A Change of Guard

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Wednesday 25 November 2009

40-year sentence demanded for Khmer Rouge torturer 'Comrade Duch'

Kaing Guek Eav is seen in the court room of the UN-backed tribunal in Phnom Penh

(AP Photo/Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia)

Duch hears demands that he is sentenced to 40 years in prison

Cambodian prosecutors in the war crimes trial of the Khmer Rouge's former prison chief have demanded a 40 year jail sentence for the part he played in murdering thousands of Cambodians and spreading terror across Cambodia.

Kang Kek Ieu, known as Comrade Duch, was the director of the infamous Tuol Sleng prison, where thousands of Cambodians were sent to be tortured and killed at the height of Pol Pot's genocidal regime.

Duch encouraged the jail's interrogation teams to apply ever harsher torture techniques to their victims, including cutting off their fingers and toes, forcing them to eat their own excrement and literally bleeding them to death. The jail's chief executioner, Him Huy, told The Times that his boss used to like to watch the killers at work at Cheong Ek outside Phnom Penh, known as the Killing Fields, where prisoners were bludgeoned to death.

Under Duch's direction, 1,7000 men, women and children who had been accused of disloyalty were taken to Tuol Sleng – known as S-21 – to be interrogated until they implicated friends, relatives and even people they had never met in fantastical "plots" against the regime. Then they were killed. There was no reprieve; of the thousands who passed through the gates of S-21 between 1977 and 1979, only 15 emerged alive.

Today in the wood-panelled Extroardinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, co-prosecutor William Smith acknowledged that Duch had admitted his guilt and repeatedly apologised to his victims throughout his nine-month trial for crimes against humanity, war crimes, murder and torture. But he said that the 67-year-old former maths teacher must be held accountable for his "unrelenting brutality" at S-21.

"The sentence to be imposed by this trial chamber should be 40 years' imprisonment," Mr Smith said, adding that five years had been taken off the request for his co-operation and five more for time already served.

"Your honours should be mindful of the dreams and opportunities that were denied, also keep in mind the S-21's unrelenting brutality that was meted out with no mercy to all prisoners, including hundreds of children – the most defenceless of victims," he added. "Finally, bear in mind the loss and suffering of the families of the victims who are still suffering to this very day."

Despite his repeated apologies to his victims, the former torturer-in-chief has continued to deny that he personally killed or tortured his prisoners, and to claim that he acted under orders from his superiors. He says that he was often frightened for his own life as he saw his peers taken to be executed.

Today he once more claimed that he felt "excruciating remorse".

He added: "To the survivors I stand by my acknowledgement to all crimes. As for the families of victims, my wish is that you kindly leave your door open for me to make my apologies.

"In order to express my most excruciating remorse I have fully and sincerely co-operated with the court whenever it is needed of me."

The prosecution has consistently argued that Duch played a vital role in keeping Pol Pot's regime in power.

At the start of the trial, Chea Leang, aco-prosecutor, told the court: "S-21 formed an integral and indeed vital role in a widespread attack on the population of Cambodia. The accused's crimes were part of this attack. "

On Tuesday, during closing arguments, Ms Chea described Duch as "the personification of ruthless efficiency" and the "perfect candidate" to run the Khmer Rouge's model political prison.

He could receive a life term, but the Cambodian justice system does not allow a death sentence.

Duch is the only former member of Pol Pot's inner circle to admit his guilt. Four other Khmer Rouge leaders will follow him into the dock, although it is expected that their trials will not begin until 2011.

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