Posted on 27 November 2008
The Mirror, Vol. 12, No. 588
“The laws governing the Khmer Rouge Tribunal do not state anything about related countries, although it is known that some countries strongly supported the Khmer Rouge regime. Regarding this problem, defense lawyers of Nuon Chea, the former president of the National Assembly and Brother Number 2 of the Khmer Rouge regime, asserted that evidence kept by China, by Yuon [Vietnam], and by the United States can expand the knowledge of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal about Democratic Kampuchea [the official name of the Khmer Rouge governed state] and show potential evidence of crimes which were the results of circumstances beyond the Khmer Rouge control.
“It should be noted that after different requests for investigations since August 2008 were made, the defense lawyers of Nuon Chea asked the court to request the governments of China, of the Untied States, and of Yuon to show all information they had gained through their spy networks, the air bombardments, and reports of investigations about the structure of power of the Khmer Rouge, and of S21 [the Tuol Sleng prison]. Nuon Chea’s defense lawyers asked for statements from three former US National Security Advisors, including from Mr. Henry Kissinger [National Security Advisor 1969 to 1975, and also US Secretary of State 1973 to 1977]. Defense lawyers of the suspect asked the co-judges of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal to present information about the number of Khmer citizens in April 1975, when the Khmer Rouge regime took power, and their number in January 1979, when this regime was overthrown.
“Co-defense lawyers of the suspect Nuon Chea said that the provision of precise numbers can help reject or review the contradictory claims, whether the number of citizens in Cambodia increased or decreased through the Maoist regime. On Monday, Mr. You Bunleng and Mr. Marcel Lemonde, co-investigating judges of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, which has suffered from corruption, did not make any comment related to the above problem, saying that they were very busy. As for representatives of the three countries, they gave different responses to the question about the potential for cooperation with the Khmer Rouge Tribunal. According to the procedures, the Khmer Rouge Tribunal can ask foreign governments to provide information, and the court can seek assistance from the Cambodian government or from the UN secretary-general if foreign governments do not cooperate.
Three defense lawyers of Nuon Chea – Son Arun, Khmer; Michiel Pestman and Victor Koppe, Dutch – asked the co-judges You Bunleng and Marcel Lemonde to be responsible for the investigation for Nuon Chea. Ms. Ngô Thị Hảo, from the Vietnamese embassy, said on Monday that the Yuon government is cooperating with the request of the tribunal, and if they have any information, they will provide it.
“The US embassy refused to comment on the above problem, while the third secretary of the Chinese embassy, Mr. Qian Hai, said that he did not know about the request for documents related to China. He added, ‘I think that the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia is a court dealing with internal affairs of Cambodia. I think that the Cambodian government will implement the laws which are relevant.’ Mr. Qian Hai denied that China was responsible for any crimes regarding the cruelty of the Khmer Rouges.
“It should be noted that on 18 August 2008, the defense lawyers of Nuon Chea said that China strongly supported the Khmer Rouge and probably knew that their economic and military aid, as well as their support of technology and of diplomats, triggered stronger crimes during the Khmer Rouge regime. The co-lawyers of the suspect Nuon Chea pointed out that Chinese officials did influence Khmer Rouge politics, and Beijing might have information about the Khmer Rouge structure of power during the Killing Field regime which might help Nuon Chea from being found responsible. In August, the co-defense lawyers of Nuon Chea asked the court to investigate the size of the spy network that Yuon kept in Cambodia.
“In a request in September, the co-defense lawyers of Nuon Chea said that the United States’ politics in southeast Asia helped to set the conditions for the Khmer Rouge to take power, and the Untied States kept spy agents in Cambodia after the collapse of the Khmer Republic [1970 to 1975] in April 1975. The co-defense lawyers of Khiev Samphan had asked for an investigation about the presence of a spy network of the United States, of the Soviet Unions, and of Yuon, in Cambodia, as well as for the responsibility for the people who died during the bombardment campaign of the Untied States from 1969 to 1973. Reacting to this problem, a professor said that Yuon and the United States were not directly responsible for the activities of the Khmer Rouge, but China was closely involved in the killing field regime.
“The Khmer Rouge tribunal is charged to deal with the crimes of the death of more than 1.7 million Khmer citizens between 17 April 1975 and early January 1979, when Yuon entered with tens of thousands of troops to invade the Khmer territory impudently [?]. At present, five former high ranking leaders, who were in positions of the highest responsibility of the Khmer Rouge regime, are held in special detention at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, waiting for the hearings on crimes against humanity and on war crimes. The five suspects are he former president of the National Assembly and Brother Number 2 of the Khmer Rouge regime, Nuon Chea; the former Deputy Prime Minister and Minster of Foreign Affairs, Brother Number 3, Ieng Sary; the former head of state Khiev Samphan; the former Minister of Social Affairs Ieng Thirith; and the cruel former Tuol Sleng Prison chief Kang Kek Iev, called Duch.
“However, so far, Khmer citizens and the international community seem to have no confidence in the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, which has strongly suffered from corruption and other irregularities, because this UN mixed tribunal has already spent millions of dollar, but there is no official sentence on any former Khmer Rouge leader yet. Instead, the special tribunal is seeking more millions of dollar to fill the corruption that has not yet been cleanly cleared.”
