Ongoing row marks Khmer Rouge court: analyst

Michiel Pestman (L) and Andrew Ianuzzi, co-defence counsel for Nuon Chea, leave court in Phnom Penh least year. Photograph: Hong Menea/Phnom Penh Post

Monday, 09 July 2012
Bridget Di Certo
The Phnom Penh Post

Mutual antagonism between Nuon Chea’s international lawyers and judges hearing the case against the accused war criminal is bleeding through proceedings in Case 002, a legal expert said at the weekend.

Anne Heindel, legal adviser to the Documentation Center of Cambodia, published expert commentary for the Cambodia Tribunal Monitor on the Trial Chamber’s decision, which found two international members of Nuon Chea’s defence – Dutch lawyer Michiel Pestman and American lawyer Andrew Ianuzzi – guilty of misconduct and referred this misconduct to the bar associations in their respective home countries.

Heindel said members of all three defence teams in Case 002 had been referred to their home bar associations for “unethical behaviour”.

“Thus far, neither the home bar associations nor the Cambodian Bar have taken action, nor have the court warnings been followed by additional ECCC repercussions,” Heindel wrote. “Because the Nuon Chea’s team trill strategy is premised on exposing government interference in the work of the Court – and proving its existence by being repeatedly forbidden to raise the topic – it will no doubt continue to test the Chamber’s patience, making future sanctions likely.”

Heindel highlights the judges’ unclear and seemingly inconsistent use of confidentiality rules for court filings, but nominates the accused counsel as responsible for the most “egregious breach” of confidentiality, with their publication of a confidential judicial order, implying some senior government officials hold key information to Case 003.

Nuon Chea’s lawyers to face the bar abroad [... for ECCC judge's incompetence???]

Michiel Pestman (L) and Andrew Ianuzzi (R) (Photo: RFI)

Monday, 02 July 2012
Bridget Di Certo
The Phnom Penh Post

Brother No 2 Nuon Chea’s defence lawyers had exhibited a “pattern of disregard” for their duties at the Khmer Rouge tribunal amounting to professional misconduct, Trial Chamber judges said in a decision on Friday.

The judges had compiled enough “egregious examples of misconduct” by Dutch lawyer Michiel Pestman and American lawyer Andrew Ianuzzi to refer to the bar associations in Amsterdam and New York respectively for “appropriate action”.

Both lawyers are now working on the case from abroad.

Particularly “egregious” acts include Ianuzzi’s reference to Dr Dre lyrics when filing a motion for New Zealand Judge Silvia Cartwright to keep all her responses open and on the record after she was allegedly caught by the team mouthing the words “blah blah blah” while they were making submissions.

Khmer Rouge lawyers consider quitting UN-backed court [-Smells like more of Hun Xen's travesty of justice at the KRT with the UN's blessing?]

Michiel Pestman and Andrew Ianuzzi - Nuon Chea's lawyers (Photo: RFI)

12 June 2012
AFP

Lawyers for a top Khmer Rouge leader on trial for atrocities said yesterday they were considering quitting Cambodia’s UN-backed court because government interference had tainted the proceedings.

The defence team for “Brother Number Two” Nuon Chea said a guilty verdict against their client was a foregone conclusion because the trial was marred by “a lack of experienced judges and a lack of independence”. 

“We are seriously wondering why we’re here,” Michiel Pestman said, referring to himself and two other international co-lawyers defending Nuon Chea, the deputy leader of the brutal 1975-1979 regime.

“The outcome will be exactly what the government wants. If (prime minister) Hun Sen says my client is a genocidal killer, Cambodian judges know what to do,” the Dutchman said.

“The question is how long I feel my presence will be justified.”

