By Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer Original report from Phnom Penh
26 December 2008
The Vietnamese government has agreed to hand over 16 documentary films about the Khmer Rouge to the Documentation Center of Cambodia, which help in the prosecution of leaders of the regime, officials said Friday.
The film donation marked a first among Asean countries in aiding the tribunal, which is preparing for the first trial of five jailed leaders in early 2009.
The films, which include English and Khmer language, were shot by Vietnamese soldiers between 1977 and 1982 and document several aspects of the regime: conditions for children, criminal evidence against Pol Pot in Prey Veng province, Tuol Sleng in 1979, the treatment of foreigners and the killing of Vietnamese nationals in Vietnam's Tai Ninh province.
"This is an indictment of war crimes," said Youk Chhang, director of the Documentation Center, as he prepared to travel to Hanoi Friday to pick up the films. "These documents are very important. They show a step forward in what was a clash between the Khmer Rouge and Vietnamese troops. And some of the documentaries are related to information that can serve as evidence that has not been use or analyzed yet."
Ethnic Vietnamese suffered heavily under the Khmer Rouge, and hundreds were killed in Tuol Sleng, the prison headed by Duch, who is scheduled to be the first leader of the regime to face trial.
"I think these documents will serve for research on the genocide of the past," said Trinh Ba Cam, a spokesman for the Vietnamese Embassy in Phnom Penh.
He did not comment on the reason behind the donation, but Youk Chhang said Friday it was likely due to the killings of Vietnamese soldiers and residents, as well as the independent nature of his documentation center.
Tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said the films were "valuable for the evolution" of the courts, which have already used many of the documents gathered by Youk Chhang and his researchers over more the years.
The film donation marked a first among Asean countries in aiding the tribunal, which is preparing for the first trial of five jailed leaders in early 2009.
The films, which include English and Khmer language, were shot by Vietnamese soldiers between 1977 and 1982 and document several aspects of the regime: conditions for children, criminal evidence against Pol Pot in Prey Veng province, Tuol Sleng in 1979, the treatment of foreigners and the killing of Vietnamese nationals in Vietnam's Tai Ninh province.
"This is an indictment of war crimes," said Youk Chhang, director of the Documentation Center, as he prepared to travel to Hanoi Friday to pick up the films. "These documents are very important. They show a step forward in what was a clash between the Khmer Rouge and Vietnamese troops. And some of the documentaries are related to information that can serve as evidence that has not been use or analyzed yet."
Ethnic Vietnamese suffered heavily under the Khmer Rouge, and hundreds were killed in Tuol Sleng, the prison headed by Duch, who is scheduled to be the first leader of the regime to face trial.
"I think these documents will serve for research on the genocide of the past," said Trinh Ba Cam, a spokesman for the Vietnamese Embassy in Phnom Penh.
He did not comment on the reason behind the donation, but Youk Chhang said Friday it was likely due to the killings of Vietnamese soldiers and residents, as well as the independent nature of his documentation center.
Tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said the films were "valuable for the evolution" of the courts, which have already used many of the documents gathered by Youk Chhang and his researchers over more the years.
17 comments:
pictures cannot lie, my dear! thus, goes the saying, seeing is believing!
it shows who's affiliated with whom, although just a political affiliation! it would be interesting to hear the argument!
Yes, this picture is truly proof that Sihanouk was/is partnership with Yuon Hanoi. Sihanouk, Ieng Sary, Pham Van Dong.
This proof is another fuel to kill more Khmer people in terms of Justic. When we see all this fact, we start anger, then retarliation start to justice which means killing our Khmer people again. Batter watch out!!! with this tactic.
It is no surprise that the yuons handle this kind of documents to dccam to promote its propaganda as the yuons always did. Don’t it more interest to see thing behind yuon theatric political scene. The few so called yuons who were killed by douch or khmer rouge, weren't Khmer painted as yuons or the yuons whose heads wanted by the Vietcong themselves? According to Khmer krom people, those who were killed by the so called Khmer rouge in south viet or Kampuchea krom in 1978 were Khmer krom and some ethnics who yuons wanted to eliminate from the country. The real yuons were evacuated few days before Khmer rouge operation south Vietnam in which yuons use as pretext to officially invade and take over Cambodia. The yuons and its filiations can always to manipulated and lie the world to clean it crime but this will fall on the head of these yuon assassins and the yuons will soon eat its own crimes.
