Campaign to prosecute Khmer Rouge moves forward

By Helen Jarvis
PHNOM PENH — Legal options for prosecuting the Khmer Rouge leadership for crimes committed during their 1975-79 rule in Cambodia were discussed here in an August 22-23 conference, "Striving for Justice: International Criminal Law in the Cambodian Context". Jason Abrams and Steven Ratner, two experts in international law, presented the preliminary conclusions of their evaluation of the legal case, part of the work carried out under the Cambodia Genocide Justice Act passed by the US Congress in April 1994.
The lawyers found prima facie culpability of the Khmer Rouge for: genocide against religious and ethnic groups (such as Chams, Vietnamese, Chinese and Buddhist religious leaders); massive offences of crimes against humanity (including murder, extermination, forced labour, torture, rape, forced transfers of population, removal of children, forced wearing of distinctive clothing, closure of religious institutions); war crimes in connection with Cambodia's conflict with Vietnam; and breaches of other international treaties, including slavery and torture.
They also found systematic violations of numerous provisions of the Cambodian criminal code of 1955, still in force during 1975-79, including homicide, rape and arbitrary detention.
The lawyers have spent the past several months studying how these violations could be pursued, and they reported on the possibilities of bringing cases before the International Court of Justice; establishing an ad hoc international tribunal; creating an international commission of inquiry or truth commission; or pursuing a trial under Cambodian domestic law. In addition, they explored possibilities of civil actions, extraditions and assets seizures.
While obstacles certainly abound — in particular the fact that no likely defendant is yet in custody — it was felt that further steps should be taken in preparation for a case that might develop over the coming period.
Nearly 100 people attended the conference, principally Cambodians from various ministries, especially Justice, from legal and human rights NGOs, and several members of the National Assembly. Prince Norodom Ranariddh, the first prime minister, opened the conference with a strong statement of support by the Royal Cambodian Government for legal action against the Khmer Rouge.
Hun Sen, the second prime minister, gave the closing address — an impassioned speech calling for justice for Cambodia and assistance from the international community in bringing the Khmer Rouge leaders to trial for their crimes. He challenged those who accuse him of culpability as a former member of the Khmer Rouge to bring forward any evidence, saying he was not afraid to face any court to prove his innocence.
He called on people to hand over any documents or evidence they may have, and disclosed that he has written to the president of Vietnam and secretary of the Vietnamese Communist Party asking them to return any relevant documents they may have removed from Cambodia. He also pledged his government's support for legal proceedings, and the various options will be considered over the coming months.
Both prime ministers endorsed the work of the Cambodian Genocide Program being carried out by Yale University under the direction of Professor Ben Kiernan. This program, funded for two years under the Cambodia Genocide Justice Act, has three parts: conducting new research into different zones of the Khmer Rouge regime; conducting legal and historical training (including a just completed 10-week course in international criminal law); and documenting the crimes of the Khmer Rouge in bibliographical, biographical and geographical databases.
The Australian government has been requested to fund several parts of the documentation training and also the mapping of genocide sites, particularly mass graves, throughout Cambodia.
[Helen Jarvis is consultant on documentation to the Cambodia Genocide Program.]