Duch’s trial likely to take place in March

17 Jan 2009
By Pen Bona
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from Khmer by Luc Sâr
Click here to read the article in French

Following two days of meeting which ended in the afternoon of Friday 16 January, Duch’s trial date has not been officially announced yet. However, it should take place in March, a source close to the case indicated.

At the conclusion of the meeting in which all the parties involved have participated, Reach Sambath, spokesman for the KR Tribunal, indicated to the news media that the exact date for Duch’s trial will be officially announced next week. According to Reach Sambath, all parties involved, including Duch who also participated in the meeting, would be ready for this trial.

Kaing Kek Iev, aka Duch, was arrested in 1999. He is currently under provisional incarceration with four other officials of the 1975-1979 genocide regime under which close to 2 million of Cambodians lost their lives. Duch’s trial, which normally should be held in March of 2009, would be the first KRT trial, an event that is highly expected.

Tribunal Officials Discuss Duch Trial

By Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh
15 January 2009

Evidence and witnesses were the main topics of discussion among Khmer Rouge tribunal officials and attorneys in meetings Thursday, with a trial date for prison chief Duch to be decided Friday, officials said.

The main point of Thursday’s meeting was to give an opportunity to all parties to discuss the upcoming trial, tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said.

Officials and lawyers also discussed technicalities over witnesses, including where they would be kept and what they would receive, Reach Sambath said.

“This is a good step forward toward the hearing, expected for sure in March,” he said.

Hong Kim Suon, a lawyer for civil parties, said the talks on Thursday were technical in nature and there had been no arguments.

“We discussed only how to prepare for the trial, especially for old witnesses and new witnesses,” he said. “Old witnesses have been recognized already during the investigation stage, but new witnesses must be submitted to the Trial Chamber 15 days after civil parties are informed.”

Evidence lists must also be submitted to the Trial Chamber 15 days after civil parties are notified, he said.

Other issues will be discussed tomorrow, including the exact date for the hearing of Duch, or Kaing Kek Iev, 66, who faces charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity for his role as chief of Tuol Sleng prison.

His trial will be the first held by the beleaguered tribunal, which stood up in 2006 but has faced numerous delays and is currently addressing allegations of mismanagement and corruption.

Trial Chamber gears up for Duch proceedings; Court watchers call for more suspects

14 Jan. 2009
Posted by Elena in ECCC, Duch
ThePost.blogs
The Phnom Penh Post

A two-day logistical meeting that will lay the foundation for the court's first trial begins Thursday. Although it will be closed to the public, court officials will announce a general time frame for the trial of "Comrade Duch" after the meeting's conclusion. Duch himself is planning to appear at the meeting. Co-Prosecutors submitted their witness list to the court on Monday and, judging from the number of people who will testify against the torture chief, the trial should last three or four months, said Co-Prosecutor Robert Petit.

While the court appears to be making progress in this area, prosecutors remain at an impasse over whether to pursue additional suspects.

Civil society leaders issued a statement today claiming that failure to pursue additional suspects would "undermine the impact and legacy of the court. Victims of the Khmer Rouge regime have already had to accept the limited mandate of the ECCC due to the realities of transitional justice; they will not however accept a failure of the court to properly exercise its existing powers and responsibilities."

Rebutting claims made by national Co-Prosecutor Chea Leang, the statement argued that investigating additional suspects would not jeopardize the country's stability: "Contrary to previous concerns, the arrest and action against the current 5 suspects has not led to instability and there is simply no credible evidence that the prosecution of a similar number of further suspects would risk Cambodia's stability, or national reconciliation."

The civil society leaders also shot down Leang's claim that, given the court's limited time and budget, it should focus on suspects already in detention.

"The successful and full completion of the court's mandate should take precedence over short term considerations of budget and time," they wrote. "If at the end of the life of the ECCC, and despite the huge expense of establishing and running the court, it has failed to prosecute all surviving senior leaders and those with greatest responsibility then this investment will be seen to have been largely wasted."