Consultants are required to have at least 5 years of relevant experience AND specific competence in international criminal law. Legal Consultants are based at the ECCC and work full time on the case. The cases are likely to last around 1.5 - 2 years. Legal Consultants are paid the equivalent of UN P3 staff members. Please forward this to anyone who qualifies and may be interested. They should send their CVs to me as soon as possible. Cheers Richard J. RogersDeputy DefenderDefence Support SectionExtraordinary Chambers in the Courts of CambodiaMobile: + 855-(0)12-488-519Landline (via Italy): +39 0831 060 234UN VSAT: 165 6234

Thursday, December 6, 2007

"Monday's decision also contradicted the balance of independent opinion legal opinion submitted to the court for the hearing. Four of six "friend of court" briefs had argued that the court is part of the Cambodian court system and should address the Military Court's actions"

The Cambodia Daily
4 December, 2007

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Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Duch's International Lawyer: Can't Appeal This Decision But Will Raise The Issue Again at Trial

Francois Roux, a defence lawyer of Duch, said that "I am disappointed because the pretrial chamber refused to consider the fact that Duch was detained by the Cambodian military court for more than eight years," added the defence lawyer. "We can not make appeal against this decision but we will raise it again when the trial starts in June next year," he added.

Bangkok's Independent Newspaper

Duch's Cambodian Lawyer: Fears Punishment If He Comments on the December 3, 2007 Decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber

Kar Savuth, Duch’s defence lawyer, does not comment on the Pre-Trial Chamber’s judges’ verdict on December 3. “I would like not to comment anything," he said, adding that if he talked about that issue, he would be punished.

Reach Sambath claimed that it was the rights of lawyers to talk to the media. "We never prohibit [them] from speaking or punish them," he added.

Francois Ruox, Duch's Co-Lawyer, could not be reached for comment concerning the verdict.

It should be remembered that Judges of the Pre-Trial Chamber on the 20th and 21st of November 2007 held the hearing of appeal by Duch against the order of one-year provisional detention. However, the verdict will be released on December 3.

Unofficial Translation
-Extracted from Samleng Yuvachun Khmer, Vol. 14, #3196, Friday, November 30, 2007

Statement: “The Khmer Rouge killed almost 2 million Cambodians,” [...] “Therefore, we should not release [them].”

Appeal Rejected, Tuol Sleng Prison Chief Detained
Posted date : 04-12-2007
Source : Rasmei Kampuchea By : Brewin
Number of Visitors : 42 Print
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Phnom Penh: The Khmer Rouge Tribunal on December 3 denied bail of Kaing Guek Eav, commonly known as Duch, Tuol Sleng prison chief of the Democratic Kampuchea regime, and decided to continue to detain him, with concerns that he might flee, put pressure on witnesses, or destroy evidence.

Having understood that the hearing of the appeal by Duch has been carefully observed by the public, media and international community and that Cambodians do not have enough law bases, the Pre-Trial Chamber of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal issued a detailed verdict to explain the basic law which states the necessity of the detention of Kaing Guek Eav, alias Duch.

Prak Kimsan, president of the Pre-Trial Chamber, spent one hour and a half to read a detailed verdict while the accused Duch was listening quietly and carefully. According to the verdict read by Prak Kimsan, the Judges of the Pre-Trial Chamber have decided anonymously to reject the appeal by Duch and to affirm the order for provisional detention of the Co-Investigating Judges. The verdict states that the Pre-Trial Chamber thinks that the detention of Duch is necessary to prevent him from putting pressure on witnesses or destroying evidence. The verdict explains in detail that if Duch is released, witnesses will be frightened to testify in the process of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal while they have already been worried to participate as witness in the prosecution of former Khmer Rouge leaders.

Besides, the Pre-Trial Chamber is also worried that Duch, who could face the life imprisonment, might flee if he is released.

The verdict reasons that so far Duch had escaped from one place to another by changing his name and jobs very often. Moreover, the concern of his personal security is also a reason that the Pre-Trial Chamber continues to detain him and rejects his appeal for release on bail. The Pre-Trial Chamber is also worried that the victims could take revenge on him as his identity has been revealed and as he is publicly known.