Get over one or three or two of yuon killing tools is not a solution because yuons can produce endless of its killing machines as we seen. Killing field or genocide against Khmer doesn’t end with the withdrawal of pol pot, sihanouk or few of their comrades as the matter of fact, other yuon killing tools can fulfill and carry pol pot mission and yuon genocidal policy so well.
The misison and duty of the free world is to free innocent people from yuon crimes
Ah chuymray Communisms who killed innocent khmer and replaced by 5 123 432 immigrant viet.
GO UN thank kyou.
By Google earth you can see where is our Prey Norkor.
why yuon has to help khmer for justice????yuon always love to kill khmer....who's going to believe yuon...believe hun who destroyed all i meat all...including gems and fish...do you know it or not?what else uuu want from yuon.....
It is amazing that the Vietcong government would go to extend to document the Khmer Rouge activities as evidence on film knowing that they will use such evidence against the Khmer Rouge leaders in the future! It is so sad that the Khmer Rouge didn't do the same and if they did and the Vietcong would destroy those Khmer Rouge’s evidence!
Cambodian people must be very careful about accepting any evidence from the Vietcong government because it is the Vietcong government that can pick and chose what Khmer Rouge evidence to be seen by the Cambodian population which will help advance their political agenda!
Since Hun Sen was a puppet of the Vietcong government, did Hun Sen government have a chance to document on film as evidence of the K-5 atrocity of the Vietcong policy on Cambodian people? Of course not! This is such a shame! Shame on Hun Sen!
This is just a made up doc. by Viet, every politicians in the world knew how bad the Viet is. Viet try to show their made up doc. to fool the world.
No interesting at all.
All above comments are right,we all should know and must be careful with vietcongs dirty tactics.
vietnam created the genocide in Cambodia and purposely filming those documents for their scape goat.About 10 years ago when I moved to the United States I heard two vietnamese were discussing about the killingfield in Cambodia,they said vietcong,hanoi was the one behind that killing.
Some documents that claim to be vietnames killed by Khmer rouge those victims weren't vietnameses,they are Khmer Krom peoples as we seen in the Toul Sleng orders and regulations chapter #9.(don't take Kampuchea Krom as your pretext)
The skirmish fighting along the border was tactics by the viets secret agent working in Pol Pot regime to create the pretext to get inside Cambodia to install a legal vietnam puppet government in order not to be punished by the United Nations.
Why they have that documents and the puppet doesn't has?
This secret reveal must be a serious scenario.Cambodia and the world should keep a close look on vietnam.
look, there are other ways cambodia can handle this situation beside just killing and hurting each other! first, it's called thinking outside of the box for once! people in different part of the world learned to solve problems differently. although retort to killing was as old a style as the creation of human, however it's not the only way to solve problem, here! isn't this why we now have court and laws to debate and discuss this problem in order to solve it. it's called being civilized. just because there are evident doesn't mean one has the right to kill another person! didn't the khmer rouge do enough of that already? why would people in cambodia want that again? i though cambodian people are smarter than that! so, i say killing for revenge is not one of them. instead, call them to the court of law and have them answer question and explain themselves to the court and juries so justice can be served for cambodia and our people. thank you and god bless cambodia.
people seem to misunderstand again. we're not advocating that people be killing each other again. the documents are just use as evident in the court of justice as evidence is very important to have in a court of law. it is not advocating for revenge, hatred or whatever; it's just seeking justice for the wrongdoers and the victims. please understand the difference and not to worry about people start killing and hurting each other due to revenge or whatever! because it's not!
To 3:34AM
Listen! Evidence can be manufactured to fit whatever political agenda one may have! Evidence can be selective too!
For your information, the Vietcong government had played a major role in the Khmer Rouge creation and even some the atrocity against the Cambodian people during the war and why those evidences are buried! So the question is do you want to see one side of the coin or do you want to both side of the coin to learn the truth?
To The Main Actor of Khmer Killing Fields, Norodom Sihanouk,
You did commit a hatred Human crimes against Humanity against your own subjects by killing over two millions khmer citizen, and you never took your RESPONSIBILITY on your crimes.
You did not, have not and will not be remorseful at all.
You will die of your SINS no later than at your 88th or 89th year old.
The author of Norna Chea Kheatakors Reas Khmers ?
Vietnam is a true friend of Cambodia!
Vietname is a true friend of Cambodia my ass… but at the same time a true friend robs your own friend for land. Shutta F up you idiot, 5:10 AM.
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