Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Pol Pot gave Mao, Stalin and Hitler a run for their money in the criminally-insane-dictator category. During his four-year Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia, an estimated 1.7 million to 2 million people died at his and his henchmen's urging. For many of us, the lasting symbols unique to the Khmer Rouge are those pictures of skulls neatly stacked in piles and rows. Some legacy.
Now, 27 years after the bloodthirsty rampage that wrecked the country and left it traumatized to this day, a measure of relief is in sight. Nearly a decade after Cambodia first asked the United Nations for help, and years of subsequent wrangling, the Extraordinary Chambers tribunal, a UN-backed court, is being set up to investigate charges against the Khmer Rouge of genocide and crimes against humanity.
It's too late to bring Pol Pot to justice. He escaped it by dying of old age in 1998 - a free man, even if in the jungle, surrounded by journalists, notepad or camera in hand, giving him an outlet for his pathetic attempts at self-justification.
But other top leaders of that criminal regime are still very much alive, including his top deputy, Nuon Chea, and brother-in-law and former foreign minister, Ileng Sary, both of them living in freedom. In fact, others live in leafy areas of Phnom Penh, next door to people they tortured.
There's truth to the saying that justice delayed is justice denied. Many of the survivors of Pol Pot - there were some, despite his best efforts - have since died, their lives broken. They never had the moral or spiritual satisfaction, or the peace of mind, of knowing or even hoping their torture or the murder of their families would be punished.
But it's never too late to prosecute genocide or crimes against humanity - old Nazi war criminals, Rwandan Hutus and Argentinian "dirty war" generals spring to mind. There's no statute of limitations on trying war criminals, and there are plenty of those left in Cambodia, even if they're getting on in years.
Sadly, the tribunal's work over the next few years to redress some of the Khmer Rouge's wrongs will satisfy few people - especially the people lucky enough to have narrowly escaped the killing fields.
It's a compromise tribunal, led by 17 Cambodian judges, but with 13 international jurists and prosecutors, including Canadians, to give a greater sense of confidence that justice will be blind. It's no comfort to victims and human-rights advocates that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, himself a low-level former Khmer Rouge, is distinctly unenthusiastic about the whole process.
Only two high-ranking Khmer Rouge are in custody, and the earliest trial is set for mid-2007 - not ideal, perhaps, but an encouraging first step, one that might lead to more prosecutions among the many thousands of people who carried out barbarous acts.
It's at such times that you see what a person's really made of. Ta Mok, the Khmer Rouge military chief in custody, "demanded" to be tried quickly. This from the same cowardly man who had no pity for old men or children he had killed or tortured.
One survivor said he wants "the people who committed the crimes to be aware they did something wrong. ... They claim they never did anything wrong." Spoken like a real survivor. It would be salutary and cathartic, for instance, to explain precisely how it was that of the more than 14,000 people who entered Phnom Penh's infamous Tuol Sleng prison, only 14 came out alive.
Now, 27 years after the bloodthirsty rampage that wrecked the country and left it traumatized to this day, a measure of relief is in sight. Nearly a decade after Cambodia first asked the United Nations for help, and years of subsequent wrangling, the Extraordinary Chambers tribunal, a UN-backed court, is being set up to investigate charges against the Khmer Rouge of genocide and crimes against humanity.
It's too late to bring Pol Pot to justice. He escaped it by dying of old age in 1998 - a free man, even if in the jungle, surrounded by journalists, notepad or camera in hand, giving him an outlet for his pathetic attempts at self-justification.
But other top leaders of that criminal regime are still very much alive, including his top deputy, Nuon Chea, and brother-in-law and former foreign minister, Ileng Sary, both of them living in freedom. In fact, others live in leafy areas of Phnom Penh, next door to people they tortured.
There's truth to the saying that justice delayed is justice denied. Many of the survivors of Pol Pot - there were some, despite his best efforts - have since died, their lives broken. They never had the moral or spiritual satisfaction, or the peace of mind, of knowing or even hoping their torture or the murder of their families would be punished.
But it's never too late to prosecute genocide or crimes against humanity - old Nazi war criminals, Rwandan Hutus and Argentinian "dirty war" generals spring to mind. There's no statute of limitations on trying war criminals, and there are plenty of those left in Cambodia, even if they're getting on in years.
Sadly, the tribunal's work over the next few years to redress some of the Khmer Rouge's wrongs will satisfy few people - especially the people lucky enough to have narrowly escaped the killing fields.
It's a compromise tribunal, led by 17 Cambodian judges, but with 13 international jurists and prosecutors, including Canadians, to give a greater sense of confidence that justice will be blind. It's no comfort to victims and human-rights advocates that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, himself a low-level former Khmer Rouge, is distinctly unenthusiastic about the whole process.
