Monitoring Policy Making at the United Nations |
| ||||||||||||
Reuters
Cambodian Court Extends Khmer Rouge Detentions
February 25, 2004
Two of the most infamous Khmer Rouge leaders will spend another year in detention as the impoverished country prepares for a U.N.-backed genocide trial of Pol Pot's henchmen, a military court ruled Wednesday. Former military chief Ta Mok, known as the "The Butcher" for his suspected role in mass executions, and Duch, head of the notorious Tuol Sleng S-21 interrogation center, have been in prison and awaiting trial since 1999. "We have approval from the government to detain them for another year for investigations because this case is very crucial," General Ney Thol, chief of the military court, told Reuters Wednesday. No Khmer Rouge leader has ever faced credible justice for the estimated 1.7 million people who died in the "Killing Fields," many of them tortured and executed. Others died of starvation, disease or overwork in vast labor camps. Pol Pot, the regime's secretive leader, died in 1998 and it seemed other top Khmer Rouge leaders would escape justice until the United Nations and Cambodia signed a deal in March last year to set up a joint international-Cambodian genocide court. Cambodia's parliament, paralyzed by a political deadlock since disputed general elections in July last year, has yet to ratify the trial deal. But U.N. officials have said they expect the court to be up and running this year. There are several other possible defendants. Former Khmer Rouge president Khieu Samphan has denied responsibility for the overall tragedy that befell Cambodia, saying the country became a pawn sucked up in the politics of the Cold War and the American war in neighboring Vietnam. Other likely defendants include "Brother Number Two" Nuon Chea and former Foreign Minister Ieng Sary.
More Information on International Justice
More Information on Special Tribunal for Cambodia
FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Global Policy Forum distributes this material without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C ß 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