Power of Attorney - Appeal Against Dismissal of Criminal Complaint Against Hun Sen and Others

http://www.box.com/s/rmabzimetmc4y3vzl4xr

Dismissal of Complaint Against Hun Sen and Others - Notice of Appeal

http://www.box.com/s/5yy7x8lpyhtaj926qtob


http://www.box.com/s/r76de5ym1s2pxixhml1s

ពាក្យ​បណ្តឹង​ប្រឆាំង​មន្ត្រី​ជាន់ខ្ពស់ ១១​រូប​ត្រូវ​បាន​ទាត់ចោល

សហ​មេធាវី​បរទេស​ការពារ​លោក​នួន ជា ប្តឹង​មន្រ្តី​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​កម្ពុជា​ថា បាន​ចូល​ជ្រៀតជ្រែក​ចូល​ក្នុង​កិច្ចការ​តុលាការ​ខ្មែរក្រហម RFI/ ស៊ីវ ចាន់ណា

មាសសុទ្ធមិនខ្លាចភ្លើង ពួកប្រែតនរក ខ្លាចពន្លឺនៃសេចក្តីពិត

សៅរ៍ 10 ធ្នូ 2011
ដោយ ប៉ែន បូណា
RFI

The lawsuit brought by Nuon Chea’s international defense lawyers against 11 Cambodian leaders, including PM Hun Xen, was rejected by the Phnom Penh municipal court. Hun Xen, Chea Xim, Heng Xamrin and 9 other government officials were sued by Nuon Chea’s defense lawyers for interruption and interference in the trial against former KR leaders. In addition the three top CPP leaders, the 2 lawyers also sued: Hor 5 Hong, Kong Sam Ol, Keat Chhon, Ouk Bun Chhoeun, Sim Ka, Khieu Kanharith, Khieu Sopheak and Phay Siphan, all of them belonging to the ruling CPP party.

ពាក្យ​បណ្តឹង​របស់​សហ​មេធាវី​បរទេស​ការពារ​ក្តី​លោក​ នួន ជា​ ដែល​បាន​ប្តឹង​ថ្នាក់ដឹកនាំ​ជាន់ខ្ពស់ ​១១ ​រូប​រួមទាំង​លោក​នាយក​រដ្ឋមន្ត្រី ​ហ៊ុន សែន​ ផង​ដែរ​នោះ​ត្រូវបាន​សាលា​ដំបូង​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ​តម្កល់​ទុក​ឥត​ចាត់ការ។ ​លោក​នាយករដ្ឋមន្ត្រី ​ហ៊ុន សែន,​ លោក ​ជា ស៊ីម ​លោក​ ហេង សំរិន​ ព្រមទាំង​មន្ត្រី​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​៩នាក់​ទៀត​ត្រូវ​បាន​សហមេធាវី​បរទេស​លោក​នួន ជា​ ប្តឹង​ពីបទ​រំខាន ​និង​ជ្រៀតជ្រែក​ដំណើរការ​តុលាការ​កាត់ទោស​អតីត​មេដឹកនាំ​កំពូល​ខ្មែរក្រហម។

ទីបំផុតទៅ ​ព្រះរាជអាជ្ញារង​អម​សាលា​ដំបូង​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ​ លោក​ សុខ រឿន​ បាន​សម្រេច​តម្កល់​សំណុំរឿង​ដែល​ប្តឹង​ដោយ​សហមេធាវី​បរទេស​របស់​លោក ​នួន ជា ​ប្រឆាំង​នឹង​លោក​នាយក​រដ្ឋមន្ត្រី ​ហ៊ុន សែន ​និង​មន្ត្រី​ជាន់ខ្ពស់​ ១០នាក់​ទៀត ​ទុក​ឥត​ចាត់ការ​ឡើយ។​ ដីកា​តម្កល់​រឿង​ទុក​ឥត​ចាត់ការ​នេះ​ត្រូវ​បាន​តុលាការ​ផ្ញើ​ទៅ​កាន់​សាលាក្តី​ខ្មែរក្រហម​ដើម្បី​ជូន​ដំណឹង​ដល់​សហមេធាវី​បរទេស​ទាំង២​រួចហើយ កាលពី​ថ្ងៃសុក្រ​ទី ៩ ខែធ្នូ ឆ្នាំ ២០១១។