Duch’s lawyer Francois Roux expresses his disappointment over the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber. “I am disappointed by the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber, which does not consider the case that Duch has been detained for more than 8 years,” he said. He, however, said that he could not comment on the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber.

While the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber cannot be appealed, Francois Roux claimed that he would re-state the issue of Duch’s detention for more than 8 years which violates Cambodian law and the UN agreements on the civil and political rights when the Khmer Rouge trial is held in mid-2008.

Concerning the issue the Pre-Trial Chamber explains that the Khmer Rouge Tribunal is independent and not authorized to check the activities of the Military Court. The Khmer Rouge Tribunal is not connected to the Military Court.

The Cambodian Military Court had detained Duch for more than 8 years before he was sent to the Khmer Rouge Tribunal. The prolonged 8-year detention has become the weak point Duch’s lawyers try to explain in order that his client can be released on bail. However, the verdict denies any relation between the Military Court and the Khmer Rouge Tribunal.

Observation on Duch while the Judges release the verdict
At around 2 p.m. Prak Kimsan, president of the Pre-Trial Chamber, requested Duch to stand before a curved wooden dock in order to listen to the verdict but with the suggestion from Duch’s lawyers, Prak Kimsan allowed him to sit and listen to the verdict. While Judge Prak Kimsan was reading the verdict, Duch quietly cast a glance at the five judges of the Pre-Trial Chamber and strained his ears to listen carefully. In the hearing room, Duch did not show any sign of shock although he was worried. Rarely did Duch look at the more than 10 observers who were allowed to watch and listen in a small hearing room, while many others were watching a big screen in the big hall.

Sometimes, Duch took a glace at the symbol of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal which decided his fate. What important is that when the judge announced that his bail was rejected, Duch was not surprised. When he was escorted across the observers, he turned and smiled at them in the hearing room before he was brought into a car driving him to the detention cells which is only 20-30 metres away from the hearing room.

The decision delights people
Thon Saray, director of the ADHOC human right group, said that the decision made Cambodians who had been waiting longingly for justice happy. “The decision reflects the importance that the trial of Khmer Rouge leaders is held as soon as possible, since the Khmer Rouge leaders are very old,” he said, adding that they were also with illnesses.

Mey Chum, who was among the people attending the hearing, said that he supported the decision of the Khmer Rouge court. “The Khmer Rouge killed almost 2 million Cambodians,” he said, “Therefore, we should not release [them].”

Unofficial Translation
-Extracted from Rasmei Kampuchea, Vol. 15, # 4453, Tuesday, December 04, 2007

Monday, December 3, 2007

Pre-Trial Chamber Sends Us Back to the Pre-UNTAC Period

Editorial

Stan Starygin

Today's decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) officially set the observance of human rights in Cambodia to the pre-UNTAC period when the Chamber disregarded all arguments of the defense including that of the defendant's previous excessive detention (8 + years) which was ordered and continued in anticipation of the establishment of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC). This decision will reverbarate throughout the Cambodian legal system and send a message that the rights of the accused in pre-trial detention can be ignored, if the offense is perceived as grave enough on the face of it.

This is the exact type of behavior Cambodian courts have projected over years which a small group of non-governmental organizations have, for years, been trying to counter. Some had been anticipating the Chamber's decision in Duch's case not necessary looking out for the benefit of this particular defendant, but for the benefit of those who are languishing in excessive pre-trial detention ordered by Cambodian courts as we speak. Had the Chamber established jurisdiction to examine Duch's prior detention ordered by the Military Tribunal of Phnom Penh (MTPP) and made a landmark decision showing zero tolerance to abuse of process, it would have validated the arguments of these organizations and made their job so much easier.

Why is a decision of this tribunal then so important considering this practice had been ongoing in Cambodia before its establishment? For several reasons, actually. One is the visibility of this tribunal. Two is the fact that this tribunal -- unlike any other Cambodian court -- publishes its decisions which makes them accessible to all stakeholders concerned. Three -- and this is probably the most important of the three -- is that the two international jurists on the PTC went along with this decision and, thus, granted it international legitimacy in the eyes of many in Cambodia.

