Friday, July 08, 2011

Tribunal To Hold Health Hearing on Three Defendants

"Brother Number Two" Nuon Chea sits at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC). (Photo: Reuters)

Thursday, 07 July 2011
Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh

A senior official at the UN-backed tribunal said Thursday the Trial Chamber of the court will hold a hearing in August to determine whether three of four jailed regime leaders will be healthy enough to stand trial.

Judge Nil Nonn, head of the Trial Chamber, said in a statement the court had received confidential health reports on Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary and Ieng Thirith, who are charged with atrocity crimes alongside Khieu Samphan.

The extra hearing will be held just one month before the trial is scheduled to begin in September.


The declining health of the aging leaders is an ongoing concern for Cambodians who have waited decades for them to have their day in court.

Ieng Sary, who will soon be 86, has heart problems. His wife, Ieng Thirith, 79, has insomnia, along with eye problems. And Nuon Chea, who is 85, has high blood pressure.

Their defense lawyers have sought to have them excused from detention, or even trial, on health grounds.

Tribunal spokesman Lars Olsen said the court will inform the public after it decides on how their failing health may affect a trial.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

The four old people told the truth.
Why did you kill 3,000,000 Khmer
people? Who told you to kill them?
How come you hated them so much?
Did China ask you to kill or
Vietcong,or Khmer Rouge and
Khmer Vietminh kill them?
Khmer people want to hear clear
answers.

Anonymous said...

We all seen and heard with our own eyes and ears during lately from Khmer Rouge Trials last month ( June 27, 2011 ) that this ECCC refusing accussed's witnesses showing up and speaking out in court room.

1. Any court , in any country refusing accussed's having witnesses showing up in the court room is illegal.

2. But in ECCC not allowed all accussed's witnesses showing up and speaking out mean this ECCC tried to shut up the accussed speaking out.

3. 1 of clear dirty tricks we all seen and heard that this ECCC kept dragging on and on to avoid the accussed speaking out.

Putting justice in this ECCC means putting justice in the wrong hands.