This is the first part of a 4-part interviews with Khieu Samphan (pictured) conducted by Mr. Heng Reaksmey of Voice of America Khmer Program following the arrests of Ieng Sary and his wife, Ieng Thirith on Monday, 12th November 2007.13th November 2007
Translated from Khmer by Khmerization
Heng Reaksmey(HR): Hello Mr. Khieu Samphan.
Khieu Samphan: Hello, thank you.
HR: Mr. Khieu Samphan, in relations to the fast forward developments of the Khmer Rouge (KR) Tribunal in the last few weeks, do you anticipate that the KR Tribunal will summon you to appear in the near future?
Samphan: In relation to this I did not receive any news. I did not know or hear anything about that, but I heard people said many different things. And especially I have seen a broadcast on CTN TV last night which said that amongst the five KR suspects four have already been arrested. Only one suspect is still free and should be arrested soon. In the broadcast they mentioned my name clearly. I do not feel bad. If the tribunal wants to summon me any time I will go willingly. They do not need to arrest me. They just summon me and I will go. On the other hand, I have already chosen my lawyers. But most importantly, I have my own reasons. For example, the reason why I agreed to be the President of the Presidium of Democratic Kampuchea after Prince Sihanouk resigned in April 1976. So I have my own reasons. Other than that I can give you some more examples if you allow me to say it here.
HR: Please go on.
Samphan: O.K. First I'd like to say that I have my own reasons. I want to say it here so that the public will know and the tribunal can also consider before hand before they proceed with my case. First, why did I agreed to be the President of the Presidium of Democratic Kampuchea? Because at that time I thought that I was not only representing the KR regime, but also representing my whole nation which wanted to be independent and sovereign from America and Vietnam who has the ambition to force Cambodia to join their Indochinese Federation. This was one of the most important reasons that I wanted to tell you. Secondly, I would like to say that there were three people in charge of the Presidium (Permanent Executive Committee). But we never met and we did not have any office in which to work in.
HR: Mr. Khieu Samphan, you said that there were three people who were in charge of the Presidium. Can you tell me right now who those people were?
Samphan: If you want me to say their names I can tell you right now. First, I was the president. Second, Mr. So Phim was the first vice-president. Mr. So Phim was also the secretary (governor) of the Eastern Zone. And third was Mr. Ros Nhim, alias Moul Sambath, who was the second vice-president and he was also the secretary (governor) of the Northwestern Zone. There were three presidents of the Presidium but we never convened any meetings. And we did not have any office or any departments to control. If you want to know more you can ask any surviving members of the KR regime. So this has confirmed that I did not have any powers. My position was only ceremonial, only a symbol or a representation of our nation, including the KR regime, representing our nation that wanted to be independent and sovereign like I have told you earlier.
HR: Thank you, Mr. Khieu Samphan. Up until today, are you scared about the prospect of you facing the tribunal?
Samphan: I did not have anything to fear, like I told you earlier. I have never done anything wrong toward me nation and my people. I never sold my nation. Even one cent I have never stolen from my nation. The only thing that I will do is to tell all about what I have done from 1975 to 1979. I have just told you about the structure of the presidium. I even can tell you one more thing that some people said that they cannot believe that I did not know what had happened during the KR regime. I read in the newspapers that many people cannot believe why a head of state did not know anything. This is what I wanted to tell you also.
HR: Go ahead.
Samphan: Because in the KR regime they have their own rules. During the Democratic Kampuchea regime, those who were evacuated from Phnom Penh knew about those rules. Their rules stated that people only need to know about their own jobs and roles. You don't need to know about other people's jobs. The rules at that time were very clear. People at every level must observe those rules. It doesn't mean that because you are a head of state you don't need to observe those rules? Those rules also applied to me, so I never wanted to know about other people's jobs and other people were too scared to tell me about anything. And I only stayed in one place and never travelled anywhere so I knew nothing about what had happened. This is what I wanted to tell you.
(To be continued on part 2, 3 and 4...)
15 comments:
"First, why did I agreed to be the President of the Presidium of Democratic Kampuchea? Because at that time I thought that I was not only representing the KR regime, but also representing my whole nation which wanted to be independent and sovereign from America and Vietnam who has the ambition to force Cambodia to join their Indochinese Federation. ..." -- Khieu Samphan
Khieu Samphan has lost touch with reality to think the US wanted to unite any Asian nations into federation. If US didn't even want to reunified Vietnam, how could they want three Asians nation to be one.
I don't think he's fit for the trial.
From my understanding, you mean that you are innoncent even you were the high ranking of the genocide regime: you keep on making fun of the world?
