Rick Valenzuela,
Phnom Penh
Watch video on Press TV here.
As the UN-backed war crimes court in Cambodia prepares to open its trial this week of top leaders of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime, tension and criticisms are mounting in its handling of two pretrial investigations. The cases potentially cover tens of thousands of deaths during the ultra-Maoist government in the late 70s -- which in total, killed an estimated 1.7 million people.
Clair Duffy is a court monitor for a George Soros-funded organization. Her group called on the UN to probe the tribunal for interference.
The government here has publicly opposed those cases, with Prime Minister Hun Sen claiming that prosecuting them could lead to civil war. Public information on the cases is scarce, in contrast to statements given during the current trial's investigating phase. The suspects' names have only been published in the past two weeks, with media citing leaked documents. Moreover, Duffy says judges have not assigned legal counsel to the suspects in part to limit the record.
Her group urged the UN to look into the co-investigating judges, Sigfried Blunk of Germany and You Bun Leng of Cambodia, for incompetence and judicial independence. The secretary general's office responded by rejecting what it called media speculation.
But a spokeswoman at the court, Yuko Maeda, points out that the judges announcement that they had concluded their investigation doesn't actually signify finality. She explained a back-and-forth process of appeals and requests before the pretrial phase is finished, some of which is ongoing.
Meanwhile, the investigating judges most recent statement, released Friday, warns news outlets from releasing confidential information, threatening them with court action.
1 comment:
In order to move forward; UN needs to guaranteed the top leaders of Cambodia that they will not be prosecuted otherwise you will nevere move an inch on this matter 003 or 004. This is the fact; you can't sneak around wanting to trail leaders that is currently in power. It doesnt work that way; this is why PM Hun Sen warned of civil war. Khmer peoples need to know this is the reality. Noone else will cause civil war but the the leaders itself. Like it or not, we need stability and we cannot afford the UN to mess up our lives. We should trial 002 and negotiate with the top leaders and ensure that they not be tailed. They needed this guaranteed. They probably dont trust the UN either.
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