Closing Order of Case 002 against Senior KR Leaders Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary, Ieng Thirith

In light of the HISTORIC (!) start of MOST COMPLEX (sic!) trial hearings beginning on 27 June 2011 and again ANOTHER HISTORIC (!) START of this same MOST COMPLEX (sic!) on 21 Nov. 2011 of Case 002 against the surviving Khmer Rouge senior leaders Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary and Ieng Thirith, KI Media is posting installations of the public document of the Closing Order of Case 002 (Indictment).  The Closing Order of the Co-Investigating Judges forms the basic document from which all the parties (Co-Prosecutors, Co-Lead Lawyers for all civil parties, Defense Lawyers) will be making their arguments before the Trial Chamber judges (one Cambodian President, 2 Cambodian Judges, 2 UN judges).  Up until now, the hearings involving these four surviving senior Khmer Rouge leaders have been in the Pre-Trial Chamber over issues of pre-trial detention and jurisdictional issues.  Beginning in June November 2011, the Trial Chamber will hear the substantive (sic!) arguments over the criminal charges (genocide, crimes against humanity, penal code of 1956, etc., only the Phase I Movement in April 1975).  Available in Khmer, English and French. Contact the ECCC for a free copy. 

 

CLOSING ORDER

of Co-Investigating Judges You Bunleng and Marcel Lemonde

15 September 2010

IX. ROLES OF THE CHARGED PERSONS

A. NUON CHEA

 Participation in the Common Purpose

 Knowledge and Implementation of this Policy at S-21

Interrogation at S-21

968. Nuon Chea was aware of the practice of serious mistreatment during the interrogation of S- 21 prisoners. It appears that Nuon Chea received some S-21 confessions with annotations from Duch or interrogators mentioning that torture was used.⁴⁰⁴⁵ Duch also states that he used to report to Nuon Chea on interrogations.⁴⁰⁴⁶ Duch says that in many cases, he was given instructions concerning the extraction and content of specific confessions.⁴⁰⁴⁷ According to Duch, Nuon Chea did not often give orders about the techniques to be used during interrogations as Son Sen had done.⁴⁰⁴⁸ On some occasions, Nuon Chea would give precise instructions to Duch not to mistreat prisoners during interrogations.⁴⁰⁴⁹

969. For one of the cases of rape that occured at S-21, Duch states that he reported it to his superiors but that they did not say anything.⁴⁰⁵⁰ However, it is unknown whether Nuon Chea ever received this particular report.

Execution of Prisoners at S-21

970. Duch states that "Nuon Chea clearly told me that all people whom were sent to S-21 had to be killed. As I was in charge of S-21, I followed implemented his orders" ⁴⁰⁵¹ He explains that he used to receive specific orders from Nuon Chea only for mass and exceptional executions but that for regular or "ordinary" executions he could make the decision without any particular instructions following the general line given by Nuon Chea.⁴⁰⁵²

971. Duch explains that he was made aware of the June 1978 Directive, related to the change in the political line in respect to smashing the enemies, by several means: in the Revolutionary Flag magazine of May-June 1978;⁴⁰⁵³ in an information circular; and during a political study session in 1978 presented by Pol Pot.⁴⁰⁵⁴ Duch states that at first he believed these instructions and passed them on to S-21 personnel but that "3 or 4 days after that, Nuon Chea summoned me as usual and I answered that I had nothing to report because I hadn't interrogated anyone. He then criticized me and said "Comrade Duch, you know the party line well'. I then understood that all of this was but a ploy and that everything was to recommence as before".⁴⁰⁵⁵

972. On specific occasions, Duch received orders from Nuon Chea to execute S-21 inmates. These inmates included two members of the FULRO movement,⁴⁰⁵⁶ Vorn Vet's wife Vin and Cheng An's wife Phoas,⁴⁰⁵⁷ Nun Huy alias Huy Sre the cadre in charge of S-24,⁴⁰⁵⁸ Pha Tha Chan the Vietnamese interpreter of S-21 (spared by Duch),⁴⁰⁵⁹ Standing Committee member and government Deputy Prime Minister in charge of Economy Vorn Vet,⁴⁰⁶⁰ and returned former GRUNK Official Chao Seng.⁴⁰⁶¹ Duch also provides details on the execution of four "Westerners" just outside the S-21 compound.⁴⁰⁶² During his trial he stated "I still remember the words that Uncle Nuon told me. He said, for the long-nose people they had to be smashed and they had to be photographed. You have to remember, we do not spare. We do not have to have their bones in exchange for a bulldozer" ⁴⁰⁶² In at least one instance Nuon Chea gave orders not to kill a prisoner but to keep him in S-21.⁴⁰⁶⁴

973.            Duch explains that he received explicit and express orders from Nuon Chea on several occasions to execute S-21 prisoners en masse ⁴⁰⁶⁵ In particular, Duch states that in December 1978 "about 300 prisoners were executed as soon as they arrived at S-21, without interrogation and on Nuon Chea's order (the Eastern Zone had rebelled and interrogation was unnecessary because we were sure of the prisoners' betrayal" ⁴⁰⁶⁶ In an interview with a journalist, when asked about this specific event, Nuon Chea denied having given this order.⁴⁰⁶⁷ Finally Duch states "on the 2nd or 3rd of January 1979 (I do not remember clearly), Nuon Chea called me in to receive an absolute order. That is, he required that S-21 smash (kill) all the victims ".⁴⁰⁶⁸ According to Duch approximately 200 inmates (except four) were executed following this order and he adds "Nuon Chea decided to smash all the prisoners, but allowed me to keep those four prisoners by telling me that '[you] must manage the situation by self-mastery' which meant smash those people when necessary. I gave this order to Hor who subsequently sent the order to other interrogators. When the Vietnamese army arrived, those interrogators would have been held responsible if they did not follow the order which was to kill those prisoners" ⁴⁰⁶⁹ Those four prisoners were subsequently executed when the Vietnamese troops arrived.⁴⁰⁷⁰

974.            Duch also explains that on some occasions Nuon Chea and Son Sen asked him to take photographs of the executed prisoners so that the upper level could be certain that they had been killed.⁴⁰⁷¹