Moneaksekar Khmer, Vol.15, #3623, 26.11.2008
Newspapers Appearing on the Newsstand:
Wednesday, 26 November 2008
The Mirror, Vol. 12, No. 588
“The laws governing the Khmer Rouge Tribunal do not state anything about related countries, although it is known that some countries strongly supported the Khmer Rouge regime. Regarding this problem, defense lawyers of Nuon Chea, the former president of the National Assembly and Brother Number 2 of the Khmer Rouge regime, asserted that evidence kept by China, by Yuon [Vietnam], and by the United States can expand the knowledge of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal about Democratic Kampuchea [the official name of the Khmer Rouge governed state] and show potential evidence of crimes which were the results of circumstances beyond the Khmer Rouge control.
“It should be noted that after different requests for investigations since August 2008 were made, the defense lawyers of Nuon Chea asked the court to request the governments of China, of the Untied States, and of Yuon to show all information they had gained through their spy networks, the air bombardments, and reports of investigations about the structure of power of the Khmer Rouge, and of S21 [the Tuol Sleng prison]. Nuon Chea’s defense lawyers asked for statements from three former US National Security Advisors, including from Mr. Henry Kissinger [National Security Advisor 1969 to 1975, and also US Secretary of State 1973 to 1977]. Defense lawyers of the suspect asked the co-judges of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal to present information about the number of Khmer citizens in April 1975, when the Khmer Rouge regime took power, and their number in January 1979, when this regime was overthrown.
“Co-defense lawyers of the suspect Nuon Chea said that the provision of precise numbers can help reject or review the contradictory claims, whether the number of citizens in Cambodia increased or decreased through the Maoist regime. On Monday, Mr. You Bunleng and Mr. Marcel Lemonde, co-investigating judges of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, which has suffered from corruption, did not make any comment related to the above problem, saying that they were very busy. As for representatives of the three countries, they gave different responses to the question about the potential for cooperation with the Khmer Rouge Tribunal. According to the procedures, the Khmer Rouge Tribunal can ask foreign governments to provide information, and the court can seek assistance from the Cambodian government or from the UN secretary-general if foreign governments do not cooperate.
Three defense lawyers of Nuon Chea – Son Arun, Khmer; Michiel Pestman and Victor Koppe, Dutch – asked the co-judges You Bunleng and Marcel Lemonde to be responsible for the investigation for Nuon Chea. Ms. Ngô Thị Hảo, from the Vietnamese embassy, said on Monday that the Yuon government is cooperating with the request of the tribunal, and if they have any information, they will provide it.
“The US embassy refused to comment on the above problem, while the third secretary of the Chinese embassy, Mr. Qian Hai, said that he did not know about the request for documents related to China. He added, ‘I think that the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia is a court dealing with internal affairs of Cambodia. I think that the Cambodian government will implement the laws which are relevant.’ Mr. Qian Hai denied that China was responsible for any crimes regarding the cruelty of the Khmer Rouges.
“It should be noted that on 18 August 2008, the defense lawyers of Nuon Chea said that China strongly supported the Khmer Rouge and probably knew that their economic and military aid, as well as their support of technology and of diplomats, triggered stronger crimes during the Khmer Rouge regime. The co-lawyers of the suspect Nuon Chea pointed out that Chinese officials did influence Khmer Rouge politics, and Beijing might have information about the Khmer Rouge structure of power during the Killing Field regime which might help Nuon Chea from being found responsible. In August, the co-defense lawyers of Nuon Chea asked the court to investigate the size of the spy network that Yuon kept in Cambodia.
“In a request in September, the co-defense lawyers of Nuon Chea said that the United States’ politics in southeast Asia helped to set the conditions for the Khmer Rouge to take power, and the Untied States kept spy agents in Cambodia after the collapse of the Khmer Republic [1970 to 1975] in April 1975. The co-defense lawyers of Khiev Samphan had asked for an investigation about the presence of a spy network of the United States, of the Soviet Unions, and of Yuon, in Cambodia, as well as for the responsibility for the people who died during the bombardment campaign of the Untied States from 1969 to 1973. Reacting to this problem, a professor said that Yuon and the United States were not directly responsible for the activities of the Khmer Rouge, but China was closely involved in the killing field regime.
“The Khmer Rouge tribunal is charged to deal with the crimes of the death of more than 1.7 million Khmer citizens between 17 April 1975 and early January 1979, when Yuon entered with tens of thousands of troops to invade the Khmer territory impudently [?]. At present, five former high ranking leaders, who were in positions of the highest responsibility of the Khmer Rouge regime, are held in special detention at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, waiting for the hearings on crimes against humanity and on war crimes. The five suspects are he former president of the National Assembly and Brother Number 2 of the Khmer Rouge regime, Nuon Chea; the former Deputy Prime Minister and Minster of Foreign Affairs, Brother Number 3, Ieng Sary; the former head of state Khiev Samphan; the former Minister of Social Affairs Ieng Thirith; and the cruel former Tuol Sleng Prison chief Kang Kek Iev, called Duch.
“However, so far, Khmer citizens and the international community seem to have no confidence in the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, which has strongly suffered from corruption and other irregularities, because this UN mixed tribunal has already spent millions of dollar, but there is no official sentence on any former Khmer Rouge leader yet. Instead, the special tribunal is seeking more millions of dollar to fill the corruption that has not yet been cleanly cleared.”
Moneaksekar Khmer, Vol.15, #3623, 26.11.2008
Newspapers Appearing on the Newsstand:
Wednesday, 26 November 2008
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