សហមេធាវី​បរទេស​ពីររូប​របស់​លោក ​នួន ជា ​គឺលោក ​MICHIEL PESTMAN ​និង ​លោក​ ANDREW IANUZZI ​បាន​ប្តឹង​ថ្នាក់ដឹកនាំ​ជាន់ខ្ពស់​កម្ពុជា​១១​រូប​ពី​បទ​ចោទ​ប្រកាន់​ថា ​បាន​រំខាន​ និង​ជ្រៀតជ្រែក​ដល់​ដំណើរការ​កាត់ទោស​អតីត​មេដឹកនាំ​ខ្មែរក្រហម។ ​ក្នុង​ពាក្យ​បណ្តឹង​ចុះ​ថ្ងៃទី​២៥ ​ខែ​តុលា ​ឆ្នាំ​២០១១ ​សហមេធាវី ​លោក​ នួន ជា ​បាន​ប្តឹង​លោក​នាយករដ្ឋមន្ត្រី ​ហ៊ុន សែន​ លោក​ ប្រធាន​ព្រឹទ្ធ សភា ​ជា ស៊ីម,​ លោក​ប្រធាន​រដ្ឋសភា ​ហេង សំរិន​, លោក ​ហោ ណាំហុង ​, លោក ​គង់ សំអុល​, លោក​ គាត ឈន់​, លោក ​អ៊ុក ប៊ុនឈឿន​, លោក ​ស៊ឹម កា​, លោក ​ខៀវ កាញារីទ្ធ​, លោក ​ខៀវ សុភ័គ ​និង​លោក​ ផៃ ស៊ីផាន។

Obstruction of Justice

Poetic Justice along Quay Sisowath with Theary Seng throwing darts at the "war criminals" (Photo: The Phnom Penh Post)

Op-Ed by Justin Sok

Ms. Theary Seng ... had invited the public to join her in playing the “Poetic Justice War Criminals Dart Games,” using dartboards depicting the photos of the former Khmer Rouge leaders. She has withdrawn her participation with the court process. Ms. Seng said, “Enough is enough! The court is a farce!” She no longer has faith in the KR tribunal. On the other side of the aisle, Michiel Pestman and Andrew Ianuzzi, co-defense counsels for former Khmer Rouge leader, Nuon Chea, has filed criminal complaints to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, requesting an immediate investigation into alleged interference by the Phnom Penh government officials, naming some of the high ranking officials as culprits.

In the late 1990‘s, the Phnom Penh government officials, consisting of the two Co-Prime Ministers, Hun Sen and Prince Rannaridh, were toying with the idea of bringing the remaining Khmer Rouge leaders to justice. They covertly sought assistance from the United Nations to set up a hybrid tribunal inside Cambodia to try the former Khmer Rouge leaders. However, Hun Sen never had any intention of putting these remaining Khmer Rouge leaders on trial. He was more aggressive in his drive for power and absolute control. Hun Sen has been internationally known as an iron-fist dictator, who would constantly, at any cost, devise schemes to stamp out his political opponents. With the subsequent political turmoil during the coup d’état in 1997, the plan for the tribunal was temporarily shelved.

The plan of establishing a tribunal to try the former Khmer Rouge leaders was brought back to the table in early 2000‘s. After six years of intense negotiations between the United Nations and the Phnom Penh government, the Khmer Rouge tribunal, legally known as the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), was created in 2006. The legally binding agreements, inter alia, was that the “trial would take place in Cambodia” and the most significant and controversial decision was that the “Phnom Penh government’s insistence of ownership of the trials.”

After a tribunal had become a legal reality, the politicians, legal experts, and the general public joined in a united chorus expressing their grave concerns. The public opined that the Khmer Rouge tribunals would inevitably getting “political interference” from the Phnom Penh government, and as the result, it would lead to an international boondoggle, and more regrettably, a “travesty of justice.” Initially, the United Nations had creditable reasons to believe that they were dealing with the elephant in the room, but without any reservation and without taking the public objections under advisement, the U.N. made a swift decision to place its own reputation, integrity and fiduciary duty, into the hands of the dogmatic and “Paleolithic” mentality of the Phnom Penh government.

