The Royal Government of Cambodia
(RGC) and the United Nations (UN) are decision-makers concerning the Extraordinary
Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) from the start. This role must be
maintained through out the judicial proceedings until the closure.
They decided to establish the first
hybrid court to try criminal case of genocide against humanity after
intelligent and reflexive discussions and debates between highly competent
representatives of the RGC and the UN. Negotiations took many years. The
outcome was the establishment of the ECCC, that is to say the Political Agreement
between the UN and the RGC was signed on 6 June 2003 and ratified by the
Cambodian National Assembly on 19 October 2004.
The ECCC is a Cambodian court established pursuant
to an agreement between the RGC and the UN to try senior members of the
Khmer Rouge for serious violations of Cambodian penal law, international
humanitarian law and custom and violation of international conventions
recognized by Cambodia during the period between 17 April 1975 and 6 January
1979. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution of 18 December 2002“recognized
the legitimate concern of the government and people of Cambodia in the pursuit
of justice and national reconciliation, stability, peace and security.”
The question is simple. Would the UN give up this role of
decision-maker and give in to the pressure of outside interference? The answer is even simpler than the question:
Ordinary people who understand “logic” will answer with an unqualified “No”.
Outsiders (besides the RGC and the UN) must not lose
sight of the scope established by the ECCC that is to try senior members of the
Khmer Rouge. Professor John A. Hall at Chapman University School of Law in
Orange, California in an article
published in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) 5 October 2011, for all intents and
purposes, changed the scope from “senior members of the Khmer Rouge” to “those
most responsible for the deaths of 1.8 million Cambodians between 1975 and
1979”. This was a speculative statement, a complete deviation from
the original scope.
Faithful to the UNGA resolution “The government and
people of Cambodia” have determined that case 001 and case 002 are the
subjects of trial by the ECCC. Case 001 was ended with a conviction and
sentencing, and now is waiting for the decision on appeal by the defendant.
Case 002, involving the most senior members of the Khmer Rouge will go on trial
at the ECCC by late November 2011. The case is unique in the record of the trial
of crimes against humanity which is unprecedented in World Justice History. The
defendants are the Head of the State, the President of the National Assembly
and Chief ideologue, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Minister of
Social Affairs of the Khmer Rouge regime.
Outsiders must recognize “the legitimate concern of the
government and people of Cambodia in the pursuit of justice and national
reconciliation, stability, peace and security.”
Born of a universal and democratic election, internationally recognized
to be just, free, fair and credible:
1- The RGC has the sacred duty to maintain peace
and security, stability and to uphold national unity because national
reconciliation after decades of war between warring factions of different
ideologies is not an easy walk in the park as many outsiders have
imagined. It is easy said than done. It took political will, courage,
tenacity, nationalism, love of and compassion for the people to achieve
national reconciliation. Samdech Techo Hun Sen, Prime Minister of the
Kingdom, the prime builder of Cambodia’s national reconciliation, thanks to his
wisdom and leadership, has kept Cambodia away from the world hot spots where
armed fighting and killing and the horror of national division continue to haunt
and take place daily. The latter situation would give great joy and pleasure to
Brad Adams and his peers at many other international NGOs who utilized huge
amount of funding to build personal fame and prestige by interfering with the political
life of sovereign country and sovereign people with words of fire. Brad Adams
and his peers had never ever known nor experienced the horror of war and
killing, separation, destitution, famine, sufferings, and the bickering of the
post-conflict era. Talks with destructive purposes, the way Brad Adams and his
peers have had expertise of, are very cheap. But to lead millions of Cambodian
people to life, out of misery and poverty are the rock solid character of good
leaders. The dogs bark, the caravan passes. That is the true nature of the
dogs. Why not let the dogs being the dogs?
2- The RGC has
legitimate concern about the political and social welfare of the Cambodian
people, many of them live peacefully, not even at a standard housing facility
imagined by Brad Adams and his peers, but under the palm-leaves, or corrugated
tin, or red-tile roof at the remote area of the Cambodian countryside, however equipped
with basic modern communication and information gadgets they know exactly what
is going on with their surroundings. It would have made them very easily
exposed to harmful predators, had Cambodia not been peaceful, safe and secure
for them. But now, they have peace of mind and physically unharmed. The
Cambodian people, in and out of the government have their full rights and
freedom to express their opinion as to peace, security, progress and
development, and also insecurity, fear, war and destruction. The scars of more
than five decades of war that have been slowly healing for less than 15 years
are the constant reminder that national division must be avoided as best they
can. Brad Adams of Human Rights Watch and his peers at other international NGOs
have relinquished their rights and responsibility with systematic
media-speculation, media-interference and media-pressure in their calculated
attempts to change the course of the Cambodian political and social life. The
dogs bark, the caravan passes. That is the nature of the dogs. Why not let the
dogs being the dogs?
3- The RGC has
never issued any administrative nor legal measures to curb the activities of
the ECCC judges under any capacity. The allegations mounted by Brad Adams and
his peers and incessantly echoed by some anti-government media outlets are
politically motivated and are maneuvering in tandem with the Cambodian
opposition and other parties, outside of the ruling government coalition
parties with the purposes of building a viable agenda for the coming elections.
They take advantage of the access and freedom allowed under the hybrid court
(with Cambodian and international judges working side by side). For their
political expediency, the ECCC is an open wound facilitating their intrusion
with media speculation, media interference and media pressure. The dogs bark, the caravan passes. That is
the nature of the dogs. Why not let the dogs being the dogs?
In view of the
above, the Royal Government of Cambodia stands firm on the success of the ECCC
with the prosecution, conviction and sentencing of Case 001. The judicial
proceedings of the Case 002 will start late November 2011. In the absence of
baseless allegations by Brad Adams and his peers, without media speculation,
interference and pressure, and without other interferences, Case 002 is
expected to be another success story of this hybrid court.
The UN cannot
allow the ECCC to fail under pressure from Brad Adams and his peers. The
shifting of pressure from political to financial matters concocted by Brad
Adams and his peers under the form of a threat against the UN on the issue of
lacking international contribution to the ECCC would be known to posterity to
be the failure of the UN in this wonderful world of international rule of law
if the UN gives in to such
pressure; yet inequity exists, and the attempt to manipulate such inequity for
political purposes could triumph to the detriment of small and poor, but proud
nation like Cambodia. That is sad. But reasonable people have full trust that the
UN has the remedy to cure this ill. The dogs bark, the caravan passes. Let the
dogs be the dogs.
Press and Quick
Reaction Unit
28 October 2011
