Former Khmer Rouge prison commander, 66-year-old Duch, whose real name is Kaing Guek Eav, at the opening of his trial before the Extraordinary Chamber in the Courts of Cambodia in Phnom Penhl. The court debated lists of witnesses to Khmer Rouge atrocities Wednesday during the second day of proceedings against the 1970s regime's torture chief.(AFP/Pool/Adrees Latif)Wed Feb 18
PHNOM PENH (AFP) – Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes court debated lists of witnesses to Khmer Rouge atrocities Wednesday during the second day of proceedings against the 1970s regime's torture chief.
Kaing Guek Eav, better known by the alias Duch, could be seen leaning back in his courtroom chair as lawyers presented lists and filed applications to give new evidence in his trial for crimes against humanity.
"There's greater understanding of how the trial will unfold and what are the objectives of various parties," tribunal spokeswoman Helen Jarvis told reporters at the court.
The court formally opened Duch's trial on Tuesday and is holding an initial procedural hearing lasting two to three days.
Jarvis estimated that substantive hearings with witness testimony would begin in late March.
Duch has taken responsibility for his iron-fisted rule at the notorious in Phnom Penh, where he is accused of presiding over the deaths of 15,000 men, women and children.
is charged with crimes against humanity, war crimes, torture and premeditated murder and faces a life sentence. The tribunal cannot impose the death penalty.
He has previously expressed regret for his crimes but has said that he was acting under orders from leaders of the 1975-1979 communist Khmer Rouge.
Led by "Brother Number One" Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge rose to power as a tragic spinoff from the US conflict in Vietnam, emptying Cambodia's cities to take society back to a rural "Year Zero."
Up to two million people were executed or died of starvation and overwork under the movement. The Khmer Rouge were ousted by Vietnamese-backed forces in January 1979 while Pol Pot died in 1998.
has been delayed by legal arguments and bail hearings, and has faced controversy over allegations of political interference by the government over the prosecution of further suspects.
The government of Cambodian premier Hun Sen, himself a former Khmer Rouge fighter, has been accused of trying to protect former the regime's ex-cadres from justice.
PHNOM PENH (AFP) – Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes court debated lists of witnesses to Khmer Rouge atrocities Wednesday during the second day of proceedings against the 1970s regime's torture chief.
Kaing Guek Eav, better known by the alias Duch, could be seen leaning back in his courtroom chair as lawyers presented lists and filed applications to give new evidence in his trial for crimes against humanity.
"There's greater understanding of how the trial will unfold and what are the objectives of various parties," tribunal spokeswoman Helen Jarvis told reporters at the court.
The court formally opened Duch's trial on Tuesday and is holding an initial procedural hearing lasting two to three days.
Jarvis estimated that substantive hearings with witness testimony would begin in late March.
Duch has taken responsibility for his iron-fisted rule at the notorious in Phnom Penh, where he is accused of presiding over the deaths of 15,000 men, women and children.
is charged with crimes against humanity, war crimes, torture and premeditated murder and faces a life sentence. The tribunal cannot impose the death penalty.
He has previously expressed regret for his crimes but has said that he was acting under orders from leaders of the 1975-1979 communist Khmer Rouge.
Led by "Brother Number One" Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge rose to power as a tragic spinoff from the US conflict in Vietnam, emptying Cambodia's cities to take society back to a rural "Year Zero."
Up to two million people were executed or died of starvation and overwork under the movement. The Khmer Rouge were ousted by Vietnamese-backed forces in January 1979 while Pol Pot died in 1998.
has been delayed by legal arguments and bail hearings, and has faced controversy over allegations of political interference by the government over the prosecution of further suspects.
The government of Cambodian premier Hun Sen, himself a former Khmer Rouge fighter, has been accused of trying to protect former the regime's ex-cadres from justice.
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