As a remedy, the PTC suggested that the defendant file a separate appeal of his MTPP detention to the Courts of Appeals -- which according to the PTC is within "the structure of regular Cambodian courts" -- and then the Supreme Court, if satisfaction is not attained. The interesting issue that suggestion brings up is the fact that the Cambodian Co-Investigating Judge -- ordered Duch's ECCC detention in the first place -- happens to hold the position of President of the Court of Appeals, as well. Now that the PTC threw out Duch's appeal without examining the legality of his detention prior to the ECCC and in disregard of the transfer order on which, in part, the defense hinged its argument of the nexus between the ECCC and the MTPP, it will be twice as difficult to win the appeal in the Court of Appeals.

PTC on the Most Important Questions Raised by the Defense and Some Amici

Editorial

Stan Starygin

There was a hope that the PTC might be able to clarify the meaning of "the right to remain silent at all stages of the proceedings". The Chamber, instead, pointed out the waiver signed by the defendant and refused to look into the matter of interpretation of said right.

On the question of the nexus between the ECCC and the MTPP, the Chamber applied what is known as "the agency test" and found no satisfactory arguments to satisfy this test. The agency test applied does not conform to the International Court of Justice (ICJ)'s agency test in Nicaragua and seems to be an invention of the Chamber. The Chamber referred to Prosecutor v. Taylor as authority on their arguments of the non-existence of a nexus between the ECCC and the MTPP, if not the test itself (The Taylor decision can be viewed at http://www.sc-sl.org/taylor-decisions.html) PTC hinged the rest of its argument upon the judges' assertion that the ECCC judges cannot serve in regular Cambodian courts and were appointed to the ECCC based on their prior experience in international law.

Inadvertantly -- at least I believe so -- the PTC answered an unsolicited question, which is when the ECCC's time must be counted as 'operation of the court' and named the date when the judges were sworn in as the official date of the inception of the court (3 July, 2006). This might put a bit of a rush on the tribunal to finish up its work as under this determination of the Chamber, the court has already served exactly half of its mandate and, as of today, has only a year and a half left to go.

Pre-Trial Chamber Orders Continued Detention of Kaing Guek Iev (alias Duch )

Editorial

Stan Starygin

As of less than an hour ago the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) ordered continued detention of Kaing Guek Iev by throwing out ALL the arguments of the defense. Although this was foreseeable, it is still quite a surprize that none of the arguments of the defense, in whole or in part, were accepted by the Chamber.

The written decision is likely to be appearing on the official website of the ECCC shortly.

Sunday, December 2, 2007

Editorial

Stan Starygin

Tomorrow, 3 December, 2007, the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) will be answering a series of long-awaited procedural questions throughout the afternoon. PTC has a tremendous responsibility of getting this decision -- and most importantly its underpinning reasoning -- right, as it will be watched by many in the legal profession and the laity. Intricate issues of the law notwithstanding, the most important question for the defendant and his family will be whether the Chamber will order his release, while the alleged victims -- and their families -- of the institution he presided over will want to see the court justifying their concerns about his release and, thus, ordering continued detention.

No one but the judges, of course, at this point know how the court is going to come out on this issue tomorrow. One contributing factor to this decision is clear, though -- it was made very quickly and the high standard of supermajority must have been met which resulted in the swift scheduling of tomorrow's session. As it is unlikely that the Cambodian judges agreed to grant bail, this means that the international judges -- or at least one of them -- agreed to deny bail to the defendant. Had it not been the case, the deliberations probably would have continued far into December.

Relatively clear as the outcome might seem at this point, the PTC will still have a host of questions to answer that might be of interest to criminal lawyers. These include -- but unlikely be limited -- the contentions of abuse of process which were voiced by the defense and the amici who wrote in support of the defendant. It will be most instructive to see whether the court side-steps the question of the nexus between the Military Tribunal of Phnom Penh (MTPP) and the ECCC -- which the defense glibly based on the transfer order issued to transfer custody over Kaing Guek Iev from the MTPP to the ECCC -- or chooses to address it.