Why in your thesis, you said that you can build "your brave new world" even with only one million of the population and after that you've tried to implement your idea in Cambodia ?
You are so smart as a butcher and so naive as an avocate.
Right now, you have heart trouble just because you can't during the night time while learning that your will be the last one to be arrested and jailed.
I only want to tell you one thing: this is the consequence of what your have done in the past. Like ordinary people always said if you plant a mango tree, you will collect or get mangos!!!
Have a nice nightmare anywhere you spent your night! believe me.
how do you save your country when you are sitting in one place? if he is so smart then why his group brought cambodia to destruction? it's only a fews left in their lives; we must put these killers in jail where they deserve. there are consequences for everything to you do. you are hold responsible for your action, even for hun sen one day we will try him. these khmer rouge killers got a chance to be in court, for millions of cambodians who perished did not get a chance to defend themselves.
Okay, let us know the day you will try our PM Hun Sen. Meanwhile, stay out of our national security and don't call us, let us call you instead, alright?
It is a long and endless debate about who was responsible for the genocide in Cambodia. But a short answer is a group of Khmer Rouge under Pol Pot leadership. It doesn't matter what they want to explain and who they want to blame for, the Khmer Rouge leadership is the first to take responsiblity for this tragedy. There were some influence and catalists from outside that caused this tragedy, but if the Khmer Rouges handled the matter with great care of people life, our nation would elapse from this great destruction. Mass evacuation and random execusion on inocent people who lived in the cities started in minutes, after they had controled the whole country. In Vietnam and Laos, no one had been killed and all their people still lived in the cities and where they used to be. There were no mass execusion and mass evacuation as if Pol Pot did in our country. This just the begining of a nightmare for us. It is the greatest mistake that the Khmer Rouge leadership had done to our country; and they must regret for life.
Mr. Samphan, I probably accept your explanation that every one have to observe a rule or do their own job. But did you know that the rule you had observed was totally wrong, unresonable, and harmful?
Khmer killed Khmer is on trial but those foreigners who killed Khmer is not on trial and this is such a shame! Shame on AH HUN SEN government! Shame on United Nation! Shame, shame, and nothing shame!
Dear all,
We are reading an endless story about Khmer Rouge and the massacre. Pot Pot, Kiev Samphan, Ieng Sary and other sior KR Comrades are just the players in a story that the author did not tell them where and when to end and what it exactly mean in the end.The authors of Khmer Rouge Regime and KR killing are NOT those comrades. (That is the Political GAMES- and Khmers are the losers while Vietnamese are always the winners)
We all don't know what the KR story is all about. It would have ended if Cambodia had been one nation under the Indochinese Federation, but it is not, because partly of those comarades and other khmer compatriots. And, the story will end, when the VIETNAMIZATION of Cambodia is completed. Look at Loas.
REMEMBER: Thief crying "STOP THIEF"
The population mixture in Cambodia is 50-50 Khmers and Vietnamese in Phnom Penh and 65% of Khmers with 35% VN in other areas.
Vietnamese blood cells have now been entering the blood vessels of Cambodian Nation and Government in public services and private sector. This is the most fearful element. It decimates Khmer blood cells everyday. Up to a certain time Cambodia or Khmer only exist by name, then those, who killed and robbed Khmer people the most, will be the HEROES.
I wish we have 35%+ Vietnamese in Cambodia, but with our luck, we got 35%+ of Ah Khmer-Yuon losers instead.
It is time to deport Ah Khmer-Yuon back to south Vietnam, and let the Vietnamese government feed them because they are Yuon citizens, not Khmer. We (Khmers) have to feed Khmer people first.
To 11:31AM! Vietcong mother fucker!
Come on now! You can no longer put all the blame on the Khmer Krom people who are the victim of the Vietcong aggression!
The fact that it is more than 35% Vietcong that is why AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave dictator still taking order from Hanoi!
Bullshit, 12:31, there is no 35% Vietcong in Cambodia. Otherwise, we will be at least 25-30% wealthier than we are now.
But okay, if it make you any happier, I am willing to trade the 35% fake Vietcongs from HMC for just 15% of real Vietcongs from Hanoi. How's that sounds?
If the fucken Vietcong are too busy eating dog and how can they get rich?
Speak for yourself mother fucker!
Hey, the Vietcong will soon to past India, and we want to be right behind them, alright?
Viet cong can only past their mother body fool1 that 1000000 years history!
Go and leurne your history pirat!
Yeah, but we don't care about ancient history. Modern Vietcong today is a lot nicer than modern westerners.
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