Kaing Guek Eav was sentenced in July to 35 years for overseeing the deaths of 15,000 people
via CAAI
By Michelle Fitzpatrick (AFP)
PHNOM PENH — Prosecutors at a UN-backed court in Cambodia on Tuesday demanded an increased sentence of life imprisonment for a former Khmer Rouge prison chief convicted of crimes against humanity.
Kaing Guek Eav was sentenced in July to 35 years for overseeing the deaths of 15,000 people in the late 1970s, reduced to 30 years on the grounds that he had been detained illegally for years before the tribunal was established.
"We are asking for life imprisonment," said international co-prosecutor Andrew Cayley, after his team submitted their appeal document.
But he said the sentence should be shortened to 45 years because of the unlawful detention.
Prosecutors said the request for a tougher sentence reflected doubts over the remorse of the former jailer, better known as Duch, who apologised during his trial but shocked the court in November by finally asking to be acquitted.
"Frankly now, after he said he should be released... we are not convinced about this man's contrition," said Cayley.
Duch, 67, was the first former Khmer Rouge cadre to face an international tribunal, and the ruling was hailed as a historic day for Cambodia.
But many victims of the brutal 1975-1979 regime were dismayed by the sentence, which also took into account time already served since Duch was first detained in 1999, meaning he could walk free in about 19 years.
In their appeal document, the co-prosecutors argued that "a sentence of 35 years for crimes of this magnitude is plainly unjust."
They are also seeking additional convictions "for the crimes against humanity of extermination, enslavement, imprisonment, torture, rape, persecution on political grounds, and other inhumane acts".
Duch's lawyers are also appealing the sentence, which they have described as a "miscarriage of justice," and want the jailer to be acquitted.
They have until November 22 to file their appeal documents.
Led by "Brother Number One" Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge was responsible for one of the worst horrors of the 20th century, wiping out nearly a quarter of Cambodia's population through starvation, overwork and executions.
Tuol Sleng prison, run by Duch, was at the centre of the Khmer Rouge security apparatus and thousands of inmates were taken from there for execution in a nearby orchard that served as a "killing field".
Up to two million people were executed or died of starvation, disease and overwork as the 1975-79 Khmer Rouge movement emptied cities and enslaved the population on collective farms in its bid to create a communist utopia.
A second trial is due to start in early 2011 when the regime's four most senior surviving members -- including "Brother Number Two" Nuon Chea -- will face charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The court is also investigating whether to open more cases against five other former Khmer Rouge cadres after a dispute between the international and Cambodian co-prosecutors over whether to pursue more suspects.
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