Edited Chaem decision draws ire
INTERNATIONAL tribunal monitors have slammed what they call the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s lack of transparency in the wake of a heavily redacted decision to dismiss the case against former Khmer Rouge district secretary Im Chaem.
The lengthy document – many pages of it redacted – was intended to outline the rationale for why Chaem fell outside of the court’s jurisdiction, but offered little in the way of detailed reasoning beyond saying she could not be prosecuted as she was neither a “senior leader” nor one of those “most responsible” for the crimes of the regime.
That dearth of explanation, observers said yesterday, would do little to satiate the public’s thirst for justice or quell persistent claims of government interference.
Chaem’s case – along with those of Meas Muth, Yim Tith and Ao An – has been openly opposed by the government for years, with Prime Minister Hun Sen going so far as to warn civil war could break out if the cases go to trial, much to observers’ chagrin. The cases have also long been marred by disagreements between national and international investigators as to whether they should proceed.
Monday’s filing confirmed Chaem was the Preah Net Preah district secretary and that she was a “trusted and close aide” of Ta Mok, known as “the butcher”, who purged the Khmer Rouge’s own soldiers in the Northwest Zone in 1977.
It also determined there CONTINUED
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