The ECCC Victims Unit Gets a Sizable Contribution from the German Government

Media Alert

The Victims Unit of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) has today received a considerable contribution from the Federal Republic of Germany. Over the next two years, the Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), tasked by the German Foreign Office, will allocate 1,5 Million Euros to support the work of the Victims Unit.

The official signing ceremony was done at the ECCC’s Information Center in Phnom Penh by Director of the Office of Administration, H.E. Sean Visoth and Mr Mr. Juergen Schilling, director of the Cambodian branch of GTZ, Director of the Cambodian branch of GTZ, involving three agreements: the Implementation Agreement, the Financing Agreement and the Special Agreement concerning with the project to support the Victims Unit’s work.

The financial support provided by the Federal Republic of Germany to the ECCC overall totals nearly 10 million USD towards the ECCC’s operations.

The ECCC Victims Unit is the centralised initial contact point for Victims and their representatives for the filings necessary for participation in the proceedings.

As for now, the Victims Unit has received more than 2,500 complaints and Civil Party applications from victims of the Khmer Rouge regime. The Victims Unit has been established to facilitate the participation of victims in the proceedings. The core functions of the Victims Unit are to manage complaints and Civil Party applications, to maintain a list of lawyers wishing to represent Civil Parties in the proceedings and to ensure a good quality of legal representation for victims.

H.E. Mr. Sean Visoth said there has been significant progress since the ECCC began its work, with five individuals charged and held in provisional detention awaiting trial. He said the ECCC provides an historic opportunity to achieve justice for the victims of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime and ECCC is the first international or hybrid tribunal to provide full participation by Victims, contributing significantly to the development of international law