Nearly 200 commune council members from all 24 provinces and municipalities met with senior officials of Extraordinary Chambers in the Court of Cambodia (ECCC) on the 28 January 2011. This meeting was part of the ECCC’s study tour program organized after the commune council members had participated in the 6th Seminar of National League of Commune/Sangkat Council in Battambang province.
Mr. Rong Chhorng representing the Acting Director of Administration H.E. Tony Kranh, provided the participants with an overview of the ECCC and Case 001 against Kang Guek Eav alias Duch, whose sentence of 35 years in prison was announced on 26 July 2010, and the appeal hearing, which is planned to be held on the last week of March this year. He also discussed case 002, which is expected to be more complicated due to the number of the accused and the number of crime sites included in the indictment.
Mr. Chhorng also talked about the features that distinguish the ECCC from similar courts around the world, such as it being located in the country where the crimes were committed, its establishment by Cambodians to deal with their own past, and the possibility for victim participation. He appealed to the commune council members to cooperate with ECCC by facilitating the participation of Civil Parties as well as the general population in public hearings, study tours, and other meetings, in order to disseminate information about the court.
Mr. Rajeev Kumra who represented the Deputy Director Knut Rosandhaug discussed the importance of holding former Khmer Rouge leaders accountable for crimes that happened during Democratic Kampuchea, as it educates younger generations and helps prevent the same crimes from reoccurring.
The participants raised some questions they anticipated would be asked by people and students in their communes, and said responses from ECCC officials might help them to answer such questions more clearly. Those questions included:
• If the four former KR leaders denied the killing during Democratic Kampuchea, then who is responsible?
• If during trial process, the court found out that there were other leaders or foreigners involved in the crimes of killing the Cambodia people, can the court bring those people to trial?
• Does ECCC believe it could bring justice to Cambodian people?
The officials of ECCC answered all questions and invited participants to follow the process of the trial.
Mr. Kong Chheng, Chief of Korki Commune, Kandal province, congratulated the ECCC for doing important work. “ I have lost members of my family under the Khmer Rouge regime and I believe that, as human being, if one do good, one will die good. If one do bad deeds, one will die badly”, said Mr. Kong.He also offered his view on the sentence in the Duch-trial. “I understand that even though the court did not give Duch a life sentence, his current sentence is not different from a life sentence, giving the fact that he is 68 years old now.”
“Seeing the court doing an important work, I think I am, as a survivor, not the only one that feel excited. I believe even those who died during the Khmer Rouge regime must be excited to know that their younger generation is seeking justice for their souls”, said Ms. Hao Phalla, Member of Potahoa Commune Council in Svay Rieng province.
A second deputy chief of Takhmao, Kandal province, requested that the ECCC set up large, live screens in public places so that more people could watch the trial process.
This trip of members of commune councils was significant because these people are the local authorities that the have power and sufficient means to disseminate information about the progress of the ECCC to people in rural areas, as well as to facilitate peoples participation in the court process.