Only two high-ranking Khmer Rouge are in custody, and the earliest trial is set for mid-2007 - not ideal, perhaps, but an encouraging first step, one that might lead to more prosecutions among the many thousands of people who carried out barbarous acts.
It's at such times that you see what a person's really made of. Ta Mok, the Khmer Rouge military chief in custody, "demanded" to be tried quickly. This from the same cowardly man who had no pity for old men or children he had killed or tortured.
One survivor said he wants "the people who committed the crimes to be aware they did something wrong. ... They claim they never did anything wrong." Spoken like a real survivor. It would be salutary and cathartic, for instance, to explain precisely how it was that of the more than 14,000 people who entered Phnom Penh's infamous Tuol Sleng prison, only 14 came out alive.
5 comments:
Please, read this article about NORODOOM SI-HA-NOUSS OF TA TRASAK PAEM ( SWEET CUCUMBER GARDENER)KING FATHER of the EVIL
Monday, March 14, 2005
Live the Dream of Democracy
March 14,2005
Live the Dream of Democracy
By Prak Hap
Synonymously, Cambodia is Sihanouk Killing Fields and treachery. People of Khmer descents, your land had changed from names to names but the truth remains that you are Khmer who Siam or Annam categorically wished to extinct forever. With clear conscience and pre-meditated intent, Sihanouk committed heinous crime against Khmer Republic people to fulfill his ancestral lineage dream.
Out of cowardness and servitude, the wanna-be enlightened Dhammik former King Sihanouk, has illegally spent people money to aid Khmer hereditary enemies in finishing off the braves who had stood to denounce his un-constitutional and treacherous acts in 50, 60, and 70’s. He personally plundered taxation and national treasury to bankruptcy in serving own erotic and unworthy endeavours. Furthermore his families lived off Khmer blood and toils yet claimed to be divine supreme Buddhists.
For centuries, the royalties are the pedigrees of the ruling Siam or Annam clans with French’s motto diviser peuple Khmer pour regner. In the 1930 French built houses modeled after the Siam’s Chakry dynasty grand palaces of Bangkok to make Siam emisary of Nay Duong royalty brand felt at home. French elevated cultural image of glorious Siam political and diplomatic conquest of Khmer nationalism in the heart of Phnom Penh. To balance out,French ceded more Khmer territories to Annam before colonial departure. Then French entrusted royalty of own incested lines to breathe and behave as French remnants.
After the long cruel and destructive rules of colonials, Khmer generations strive for changes. Many died to fight off the ruling and taxing of European colonials then yet submitted to the spoiled and destituted aristocratic rules which in turn shown no gratitude or credits for Khmers.
March 18,1970 was the precursor day for the courageous patriots and informed generations inspired by the self-determination and democracy vision.The unprecedent democratic process had removed the despots and corrupted god like palace occupants. But unfortunately it did not last long. Some of the braves survived or ended up living abroad or bannished from entering the birthland politic for life unless repent.
Out of personal vengeance, the self proclaimed divine former King Sihanouk of such pedigree turned worldly tyrant atheist Mao–Ho (Nguyen) worshiper who coldheartedly exterminated thousands to millions aspired idealists on April 17,1975. To this day he is profusively in denials of crimes.
No matter how you look at it, Khmer people is still under the foreign lineage and nemesis ruling anyhow as long as the Constitution did not do justice to vote out monarchy for good. Therefore the 35th anniversary of the Dream of Republic will be just another unscripted matter for Khmer history.
The lament will be, if and only if, the Khmer will need not to realize own dream of ideal democracy with self rule of justice, liberty, fraternity, amicably, national integrity, and sovereignity soon enough.
The international tribunal is set to judge the MURDERS of Cambodian people.
ButI can't understand why Sihanouk is not included in the above group.
Howewer, all people Know who is this individual. He has the blood of Cambodian People in his hands as much as the POLPOT leaders.
- (After the coup in 1970, Prince Sihanouk fled to Beijing and began to support the Khmer Rouge in their struggle to overthrow the Lon Nol government in Phnom Penh. When the Khmer Republic fell to the Khmer Rouge in April 1975, Prince Sihanouk became the symbolic HEAD of STATE of the most bloothirsty régime in the world.)
I find this international justice is unfair.
May be because,The King was in jail in 1976. That might have something to do with it. I cann't wait to hear about it either.
Until Juanuary 7th of 1979, King Sihanouk's name was never mentioned or heard of. I was there in Cambodian from the day I was born in the 60's until April of 1979 when we all took off for Thailand. Mystery..and mystery...
1229AM, you are very eloquent. Thanks for the recap.
About time people learn soemthing, by the way also put all those CPP's government behind bar would also do good for Cambodia too.
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