By SOPHENG CHEANG
AP
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia -- The Khmer Rouge's former head of state told a court trying him for genocide and other crimes Thursday that he is keen to tell all he knows about Cambodia's 1970s regime – though in the past he has claimed to be "out of touch" with its atrocities.
Khieu Samphan told the U.N.-backed tribunal trying him and three other Khmer Rouge leaders Thursday that he did not know all details of what Pol Pot's government did but would try his best to cooperate with the court.
In two books and interviews since he surrendered to the current government in 1998, Khieu Samphan has insisted he was unaware of and not responsible for the estimated 1.7 million deaths from executions, medical neglect, overwork and starvation under the 1975-79 regime. But some scholars have challenged his assertions.
Khieu Samphan has previously offered an apology for the Khmer Rouge's actions but never accepting responsibility. As head of state of what the Khmer Rouge called Democratic Kampuchea, he served as the group's smiling, polite figurehead.
In addition to Khieu Samphan, 79, also on trial are Nuon Chea, 84, who was Pol Pot's No. 2 and the group's chief ideologist; Ieng Sary, 85, the former foreign minister and his wife, Ieng Thirith, 79, who was minister for social affairs. The charges against them include crimes against humanity, war crimes, genocide, religious persecution, homicide and torture.
This week's sessions are strictly procedural; testimony and presentation of evidence is expected to begin in August or September, 32 years after the Khmer Rouge were ousted from power in 1979 with the help of a Vietnamese invasion.
A 2004 report by Cambodia scholar Steve Heder and international humanitarian law expert Brian Tittemore included three of the current defendants among seven senior Khmer Rouge who deserved be prosecuted.
It said Khieu Samphan had "encouraged low-level party officials to execute victims," while Nuon Chea "devised and implemented execution policies" and Ieng Sary "publicly encouraged and facilitated arrests and executions within his ministry."
"I think it is very important for me and for my fellow Cambodian citizens who are hungry for understanding what happened between 1975-79. I personally have been waiting this moment for so long," Khieu Samphan told the court Thursday. "I will contribute to the best of my capacity, of course to the bottom of my heart, to assist or cooperate with the work of the court."
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AdvertisementHe said he did not have full knowledge of every matter but he would do his best to ascertain the truth to the fullest extent possible.
In 2001, he wrote an open letter with an apology for the widespread killings and atrocities under the Khmer Rouge but claimed that he had no hand in them.
"For those compatriots who lost their loved ones during that period, I apologize," he wrote. "My mistake was that I was too naive and was out of touch with the real situation." He said he never expected the Khmer Rouge rule to "lead to killings."
Again, in a 2004 memoir, he claimed that he was not aware of the killings carried out by the Khmer Rouge, saying his role was largely ceremonial.
Although head of state, his responsibility was simply that of an "office employee," said Khieu Samphan. He said he was subject to "ideological education instructed by peasant-cadres."
He described as the "hallucination of a sick mind," statements by some scholars suggesting he was implicated in several arrests carried out during the Khmer Rouge's bloody internal purges.
"My work had nothing to do with affairs of ... the military, and the Khmer Rouge leaders had no need to seek my opinion about the sweeping up (of the regime's enemies) or about the arrest of this or that cadre at all. Nor did they see the necessity for me to participate in those affairs with them," he said.
11 comments:
MR Khieu Samphan, before you die of ages please tell all to the court who were involved in the killing fields, please all the name of them. We khmers know that you are the Khmer nationalist, if you tell the trust we will still have respect to you. If you don't tell the trust who were behind this killing then you will be Mor Noss Kamsak?
AH KHIEU SAMPHAN, PLEASE LIST ALL THE NAME INCLUDING AH YOUN HUN XEN. IF HIS NAME IS NOT MENTION YOU CAN GO TO HELL IMMEDIATELY
It's disgraceful for the top KR leaders who said they don't know about the killing field,(they certaintly knew that) all of them are criminals must be convicted
before they die, at this point we don't need to blame the ghosts like Pol Pot.
If khiev Samphan told the truth
that beside Khmer Rouge killed
Khmer 2M people.Nobody is not going
to blame Pol Pot or Khmer Rouge.
JUST WATCH THE MOVIE WHO WAS THE SCREEN WRITER BY NORODOM SIHANOUK,THEN YOU WILL REALIZE WHO ELSE AND WHICH COUNTRIES GOT INVOLVED IN CAMBODIA AFAIRS.THAT MOVIE WAS TOO OLD DURING THE 1959-1960,THE TITTLE IS(CHAY YA LEUR ANGKOR).
While acknowledging the mass atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge regime, we should never forget the level of atrocities committed during the US secretive bombing of Cambodia from 1968-1973. A declassified telephone discussion between Henry Kissinger and General Alexander Haig, Nixon's deputy assistant for national security affairs, recorded that Nixon had ordered a “massive bombing campaign in Cambodia [to use] anything that flys [sic] on anything that moves”.