Nuon Chea team blasts prosecutor

Friday, 04 November 2011
Bridget Di Certo
The Phnom Penh Post

Legal counsel for “Brother Number 2” Nuon Chea yesterday told Phnom Penh Municipal Court deputy prosecutor Sok Roeun they did not trust him, did not believe him, and were of the view that he was receiving instructions from suspects in their recently filed criminal complaint, which includes Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The premier, along with 13 other high-ranking government officials, has been accused by lawyers Michiel Pestman and Andrew Ianuzzi of contriving a common criminal plan of interference in the Khmer Rouge tribunal.

Pestman and Ianuzzi were summoned by the municipal court’s deputy prosecutor, Sok Roeun, for quest-ioning yesterday, after filing a complaint last Monday requesting a judicial investigation into the actions of a group of high-powered officials that includes Senate president Chea Sim and National Assembly president Heng Samrin.

មេធាវី​ នួន ជា​ ​មិន​ឆ្លើយ​សំណួរ​របស់​តុលាការ​ក្រុង​ភ្នំពេញ​ដោយ​ថា​មិន​ឯករាជ្យ - Nuon Chea's lawyers refuse to answer to the PPenh court, saying it is not independent

Andrew Ianuzzi (L) and Michiel Pestman during a press conference on Thursday morning

ថ្ងៃព្រហស្បតិ៍, 03 ខែវិច្ឆិកា 2011
ដោយ គង់ សុឋានរិទ្ធិ វីអូអេ ខ្មែរ | ភ្នំពេញ

«មិន​មាន​ប្រយោជន៍​ដែល​យើង​ត្រូវ​ឆ្លើយ​នឹង​សំនួរ​ទេ​ ពីព្រោះ​ខ្ញុំ​ជឿ​ថា ​គាត់​មិន​ឯករាជ្យ ​ហើយ​ខ្ញុំ​គិត​ថា​ គាត់​នឹង​បិទ​ការ​ស៊ើបអង្កេត​ឆាប់ៗ​នេះ»។ "There's no use to answer to the question because I believe that it not independent and I think that it will close the investigations soon."

Synopsis: Nuon Chea’s International lawyers refused to answer to questions raised by the deputy prosecutor of the Phnom Penh municipal court this Thursday, however, they called on the court to take legal actions against PM Hun Xen and high-ranking government officials who are accused of political interfering with the KR Tribunal.

Click below to listen to the audio program:

Click here to listen or download the audio program in MP3

សហមេធាវី​បរទេស​របស់​ នួន ​ជា ​បាន​បដិសេធ​មិនព្រម​ឆ្លើយ​នឹង​សំណួរ​របស់​ព្រះរាជអាជ្ញា​រង​សាលាដំបូង​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ ​នៅ​ថ្ងៃ​ព្រហស្បតិ៍​នេះ ​ក៏​ប៉ុន្ដែ​បាន​ទទូច​ឲ្យ​តុលាការ​ចាត់​នីតិវិធី​ប្រឆាំង​នឹង​លោក​នាយក​រដ្ឋមន្ដ្រី​ ហ៊ុន ​សែន ​និង​មន្ដ្រី​ជាន់ខ្ពស់​ក្នុង​រដ្ឋាភិបាល ​ចំពោះ​ការ​ចោទប្រកាន់​ពី​ការ​ជ្រៀតជ្រែក​ ផ្នែក​នយោបាយ​លើ​សាលាក្ដី​ខ្មែរ​ក្រហម។

លោក​ព្រះរាជអាជ្ញា​រង ​សុខ ​រឿន ​បាន​កោះហៅ​សហមេធាវី​បរទេស​របស់​អតីត​បង​ធំ​ទី​២​ នៃ​របប​កាប់​សម្លាប់​របស់​ពួក​ខ្មែរ​ក្រហម​ គឺ​លោក​ ម៉ាយឃើល ​ផេសម៉ិន​ (Michiel Pestman) ​ឲ្យ​ចូល​ខ្លួន​នៅ​ថ្ងៃ​ព្រហស្បតិ៍​នេះ​ ដើម្បី​សាកសួរ​ និង​ប្រគល់​ភស្ដុតាង ​រីឯ​លោក ​អេនឌ្រូ​ អ៊ាននូ​ហ្ស៊ី ​(Andrew ​Ianuzzi)​ ទីប្រឹក្សា​ច្បាប់​នៃ​មេធាវី​ការពារ​ នួន​ ជា​ នឹង​ត្រូវ​ចូល​ខ្លួន​ទៅ​សាលាដំបូង​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ​នៅ​ថ្ងៃ​ស្អែក។

