French lawyer Jacques Verges answers questions after the hearing of former Khmer Rouge leader Khieu Samphan at the Extraodinary Chambers in the Court of Cambodia (ECCC) in Phnom Penh. Verges said his client's denttion was "illegal". (AFP/Tang Chhin Sothy)PHNOM PENH (AFP) — Former Khmer Rouge head of state Khieu Samphan went before Cambodia's genocide tribunal for a pre-trial hearing Wednesday, where famed French lawyer Jacques Verges branded his detention "illegal."
The judges adjourned the hearing and warned Verges over his behaviour after he said he was unable to act for his client because court documents had not been translated.
The controversial Verges, who has defended some of the world's most infamous figures, told reporters he was "indignant" to discover 16,000 pages of court documents had not been translated into French, one of the court's three official languages, for Khieu Samphan's appeal against his detention without bail.
"His detention is illegal because it has been ordered from a file to which his lawyers did not have access," the lawyer, whose notorious clients have included Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie and Venezuelan terrorist "Carlos the Jackal," said after Khieu Samphan made his first public appearance before the UN-backed tribunal.
The judges said Verges and his Cambodian co-lawyer had given no indication of any such difficulties since filing their appeal on December 21, 2007, adding that all the relevant documents had been translated.
"As a consequence of the behaviour of the international co-lawyer advising with effectively no notice that he will not continue to act in this appeal within the circumstances mentioned above, a warning is given to him," they said in a statement on their decision to adjourn the proceedings to a date to be decided.
A fierce anti-colonialist, Verges, who was born in Thailand, reportedly befriended Khieu Samphan and other future Khmer Rouge leaders while at university in Paris in the 1950s.
Khieu Samphan, who was detained by the court in November on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, earlier listened stony-faced as head judge Prak Kimsan read out the background of the case against him.
He then told the court, which was set up to try former Khmer Rouge leaders for genocide and crimes against humanity during their brutal 1975-1979 rule, that he had lived in poverty for the past 10 years.
"I have had no job since leaving the jungle. (I have) only my wife, who struggles to feed me and my family," Khieu Samphan said in Khmer, referring to his 1998 defection from the then-dying Khmer Rouge guerrilla movement based in the remote northwest.
Khieu Samphan, who court documents say is 76, was dressed in a light-grey shirt and trousers and spoke in a quiet, hoarse voice as he addressed the three Cambodian and two foreign judges, an AFP reporter at the court said.
According to the prosecution charges, Khieu Samphan aided and abetted the Khmer Rouge regime in policies which were "characterised by murder, extermination, imprisonment, persecution on political grounds and other inhumane acts."
Defence lawyers argue that Khieu Samphan had no real power under the regime and in appeal documents lodged in December they petitioned for a dismissal of the detention order "because Mr Khieu Samphan is not guilty."
"He was simply a head of state in name only," they said in the documents.
Khieu Samphan, the last of five top regime leaders to be arrested and detained by the tribunal, has never denied the bloodletting under the Khmer Rouge but has repeatedly denied his involvement in the atrocities.
Up to two million people are believed to have been executed or died of starvation and overwork as the communist regime emptied Cambodia's cities, exiling millions to vast collective farms in a bid to forge an agrarian utopia.
Cambodia's genocide tribunal convened in 2006 after nearly a decade of haggling between the government and the United Nations.
The judges adjourned the hearing and warned Verges over his behaviour after he said he was unable to act for his client because court documents had not been translated.
The controversial Verges, who has defended some of the world's most infamous figures, told reporters he was "indignant" to discover 16,000 pages of court documents had not been translated into French, one of the court's three official languages, for Khieu Samphan's appeal against his detention without bail.
"His detention is illegal because it has been ordered from a file to which his lawyers did not have access," the lawyer, whose notorious clients have included Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie and Venezuelan terrorist "Carlos the Jackal," said after Khieu Samphan made his first public appearance before the UN-backed tribunal.
The judges said Verges and his Cambodian co-lawyer had given no indication of any such difficulties since filing their appeal on December 21, 2007, adding that all the relevant documents had been translated.
"As a consequence of the behaviour of the international co-lawyer advising with effectively no notice that he will not continue to act in this appeal within the circumstances mentioned above, a warning is given to him," they said in a statement on their decision to adjourn the proceedings to a date to be decided.
A fierce anti-colonialist, Verges, who was born in Thailand, reportedly befriended Khieu Samphan and other future Khmer Rouge leaders while at university in Paris in the 1950s.
Khieu Samphan, who was detained by the court in November on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, earlier listened stony-faced as head judge Prak Kimsan read out the background of the case against him.
He then told the court, which was set up to try former Khmer Rouge leaders for genocide and crimes against humanity during their brutal 1975-1979 rule, that he had lived in poverty for the past 10 years.
"I have had no job since leaving the jungle. (I have) only my wife, who struggles to feed me and my family," Khieu Samphan said in Khmer, referring to his 1998 defection from the then-dying Khmer Rouge guerrilla movement based in the remote northwest.
Khieu Samphan, who court documents say is 76, was dressed in a light-grey shirt and trousers and spoke in a quiet, hoarse voice as he addressed the three Cambodian and two foreign judges, an AFP reporter at the court said.