The map of US bombing targets released by Yale University’s Cambodian Genocide Program shows that more than half of the country was affected by the indiscriminate bombings. Professor Ben Kierman, director of the program, puts the casualties figure from the bombing at 150,000 deaths, while Edward Herman, a professor of Wharton School, and Noam Chomsky put the toll at 600,000 using figures provided by a Finnish Commission of Inquiry.
Based on this, we can never naively claim that US bombing led to the mass executions by the Khmer Rouge or refuted the regime's mass atrocities. But, to certain extent, the blanket bombing, which directly led to the destruction of livestock and agricultural land, could have definitely played a role in the mass starvation.
From new data released during the Clinton administration, Taylor Owen, a doctoral student at Oxford University, and Professor Kierman noted that 2,756,941 tons of bombs were dropped on Cambodia.
To put the figure into perspective, just over 2 million tons of bombs were dropped by the allies during all of World War II. The bombs dropped in Cambodia represented about 184 Hiroshima atomic bombs combined, making Cambodia the most bombed nation in the world. Based on the new data, Professor Kierman also stressed that the casualties might be much higher than his earlier predicted 150,000
All of the 4 KR will face lives immprison why not this ECCC let the 4 KR speak as much as they needed, bring their witnesses as many as they needed.
Why this ECCC so afraid of Nuon
chea and Khieu Samphan's witnesses showing up and speakin out in this ECCC, this clearly mean:
1. ECCC has been afraid of Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan speakiing out about 1.7 million Cambodians killed during 1975-1979.
2. By law , it is strongly against any law by refussing accused's witnesses.
3. The real genocide of Cambodian between 1975-1979 are still outside this ECCC.
4. This is 1 of ECCC and CPP dirty tricks and many more will be used in upcomming not full public hearing of Case 002.
Let me quote part of Mr. Khieu Samphan says on Thursday 30 , June 2011 as follow:
Khieu Samphan told the U.N.-backed tribunal trying him and three other Khmer Rouge leaders Thursday that he did not know all details of what Pol Pot's government did but would try his best to cooperate with the court ( end Khieu Sapmphan' s quote ).
Khieu Samphan try his best to cooperae with the court this mean he want to talk even he knows that his witnesses not allowed to show up and speak out in the court room.
So Khieu Samphan knows very well that even his voice is not 100% heard from this ECCC.
So Khieu Samphan knows very well that this will be his last talk even before this ECCC round up.
So Khieu Samphan knows very well that he will face life immprison without allowed him to talk as muck as it needed to find out who really behind this massive killing between 1975-1979.
Why I say Khieu Samphan know very well that he will face life immprison without allowed him to talk as much as he and the other 3 talk as much as they needed.
1. This court is not independent.
2. The 4 KR know very well that this ECCC is formed by CPP, CPP formed by Yuon , so yuon Hanoi have strong influent over this CPP ECCC.
3. Even Khieu Samphan and Nuon Chea's witnesses are not allowed to show up and speak out as many as they have.
4. Some years ago after 2007 some part of his related document was not allowed to be transtslate into French language for his French lawyer, which is ECCC law cleary state that the accussed have full right to do so.
So this ECCC will face a lot of obstacles from CPP as we all see and hear such as political interference from Hun Sen , CPP.
Khieu Sampan, Hu Nim and Hou Youn are very good men among other Khmer people.
Only minortiy see Khieu Samphan as an evil.
2:53 PM,
You are obsessed with Mr Khieu to the point of being crazy. Under Mr. Khieu's leadership, up to 2M Khmers are killed and you said he is a good man? Are you Khmer Rouge yourself?
To 12: 25 AM :
I just want to see solidarity among us as Khmer.
I just want to see black is black , white is white as follow:
1. Not very CPP is bad or a killer.
2. Not Very Khmer Viet Min cooperate with yuon Viet Minh.
3. Not every Funcinpec is bad.
4. Not every member of Sam Rainsy Party is perfect.
5. Not every Khmer Rouge is a killer.
To backup my comment of 2:53 PM a have quick look at what Ta Mok says in his video interview which is avilable in Australia , France and US in Khmer video shop.
Ta Mok said before he passed away that:
Ta Mok said as follow :
Angkar between 1975-1979 are :
1. Pol Pot. ( number 1 ).
2. Nuon Chea ( number 2 ).
3. Ieng Sary ( number 3 ).
4. So Phin ( number 4 ) So Phin was a Khmer Viet Minh as Chan Si , Pen but So Phin was a high senior Khmer Viet Minh.
5. Son Sen ( number 5 ).
6. Ta Mok.( number 6 ).
So Khieu Samphan, Sihanouk , Hu Nim and Hou Youn are nominal leaders of Democratic Kampuchea.
Why Khieu Samphan , Hu Nim and Hou Youn willing to be norminal leaders of Khmer Rouge ?
If you see Khieu Samphan as a killer you also might think Sihanouk as a killer between 1975-1979 because Sihanouk was a KR Head of State between 1975-1076 which is not true at all.
So Khieu Samphan , Hu Nim , Hou Youn and Sihanouk are not political dicision maker ) between 1975-1979.
Wheather you disagree or not I respect your view as a khmer.
But even many foreign books written about Pol Pot like author short cross has plenty information about who had real highest power between 1975-1979.
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