KRT interference alleged

Michiel Pestman (left) and Andrew Ianuzzi, co-defence counsel for Nuon Chea, speak outside Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday. (Hong Menea)

Tuesday, 25 October 2011
May Titthara and Mary Kozlovski
The Phnom Penh Post

Defence lawyers for former Khmer Rouge “Brother Number Two” Nuon Chea filed a criminal complaint at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday requesting an investigation into alleged interference by senior government officials, including Prime Minister Hun Sen, at the Khmer Rouge tribunal.

Hun Sen, Senate president Chea Sim, National Assembly president Heng Samrin and eight other high-ranking officials allegedly participated in a “common criminal plan” to interfere with the court’s work, according to a copy of the complaint.

The Council of Ministers’ Press and Quick Reaction Unit called a press conference to address the complaint at which PQRU deputy spokesman Keo Remy denied the allegations.

Cambodian PM faces lawsuit for "killing fields" trial "meddling"

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen speaks to reporters during a news conference at the Council of Ministers in Phnom Penh July 22, 2011. Credit: Reuters/Samrang Pring/Files

Mon Oct 24, 2011

PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Lawyers for the second-in-command of Cambodia's former Khmer Rouge regime on Monday filed a lawsuit against the prime minister and top government officials for perceived interference in a U.N.-backed war crimes tribunal.

The filing of the lawsuit with the Phnom Penh Municipal Court was the latest twist in a multi-million dollar tribunal fraught with controversy since it was set up seven years ago to try those "most responsible" for the brutal deaths of an estimated 1.7 million Cambodians during the Khmer Rouge "killing fields" era from 1975-1979.

The legal team of Nuon Chea, 85, better known as "brother number two", said Prime Minister Hun Sen and top officials had unlawfully tried to block certain witnesses from testifying and sought to prevent further cases from going to court.

In a statement, Nuon Chea's lawyers accused the ministers of having a "common criminal plan" that amounted to interfering with justice and the defendants' rights to a fair trial.

Hun Xen et al. sued at the Phnom Penh Municipal court for obstruction of Case 003

http://www.box.net/shared/crpqkt7v2230rfb8mjac


http://www.box.net/shared/9mse8gq00osm10ekuqmc


http://www.box.net/shared/oc3u87dzo00qu0sjzijz


KI-Media Note: Who are Michiel Pestman and Andrew Ianuzzi? They are the International defense lawyers for Nuon Chea

Lawyers decry 'meddling' in Cambodia genocide trial

PHNOM PENH, October 24, 2011 (AFP) - Defence lawyers for a top Khmer Rouge leader accused of genocide asked a Phnom Penh court Monday to probe allegations of government interference at Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes tribunal.

"Brother Number Two" Nuon Chea's international counsel said they filed a criminal complaint in Phnom Penh Municipal Court against Prime Minister Hun Sen and 10 other officials for interfering in the high-profile case.

"We are asking the deputy prosecutor to investigate the obstruction of justice in (this case)," Dutch lawyer Michiel Pestman told AFP.

"We want to make clear to everyone that what's going on is not only unacceptable, it's a crime even under Cambodian law."

'Waterlilygate' hits troubled tribunal

Nuon Chea defence lawyer Michiel Pestman appears at a press conference Thursday at the Foreign Correspondents Club. (Photo by: Tracey Shelton)

Friday, 05 June 2009
Written by Robbie Corey Boulet
The Phnom Penh Post

THE DEFENCE team for former Khmer Rouge leader Nuon Chea on Thursday added an alleged security breach to its growing list of concerns about Cambodia's war crimes court, which also includes allegations of government interference and doubts about whether the head of the Victims' Unit is fit for her job.

