In an official ceremony on 17 August 2010, all judicial staff at Kandal Provincial Court were given printed copies of the “Duch”-verdict, a document which will now become a valuable reference for judges, prosecutors and clerks of the court.
Acting Director of Office of Administration, HE KRANH Tony (right) together wthPresident of Kandal Provincial Court , Mr. IN Vanibal.
The verdict distribution ceremony, which was presided over by His Excellency KRANH Tony, Acting Director of the Office of Administration at the ECCC and Mr. IN Vanvibol, the President of Kandal Provincial Court, was held at the office of Kandal Provincial Court. The ceremony was part of an effort to share experiences with the local judicial system regarding the ECCC’s process of prosecuting serious crimes committed during the Khmer Rouge regime.
Kandal Provincial Court is the first judicial body in Cambodia which expressed its interests in the printed copies of the “Duch”-verdict. In a letter sent to the ECCC, Kandal Provincial Court stated that the copies were purposely requested for judges, prosecutors and members of staff of the Court to be able to read the full content of the verdict, to gain better knowledge of the internationalised trial proceedings and refer to them as the standard reference for their future work.
Addressing the audience during the ceremony, His Excellency KRANH Tony expressed his great pleasure in handing over the printed copies of the verdict to Kandal Provincial Court. He emphasized the importance of this verdict to jurists, students and researchers who are interested to learn about the ECCC and the international standard of justice, which is being applied in its trial proceedings.
In return, Mr. IN Vanvibol expressed his gratitude to the ECCC for providing the printed copies of Duch’s verdict to judges, prosecutors, and staff members of Kandal Provincial Court. He pointed out the importance of the verdict. “First, it plays a role in preventing the crime of genocide, i.e second Khmer Rouge regime, from recurring. Second, it sets a role model for a younger generation of Khmer people. Third, the rendition of the verdict sends out a clear message that Cambodia is factually a country with rule of law. Fourth, it provides a standard of reference for some discussion for domestic courts,” Mr. IN said.
He added that Kandal Provincial Court would be using the printed copies of the verdict for the interests of further research to better understand the internalized judicial system and key legal concepts which can serve as jurisprudence for a subsequent domestic case handling.
Mr. HUOT Heang, a judge who also received a copy of the verdict, expressed his feeling that the Duch verdict rendered by the Khmer Rouge Tribunal was more comprehensive than those of national courts because it delineated legal and factual elements including the applications of the Internal Rules of the ECCC. He said he was optimistic that the printed copies of the verdict would be playing an important role in re-enforcing the reform of Cambodia’s justice system now underway. He went on to reiterate that he would be referring to the form of this verdict as a model for how to write a verdict, how to explain arguments and reasoning, and how to ultimately decide a court case. He hoped that by doing so he would be able to improve the quality of his case handling.
Apart from Kandal Trial Court, which has received the printed copies of the verdict, Phnom Penh Municipal Court and the Supreme Court have also written letters asking for copies. As the ceremony drew to a close, H.E. KRANH encouraged each and every provincial court to write letters to the ECCC requesting copies. He finished his remarks by inviting judges and prosecutors of Kandal Trial Court and other tribunals to visit the ECCC to observe trial proceedings in Case 002, expected to take place in the first half of 2011.