Monday, 21 April 2008

Cambodians Mark Khmer Rouge Anniversary

Opposition leaders, monks and villagers took part in a somber ceremony. Today is the 33rd anniversary of the day the Khmer Rouge started their regime in the capital's infamous killing fields.

The 33rd anniversary of "Year Zero," when the Khmer Rouge's brutal rule in Cambodia began, has been marked by criticism because of the slow process to prosecute the group's leaders.

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy criticizes the government for the long delay of the trial. He told mourners not to forget the killing fields and urged the tribunal to prosecute the former Khmer Rouge leaders.

[Sam Rainsy, Opposition Leader]:"We must never forget this day and we ask the Khmer Rouge tribunal with the participation of the United Nation to prosecute the former Khmer Rouge leaders in an effective way so as to bring justice to the victims of the Khmer Rouge and their families."

No Khmer Rouge leader has ever faced trial.

During the rule, an estimated 1.7 million people died of starvation, forced labor... and many were executed.Survivors of the genocide want justice to be served.

[Yeng Phai, Khmer Rouge Regime Survivor]:"I want the tribunal to prosecute the Khmer Rouge leaders soon so that I know how they tortured and killed my children and husband. I want the tribunal to punish them the same as when they killed the victims."

A U.N.-backed court recently unveiled a proposal to extend the long-awaited tribunal's three-year life span by two years and drag out the proceedings until 2011.

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