International co-lawyer Michiel Pestman said at a press conference that he had found one of his team's confidential documents floating in a "moat" on the grounds of the Khmer Rouge tribunal Wednesday afternoon, which he and other members of the defence team said had been taken from their office.

Pestman said he did not know why someone might have taken the document - a draft of a letter dated May 27 and addressed to Victims' Unit head Helen Jarvis - or why it surfaced in the "moat". But he and legal consultant Andrew Ianuzzi, who described the "moat" as a half-metre-wide "ditch filled with water lilies", said they believed the letter had been stolen.

"We have no explanation," Pestman said. "What we do know is that the documents should have been shredded. They were not, and they were most probably stolen from our office."

He added, "We have serious concerns about security and the confidentiality of our investigation. From now on we'll have to be very careful about what we put on paper."

Chief of Public Affairs Reach Sambath declined to comment in detail about the incident, saying Thursday afternoon that Pestman had "submitted the relevant information to the security section of the ECCC", which he said would conduct an investigation.

"At this time it is premature to conclude that anything has been stolen," he said.

He added, "Generally, in the court each office is responsible for safely disposing of its own documents."

Victims' Unit concerns

Pestman said the draft letter details concerns about a 2006 open letter - signed by members of the Democratic Socialist Perspective's (DSP) Leninist Party Faction, including Jarvis - that was circulated during a May 2006 meeting of the DSP, an Australian political organisation.

He described the letter as one "in which [Jarvis] takes the position that as a member of that particular faction she does not have to obey the rule of law".

The letter states: "Against the bourgeoisie and their state agencies we don't respect their laws and their fake moral principles."

Pestman suggested at the press conference that the letter indicated a willingness to flout rules that could compromise her work at the court.

"We think that all parties should follow the rules set up by the court," he said. "We think the Victims' Unit should follow the rules."

Ianuzzi said Jarvis informed the defence team on May 30 that she had brought its concerns to her superiors.

Jarvis declined to comment Thursday on the letter or the defence team's objections to her political activities.

Charges of meddling

Also Thursday, Pestman reiterated concerns about possible political interference at the court. The team said Wednesday that it had been "reliably informed" that national co-prosecutor Chea Leang had been instructed by the government not to prosecute additional suspects.

Pestman said Thursday that the charge stemmed from information given "by a reliable source within the court", though he declined to elaborate.

He described as "worrying" a May report from the Open Society Justice Initiative that accused the government of "attempting to block the investigating judges from interviewing certain insider witnesses who hold current positions of power".

Government officials have rejected those allegations.

Pestman said he did not know when a criminal complaint before the Court of Appeal accusing tribunal officials of involvement in a kickback payment scheme would be resolved.

He also expressed concern that the case had been delegated to Deputy Prosecutor Ouk Savuth, who was at the Municipal Court when it abruptly terminated an investigation of the defence team's initial complaint in February.

Looking ahead, Pestman said he had no prediction as to when the trial of his client, commonly referred to as Brother No 2, would begin. "The future's very uncertain," he said.

Judges must address alleged ECCC kickback scheme, lawyers say

Thursday, 07 May 2009
Written by Georgia Wilkins
The Phnom Penh Post

Calls mount for judges to take action over graft allegations following the UN and government's failure to agree to anti-corruption measures.

DEFENCE lawyers at the Khmer Rouge tribunal said Wednesday that trial judges had no choice but to investigate graft claims at the UN-backed court, a day after filing separate motions urging the judges to uphold the court's "inherent power" to ensure proceedings are free and fair.

"I don't see any way for the [pretrial chamber] to wriggle out of this one," Andrew Ianuzzi, a legal consultant for Nuon Chea's defence team, said.

"They've already shown that they have inherent power over the court. So they cannot deny it," he added.

Lawyers for all defence teams bar one filed separate appeals to the pretrial chamber on Monday in a sign that they will not let the corruption issue go away.

