Open letter from Salem-News.com Human Rights Ambassador William Gomes to Australian FM Bob Carr

April 17, 2012

Senator Bob Carr
Minister for Foreign Affairs
PO Box 6100
Senate
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Australia

Re: Australia: Lead the Human Rights Movement in Asia

Dear Senator Bob Carr,

Australia has long been committed to Cambodia’s development. In 2011-2012 Cambodia will receive AU$77.4 million in Australian aid.

While we support Australia’s provision of aid to Cambodia, the donor relationship provides an important opportunity for Australia to assist Cambodia to overcome some of its serious human rights problems. In making your first state visit to Cambodia, you said, “It’s been a great honor for me to make my first visit as Australia’s Foreign Minister to Cambodia… Australia is a close and outstanding friend of Cambodia.” While Australia clearly values its relationship with Cambodia, as a “friend” it should be prepared to speak more frankly about the serious human rights violations being committed against the Cambodian people in an environment of total impunity.

Freedom of expression, assembly and association remain under threat in Cambodia. The government is using criminal defamation and incitement laws to intimidate and imprison critics. Nongovernmental organizations have identified at least 12 persons imprisoned under these laws for peaceful expression of views since December 2010. The government also continues to systematically use a 2009 law to deny permission for public assemblies in Phnom Penh outside isolated “freedom parks.”

Arbitrary detention and torture are routinely used by the police and the military police to extract confessions, which are then used to obtain convictions. Cambodia’s prisons continue to be overcrowded and lack sufficient food, water, sanitation, and health care. Other facilities, such as the Prey Speu Social Affairs Center, are also used to arbitrarily detain people against their will, including homeless people, drug users, and sex workers rounded up from the streets. International Human Rights organization Human Rights Watch has found detainees there have been subjected to abuses including suspicious deaths, rape, torture, and beatings.

During your recent Phnom Penh visit, you recently announced an additional contribution of Au$1.61 million to fund the work of the Khmer Rouge trials, taking the total to more than Au$18 million donated by Australia since 2006. Australia is the second largest donor to the trials. After five years and more than AU$144 million, the court has prosecuted just one defendant, Kaing Guek Eav (alias Duch), while only three others are currently on trial.

In Phnom Penh, you stated that “the independence of the judiciary is paramount and the ECCC [Khmer Rouge tribunal] must be allowed to operate free from any external interference.” However, given recent events in Cambodia, a stronger statement supporting the importance of additional cases to proceed is warranted. Cases 003 and 004 are two cases comprising five suspects that were submitted by the international co-prosecutor to the Office of the Co-Investigating Judges in 2009. Two international co-investigating judges recently resigned, citing political interference from the Cambodian government. Prime Minister Hun Sen and the ruling Cambodian Peoples’ Party (CPP) have used their power over Cambodian appointed judges to systematically undermine the independence of the tribunal in pursuit of their demand that the tribunal only consider cases they would like to see prosecuted, flaunting the law and breaching the government agreement with the UN establishing the court.

Now more than ever, principled UN participation, asserting fair procedures and thorough investigations of all cases, is essential to ensuring that the Khmer Rouge tribunal is able to complete its mission to hold those “most responsible” for Khmer Rouge atrocities to account, as provided by law.

I recommend that Australia:

1. Play a leadership role in pressing the United Nations to protect the integrity of the Khmer Rouge tribunal by nominating qualified international co-investigating and reserve co-investigating judges, and defending the legal authority and independence of the international co-investigating judge to investigate any cases of persons suspected of being most responsible for serious international crimes in Cambodia coming to their attention.

2. Publicly call for the need for genuine, impartial, independent, and effective investigations into Khmer Rouge tribunal cases 003 and 004.

3. Condemn the ongoing political interference by the Cambodian government, which undermines the judicial independence of the Khmer Rouge tribunal.

4. Support the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly by publicly calling for the release of all persons who are in prison for peacefully expressing their views and conducting peaceful protests.

5. Demand the closure of the Prey Speu Social Affairs Center and other centers used to arbitrarily detain persons against their will.

Urge improvements in conditions of detention in Cambodian prisons, in line with international standards.

I look forward to discussing these matters with you further.

Sincerely,
William Nicholas Gomes
Salem News, Human Rights Ambassador
William’s Desk
www.williamgomes.org

To read the whole letter, visit http://www.salem-news.com.