According to the prosecution charges, Khieu Samphan aided and abetted the Khmer Rouge regime in policies which were "characterised by murder, extermination, imprisonment, persecution on political grounds and other inhumane acts."
Defence lawyers argue that Khieu Samphan had no real power under the regime and in appeal documents lodged in December they petitioned for a dismissal of the detention order "because Mr Khieu Samphan is not guilty."
"He was simply a head of state in name only," they said in the documents.
Khieu Samphan, the last of five top regime leaders to be arrested and detained by the tribunal, has never denied the bloodletting under the Khmer Rouge but has repeatedly denied his involvement in the atrocities.
Up to two million people are believed to have been executed or died of starvation and overwork as the communist regime emptied Cambodia's cities, exiling millions to vast collective farms in a bid to forge an agrarian utopia.
Cambodia's genocide tribunal convened in 2006 after nearly a decade of haggling between the government and the United Nations.
18 comments:
if these people serve the Khmer Rough for namesakes only. Then who is behind the real order! Why don't you prove that to us. Then we believe you your client is innocent.
There's nothing hidden. The simple truth has revealed itself long time ago. Nobody but K. Sihanouk, Khiev Samphan, Pol Pot, Ieng Sary, Ieng Thirith, Noun Chea, Son Sen, Hun Xen, and thier clique, etc. But as I always say the truth tastes very bitter. Only the brave can swallow it. The despicable cowards will trmble in front of it. That is the human nature!
Look at the monster's eyes! OOy hee hee!
We hope that in the next lawsuit with M.Hor Nam hong, Sam rainsy is not going to take Jacques vergès as lawyer!
In any strategy of defence in a lawsuit there are 2 things: the bottom and the shape.
The jurist examines at first if the shape is regular before examining the bottom of the subject.
If the shape is not regular, in criminal law, the accused person must be relaxed without examining on the bottom of the file.
Jacques vergés does well here his work. We see that he is not a beginner on the subject.
He won the 1st round.
what is so illegal about that; the evidence are so overwhelming, monsieur verges. just look at the whole of cambodia and what the KR stupid leadership did to khmer people and cambodia. it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this out. where were you when this happened?
The anger of Jacques vergès here is understandable.
It is necessary to wonder now why and who allowed to pass this irregularity of shape?
Jacques Vergès's plea will be interesting during this unique penal lawsuit in an affair also unique in the history of the genocides.
The plea of vergès is going to bring us doubtless an unsuspected lighting up to here in this terrible tragedy.
I think that the criminal court should not ask M.Khieu sampan to change defenders.
C. Bopha.
If this animal lawyer cannot read those 1600 pages of documents, he can go to hell. The court shouldn't entertain him for his arrogant. He should go out and learnd khmer first and can read all of these documents.
Gentlemen;
All of you are keenly on International Standard, and now you are having one.
By that standard, the lawyer is in his right to demand that all papers to be translated into language appropriate and understandable to him so he can fully defend his clients. and that ECCC is failed to have all documents ready before process of trial.
There will be more delay to come whether one likes it or not.
Bravo the Interntaional standard
I say.
But, in any case, the prosecutor has the burden of proof, not the defended. In order to prevail, they must show beyond the reasonable doubt that Kieu Samphan was directly involved in the abuse. Thus, they will need witnesses and/or evidences to show that Kieu Samphan order the abuse and the Killing.
Furthermore, you can't charged anyone for starvation due to economic failure. Thus, this will be a long ride. I think they should let everyone on bail because no one can figured out how long the trial will last. The 2011 is just a forecast, but I think it will go way beyond that, if they are to follow the stupid international standard.
PS: Oh BTW, the failure of the ECCC to translate documents in a timely matter could mean they were distracted with something important relating to the tribunal.
3:37am,he understood the internationa court standard.But 3:31am he is funken idiot,only understood Hanoi court law,so you better shut your f... mouth.
Mr Jacques Verges has the right to demand the ECCC to translate all documents in French.Where $56millions spend on or want to keep that money for their wages.
THe translation problem is not the problem of the court. It is the problem of Ah khiev Samphann himself. If this idiot french lawyer cannot read the documents, Ah Khiev Samphann should kick him out for incompetented to do his job. He should be kick out from the court for his arrogant and his disrespect of the victims caused by his clients.
I think what Mr. Jacques Verges demand is appropriate, for French has been defined as one of the languages to be used in the court. His demand should extend to the translation of all documents into the three languages of the court(Khmer, English and French).
What is happening now, showing that the ECC did not fulfill its job well....
Dear French lawyer, avocat du diable. Wous voulez Introduire la Francophonie dans the Tribunal?
Je voudrais savoir : Qui paye la note d'honoraires de Me Verges ? Et combien ça coûte ?. A mon avis c'est encore le peuple khmer qui va payer la sale note de Me Verges, juste pour défendre le monstre sanglant Ah khieu samphan.
Khmer
Using the word "Ah" in Khmer language is low one and the educated people can know automatically who they are.
I fact, Mr Verges has the right to demmand the doccuments in French, in order to defend his client. Any way, French language is belong to the official languages in this tribunal.
attorney
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