Let's not forget the atrocities carried out in Cambodia in the name of forced collectivism and an "agrarian utopia." The waste and grift in the recent legal proceedings are distressing. Why would $120 million be needed for a trial?!
TCS Daily - Justice for Cambodia's Killing Fields: "In Cambodia, thirty-two years ago, Pol Pot opened the gates of hell and evil reigned bringing destruction, devastation, death and despair.The monstrous behavior of the Khmer Rouge claimed untold victims. Estimates of the death toll during Pol Pot's time of terror run as high as 2.5 million; more than 1 of every 4 Cambodians.In the name of building an agrarian utopia, Pol Pot abolished private property and religion, sought to clear out cities and establish rural collectives. The educated middle class was tortured and executed. Hundreds of thousands died from disease, starvation or exhaustion from forced labor."
Justice for Cambodia - WSJ.com: "The news from the Khmer Rouge war-crimes tribunal is good: Five former leaders are in custody and the first hearings began in November. The news is so good, according to the U.S. State Department, that Washington is mulling injecting a chunk of money into the tribunal. Supporters say this will help the impoverished nation come to grips with Pol Pot's 1975-1979 genocide, which left a quarter of the population dead.
Not so fast. Although it's finally getting off the ground, the tribunal is flawed, and has yet to prove it's capable of delivering justice. Before any taxpayers' dollars are put on the line, there are several issues to consider.
For starters, the tribunal will likely try fewer than a dozen defendants. During negotiations between the Cambodian government and the United Nations in the 1990s, the definition of whom the tribunal could try -- "senior leaders" and "those most responsible" for the genocide -- was carefully crafted to limit the court's scope. In the eyes of Cambodian government officials, many of whom had some involvement with the Khmer Rouge, the sooner this dark period can be laid to rest, the better.
Phnom Penh also insisted the trials be held in Cambodia -- the first time a U.N. genocide tribunal has been held where the crimes were committed. After years of negotiations, the U.N. and Phnom Penh agreed that a majority of judges would be Cambodian, but that foreign judges would hold a supermajority power. This meant that no decision could be passed unless at least one foreign judge agreed.
A few sponsoring nations, including the U.S., balked at this arrangement, on the grounds that the notoriously corrupt Cambodian judicial system would still play a leading role. Yet the U.N. had no trouble persuading more than 20 other countries to ante up, and nearly $50 million in donations have poured in since fund raising began in 2004."
TCS Daily - Justice for Cambodia's Killing Fields: "In Cambodia, thirty-two years ago, Pol Pot opened the gates of hell and evil reigned bringing destruction, devastation, death and despair.The monstrous behavior of the Khmer Rouge claimed untold victims. Estimates of the death toll during Pol Pot's time of terror run as high as 2.5 million; more than 1 of every 4 Cambodians.In the name of building an agrarian utopia, Pol Pot abolished private property and religion, sought to clear out cities and establish rural collectives. The educated middle class was tortured and executed. Hundreds of thousands died from disease, starvation or exhaustion from forced labor."
Justice for Cambodia - WSJ.com: "The news from the Khmer Rouge war-crimes tribunal is good: Five former leaders are in custody and the first hearings began in November. The news is so good, according to the U.S. State Department, that Washington is mulling injecting a chunk of money into the tribunal. Supporters say this will help the impoverished nation come to grips with Pol Pot's 1975-1979 genocide, which left a quarter of the population dead.
Not so fast. Although it's finally getting off the ground, the tribunal is flawed, and has yet to prove it's capable of delivering justice. Before any taxpayers' dollars are put on the line, there are several issues to consider.
For starters, the tribunal will likely try fewer than a dozen defendants. During negotiations between the Cambodian government and the United Nations in the 1990s, the definition of whom the tribunal could try -- "senior leaders" and "those most responsible" for the genocide -- was carefully crafted to limit the court's scope. In the eyes of Cambodian government officials, many of whom had some involvement with the Khmer Rouge, the sooner this dark period can be laid to rest, the better.
Phnom Penh also insisted the trials be held in Cambodia -- the first time a U.N. genocide tribunal has been held where the crimes were committed. After years of negotiations, the U.N. and Phnom Penh agreed that a majority of judges would be Cambodian, but that foreign judges would hold a supermajority power. This meant that no decision could be passed unless at least one foreign judge agreed.
A few sponsoring nations, including the U.S., balked at this arrangement, on the grounds that the notoriously corrupt Cambodian judicial system would still play a leading role. Yet the U.N. had no trouble persuading more than 20 other countries to ante up, and nearly $50 million in donations have poured in since fund raising began in 2004."
No comments:
Post a Comment