01/11/2007
By Thomas Bell in Phnom Penh
The Daily Telegraph (UK)
The Cambodian war crimes tribunal is reeling under a corruption scandal that is the latest setback in a justice process which has taken 10 years to even begin pre-trial hearings.
According to the edited version of an audit completed last month, hiring policies have been so unreliable that all staffing decisions should be nullified and the United Nations Development Programme - which funds the court - should consider withdrawing altogether.
The audit was commissioned by the UN late last year in response to allegations that local staff were paying 30 per cent of their salaries as kickbacks for employment.
It found that 52 “excess” positions had been created, that salaries exceeded comparable jobs elsewhere in Cambodia by around threefold and that in a majority of cases recruits were under-qualified.
Youk Chhang, the director of the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, which has chronicled the Khmer Rouge period, said: “In the eyes of survivors it is a painful betrayal. Can we have something that is not corrupted, just once?”
Eng Chhai Eang, the secretary general of the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said he believed the alleged corruption was a politically motivated attempt to slow down proceedings.
“The real worry for us,” he said, “is that these Khmer Rouge leaders are very old and soon they will die. Then what’s the court for?”
The court has said it intends to charge five regime figures with crimes against humanity. But only two are in custody while others still live freely in Cambodia.
The Khmer Rouge leaders Pol Pot, also known as Brother Number One, and Ta Mok, known as The Butcher, have both died already.
Negotiations that began in 1997 created a “hybrid” court which operates within Cambodia’s justice system but includes foreign judges and lawyers.
The court spent the first 18 months of its projected three-year existence on procedural wrangling. Now it appears that its £28 million budget will not be enough.
A court spokesman, Helen Jarvis, said they have full confidence in their recruitment procedures and there is no “convincing evidence [of corruption] that is worth persuing any further”.
According to the edited version of an audit completed last month, hiring policies have been so unreliable that all staffing decisions should be nullified and the United Nations Development Programme - which funds the court - should consider withdrawing altogether.
The audit was commissioned by the UN late last year in response to allegations that local staff were paying 30 per cent of their salaries as kickbacks for employment.
It found that 52 “excess” positions had been created, that salaries exceeded comparable jobs elsewhere in Cambodia by around threefold and that in a majority of cases recruits were under-qualified.
Youk Chhang, the director of the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, which has chronicled the Khmer Rouge period, said: “In the eyes of survivors it is a painful betrayal. Can we have something that is not corrupted, just once?”
Eng Chhai Eang, the secretary general of the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said he believed the alleged corruption was a politically motivated attempt to slow down proceedings.
“The real worry for us,” he said, “is that these Khmer Rouge leaders are very old and soon they will die. Then what’s the court for?”
The court has said it intends to charge five regime figures with crimes against humanity. But only two are in custody while others still live freely in Cambodia.
The Khmer Rouge leaders Pol Pot, also known as Brother Number One, and Ta Mok, known as The Butcher, have both died already.
Negotiations that began in 1997 created a “hybrid” court which operates within Cambodia’s justice system but includes foreign judges and lawyers.
The court spent the first 18 months of its projected three-year existence on procedural wrangling. Now it appears that its £28 million budget will not be enough.
A court spokesman, Helen Jarvis, said they have full confidence in their recruitment procedures and there is no “convincing evidence [of corruption] that is worth persuing any further”.
18 comments:
Gentleman
Buying a position or agreement of repayment of salary to higher ranking becomes common practice of this government.
Power makes people rich and creates lots of complication, that how vietnamisation becomes effective.This rotten practice infiltrates even into buddhism so that the core values or moral of cambodian destroyed.As result of that cambodia can be controlled by the master.
Neang SA
Thomas Bell is a retard who required a UN procedure for everything. He'll be lost unless someone told him how to hire people, how to eat, how to wipe his ass, ...
