Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Duch’s trial: Civil parties repeat the questions, the defense is annoyed

21 April 2009
By L.D. and A.L.G.
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Luc Sâr
Click here to read the article in French

During his questioning by British lawyer Karim A. A. Khan, Kaing Kek Iev noted that the lawyer, who was absent during the previous days of the hearing, was asking him to repeat himself.

On Tuesday 21 April, Duch and François Roux, his French lawyer, sharply rebuked lawyers of the civil parties because of the tone and the nature of their questions at the ECCC.

While the lawyer of Group 1 of the civil parties, the British lawyer Karim A. A. Kahn, questioned him about the way the prisoners were tied down in the M-13 pits, Duch replied to him with an obvious exasperation: “You were not here during the previous days,” he stressed. “I am willing to repeat it to you for the hundredth times, that, yes, the prisoners were chained.”

While Karim A. A. Khan indicated that the prisoners were held in the pits following the end of the US bombings, then such detention could not be justified as being done for their protection, François Roux raised an objection by asking the judges to tell the civil parties lawyer to use a different tone: “We are not on a [boxing] ring,” he added.

Then Judge Nil Nonn told Karim A. A. Khan that his questions were too long and repetitive.

In his response, Duch indicated that the pits had two objectives: to protect the prisoners and to hold them in captivity, and the duress of the detention was a consequence of it, but not the aim of it.

In the name of group no. 2 of the civil parties, Silke Studzinsky, the German lawyer, then asked witness Chan Khorn about Duch’s use of his weapon. François Roux again said that the question was already asked, but the tribunal did not interrupt the lawyer.

“Did Duch use his weapon?” Silke Studzinski asked the witness. Her question created a confusion because, in Khmer, the same word is used for “to use” and “to hold it in his hand.” Reminding the lawyer that Chan Khorn is illiterate, the judge asked the lawyer to speak using simple terms and short sentences.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The monkey ate all the meats and then acused some dogs that licked only the empty plate; while yuon took the land and let the kingslavesihanuok and hunxen chea sim hengsamrin sor kheng and hor namngov go live freely in the gay kingdoom of jourharoiy!
The UN-tribunal is nothing but just wasted millions $$$. These $$$$ should be used for restructure
the country and create jobs for the young generation would be better. ALL khmer who've lived under the khmer rouge regime knew who they are. Shame on you the Blood Suckers leaches! They create the tribunal just for money not for the real justice for those millions whose lost their life.
Iraq spent less than a penny to convict sam dam and send him to hell while this tribunal spent more than $100 millions, and no where to end. What is the UN going to set and example for whom from this tribunal? to who?..to china, to
al-Qaida..or to yuon and hunxen gangster and its clowns.
eeyore!