Saturday, December 1, 2007

Robert Petit: Error, Not a Big Deal

Editorial

Stan Starygin

International Co-Prosecutor Robert Petit recently was quoted as saying that the embarrassing blooper on Ieng Sary's Detention Order referring to him in one instance as "Noun Chea" was "neither surprising, nor a big deal". Two things seem interesting about this statement (1)what is the International Co-Prosecutor doing making excuses for the personnel of the Office of Co-Investigating Judges, which is supposed to be outside his purview, and (2)according to Mr. Petit, what then constitutes 'a big deal', if not using the wrong name in a detention order.

Errors sneak into published material of the best printing houses in the world. In fact, it is rare that a book or any other type of voluminous publication manages to avoid them completely. The issue I take with this is that here we are not talking about a sizable publication, but a document less than a dozen and a half pages in length. It is not hard to imagine how many times this document, therefore, can be proof-read to avoid such errors with the number of personnel the Office of Co-Investigating Judges employs. It is also critical to remember the significant resources the tribunal has at its disposal to prevent things like this from happening.

If the name of the accused in a detention order is not a big deal, then what is? If Mr. Petit wants us to believe this "is not a big deal", what inferences are there to be made of the accuracy of the overall process and the determination of those at the helm "to get this thing right this time"?

Flashback: Roundup: ECCC overcomes complexity, adopts internal rules for DK trials

Roundup: ECCC overcomes complexity, adopts internal rules for DK trials



The Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) has overcome legal complexity and adopted the internal rules for the trials of former leaders of the Democratic Kampuchea (DK) on Wednesday.

Cambodian and foreign judges of the ECCC finally adopted the internal rules after a week-long meeting, Kong Srim, the president of the Supreme Court Chamber of ECCC, said at a press conference.

"We unanimously adopted the internal rules of ECCC yesterday after concluding a week-long plenary session between national and international judicial officers," he said.

"The internal rules enable us to hold fair, transparent trial before an independent and impartial court and the process of drafting the internal rules has been a complex one," he said.

When we have these rules, we can move forward and the court proceedings of the trials are ready to start soon, he added.

ECCC will also hold its first session on Wednesday to swear in its investigators.

Meanwhile, said a joint statement issued by the judicial officers on Wednesday, "We have resolved all of the matters that we indicated needed further discussion last November. One such complex issue has been how to ensure the rights and involvement of victims. While a familiar element of Cambodian law, this was not spelled out in detail in the ECCC Law and Agreement."

"We interpreted this to mean that victims have the right to join as civil parties. However, due to the specific character of the ECCC, we have decided that only collective, non-financial reparation is possible," it added.

The process of drafting the Internal Rules has been a complex one. The ECCC is a unique exercise in international justice. For the first time a hybrid court, taking as its foundation the national law of the country in which it is operating, has incorporated the work of Co-Investigating Judges into its process, it said.

"We have had no precedents as we worked to integrate Cambodian law and procedure and the particular characteristics and structure of this court, while ensuring that international standards are upheld," it added.

Over the past eleven months of discussions, judges from different countries with differing legal systems, including from common law systems, have found mutually acceptable solutions whilst ensuring fair trial, it said.

"The ECCC judges are acutely aware that the Cambodian people have waited a long time for this process to get under way. We are all committed to completing these trials in a timely manner while ensuring the highest standards of justice are upheld," it added.

The second plenary session of the ECCC was held in Phnom Penh on June 4-13, which aimed to adopt the internal rules for the ECCC.

Several months of disagreement among judges ended on April 28 when the Cambodian Bar Association offered to reduce registration fees to 500 U.S. dollars per year from 4,900 U.S. dollars for foreign lawyers wishing to practice at ECCC.

The internal rules are a prerequisite for ECCC, which is designed by the United Nations and the Cambodian government to try former DK leaders on charges of crimes against humanity between 1975 and 1979. The whole process is expected to cost 56.3 million U.S. dollars.

Source: Xinhua