All say that claims that staff on the Cambodian side of the court were forced to pay portions of their salaries to their bosses tainted the judicial process and could rob their clients of a fair trial.

"This really shows that we're not just an annoying lone voice in this issue. It's something that's affecting all defence lawyers - and even now the prosecution," Ianuzzi said, referring to comments made by international Co-prosecutor Robert Petit in an interview with Asia Sentinel at the end of last month.

When contacted on Wednesday, Petit confirmed that he believed the issue "needs to be dealt with swiftly".

The appeals also made note of a recent CNN report that aired allegations by court staff members who said that a senior Cambodian court official, Sean Visoth, had collected up to US$40,000 a month in the scheme.

Court officials have dismissed the allegations, saying numerous audits have failed to produce evidence of wrongdoing.

Judges rejected an earlier request by the lawyers for them to investigate the corruption claims, saying this was outside the court's jurisdiction.

But legal observers have also criticised the judges' lack of action.

"When you are working as the head of an institution, you can't just push your responsibility onto someone else," Long Panhavuth, program officer at the Cambodia Justice Initiative, said Wednesday.

Complaint of Nuon Chea's lawyers dismissed by Phnom Penh's Municipal Court

10-02-2009
By Stéphanie Gée
Ka-set in English

In a notice dated February 5th, the Deputy Prosecutor of the Municipal Court of Phnom Penh, Sok Kalyan, announced to the Defence Team for Nuon Chea, also known as Brother No 2 in the Khmer Rouge hierarchy, that he had dismissed their complaint.

Nuon Chea's foreign lawyers – Andrew Ianuzzi, Michiel Pestman and Viktor Koppe – had filed a complaint, in their names, one month earlier with the Municipal Court to request that it opens an investigation into the graft allegations concerning Cambodian staff at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC). They had then argued that if confirmed, corruption could “undermine the fundamental right to a fair trial” for their client.

The Court's decision is not explained, at least not in the notice, and took the lawyers by surprise, as they had until then had positive meetings with the Court Prosecutor, Ouk Savuth. The latter could not be reached for comment.

While waiting to be communicated the reasons for the decision, Attorney Andrew Ianuzzi said, on Tuesday February 10th, that he and his colleagues would not stop there and were already considering “other options” to explore.

Complaint about corruption allegations at the ECCC: Cambodian judges offended

10-01-2009
Ka-set in English
Click here to read the article in French
Click here to read the article in Khmer

In a communiqué released on Friday January 9th, Cambodian judges at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), in charge of trying former Khmer Rouge leaders, reacted strongly against the complaint submitted to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court by Nuon Chea's co-lawyers regarding allegations of corruption within the ECCC.

National judges working at the hybrid court, composed of Cambodian and foreign magistrates, say they “deeply regret hearing the new reports today that co-lawyers Mr. Michiel PESTMAN and Mr. Victor KOPPE and Mr. Andrew IANUZZI have filed a complaint with the Municipal Court of Phnom Penh charging corruption within the ECCC, which states that this may infringe the fundamental right to fair trial and that a portion of national judges' salaries are used as kickbacks to government officials”.

Cambodian judges particularly reproached the lawyers for having leaked their action to “the public media”, “causing confusion and seriously affecting the honour and dignity of all individual judges and this institution as a whole”.

In the same release, they go back on the fact that all judges at the ECCC “entered into service by decision of the Supreme Council of Magistracy, chaired by His Majesty the King of the Cambodia”, who signed a Royal Decree appointing them to work in the court.

“Therefore”, the Cambodian judges argue, “there is no reason for judges to cut their salaries to pay kickbacks to government officials, as alleged. We absolutely reject such an accusation.”

Finally, the national ECCC judges state that if the accusation “stems from bad faith in putting the blame on the judges”, they reserve the right “to legal recourse against any individuals who have provoked such a problem”.

The complaint lodged by the Defence Team for former Khmer Rouge Nuon Chea on January 8th was officially registered at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court the morning after it was submitted. It is now up to the Municipal Court to decide whether an investigation on allegations of corruption concerning ECCC Cambodian staff needs to be launched or not.