Tuesday, 05 June 2012
By Kristin Lynch
Phnom Penh Post
For six hours yesterday at the Khmer Rouge tribunal, Sar Kimlomouth,
who served as deputy director general of the state bank [during the Khmer Rouge regime], consistently
downplayed both his level of authority within the department and his
ability to recall information from so long ago.
Throughout the
day’s proceedings, lawyers for the prosecution and civil party teams
attempted to extract details about the hierarchy within Democratic
Kampuchea’s Ministry of Commerce from a former banker within the regime.
“I’ve never been chairperson of any meeting … and if there
were such a meeting [in which I was chairman], it would’ve been a
low-profile meeting,” Sar Kimlomouth said in response to questions about
his attendance at a meeting with Korean diplomats.
“It’s been 30
years since then, so I can’t recall every detail,” he said during one
exchange, in a mantra that would become familiar throughout the day’s
proceedings.
At times, the former financier seemed to contradict
himself when speaking to the extent of his knowledge about
“disappearances” within the ministry.
In the morning, while being questioned by senior assistant prosecutor Tarik Abdulhak,
Sar Kimlomouth said he had been “concerned” and “worried” about his
safety because of the sudden disappearance of members within the
ministry.
However, later, during questioning by civil party
lawyers, Sar Kimlomouth backtracked, saying that he did not know about
the arrests of his colleagues and his “concern wasn’t about coming to
know about [the arrests], it was the general situation that I observed
when people didn’t turn up for work”.
“I noticed people didn’t
turn up to work sometimes, and I wondered what happened to them, but I
didn’t know … they were arrested or where they were taken to,” he said.
Sar Kimlomouth also downplayed the importance of the bank he helped lead, saying it was mostly “symbolic” and “nominal”.
Defence teams for Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary and Khieu Samphan will conduct their cross-examinations of Sar Kimlomouth today.
To contact the reporter on this story: Kristin Lynch at kristin.lynch@phnompenhpost.com
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