Nuon Chea or Camarade Rat Samoeun said:
Camarade Hor Nam Hong, Keat Chhun, Soc Anh, Hun Sen, Heng Samrin, Chea Sim and much more, are the members of Khmer Vietminh (Ah Kbal yuon Khluon Khmer) or Ah khmer-Yuon formed 1951 and 1954 that's the real Hanoi servants.
They Must be summoned by the KRT and they will be arrested as Duch and Nuon Chea.
otherwise, KRT conducting unfair trail or bias of political partism.
They are all Khmer Rouge, to be fair.(si kuy teav tieng oss khnea ouy 2-3 neak chenh loy mdech kert?)
1954???
There was no crime then.
This trial is about who is responsible for the genocide during the KR regime.
Being a KR is not a guilt, Joining indochinese communist fededaration is not a guilt. Dragging the US, Chinese, VN, into the process is not the case either.
So, take your ignorance, your anti-VN, or anti-US stance somewhere else.
Yes, all animal Viet troller that pretends to be Khmer on KI-Media must leave Khmer alone and go back to Hanoi where it belongs!
It is this Viet(namese) troller that SPAMS KI-Media.
KI-Media is none of the animal Viet trollers's business!
Now, Go home Viet troller!
Now, Go home Vietcong!
Tuol Sleng is the Prison of Yuon espionage and secret double agents; Facts:
In March 1976, Koy Thuon and his wife revealed the plot of the KR leaders during the meeting with King Sihanouk’s special session to form the Government of DK: Men San which gave them the order to carry out these dirty works, the poison received from Yuon Hanoi name Tran Nam Trung from Northern region which was known as region 304 with an assistance formulated by Lê Duan . They had the mission of being delivered to espionage and of sabotaging and to desparate the Cambodia.
In the same month (March 1976), King Sihanouk had resigned from the Kampuchea Démocratique Government. However, the Prince was aware of the objective that Yuon espionage and secret double agents want to distroyed him and his new government.
So , was told to play quite and act like (Underhouse arrested) in his Palace.
On 14th April 1976, another government was formed in Phnom Penh, the DK came into play.
The New cabinet were primarily deployed teams to search the internal government which were power shadowed by the so called “Angkar” whose attempted to distroy the DK.
1st Plan for the Top Leaders Group of Khmer-Vietminh or Khmer-Yuon to be destroyed by Pol Pot and Nuon Chea:
Hanoi Doctrinate under mixed command:
1st Generation:
Koy Thuon, Poc Deuskoma, Tanch Phoeun, Ok Sakun, Kieu Komar, Ros Chethor, Dy Phon, Ros Nhim, Sao Phim, Men San and it networks. These this the 1st group whose secret agent’s order to Killed Khmer 17 April.(Bro chea chon Thmey)
2nd Generation: Penn Sovann, Chea Soth, and his Group (1st.+3rd.)
3rd. Generation: Heng Samrin, Chea Sim, Hun Sen.
Becarefull the 4th Generation are coming to gradually replace the 2nd and 3rd:
All I can say now is you are making fool of yourself more and more. nobody can follow your foolish story, your english is so broken. nobody needs the KR history here.
This blog is for everybody.
good luck and stop making fool of yourself.
Don't worry, Rambo's new generation is ready to take care of them.
Right 7:50AM; This blog is for everybody. if so, why the hell did you say what you said there. Have you taken your medication as prescribed?
Good luck and stop making fool of yourself to you too!
7:50AM let him write man, he is trying to tell us somethings.
oh, his english is so broken, but your even worse. sucker!!!
Hey, 7:50AM, maybe you or your dad one of them huh?
To: 7:50AM
That khmer Rouge history there could link to the real killers.
Impossible.
or is it?
Shit!!!
It is really funny that a completely corrupt government is trying to prosecute an incorrupt but brutal regime's leadership.
Wrong, we are not completely corrupted; otherwise, we'll have million and million drop dead every year.
Post a Comment