Tag Archives: office

Concern Mounts Over Credibility of the Court

The UN-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal is steadily working toward it biggest, more complicated trial to date, but that trial has been overshadowed in recent months by the court’s handling of two additional cases, which has seen the resignation of one UN judge and an emergency meeting with the UN’s top legal counsel and Cambodian officials. A growing number of court observers now say the court’s approach to cases 003 and 004 is derailing its credibility, even as it prepares to try four Khmer Rouge leaders for one of the worst atrocities of the 20 th Century. The Khmer Rouge tribunal will face its most difficult trial some time next year. Continue reading →

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Top UN Official To Look Into Political Interference at Tribunal

Patricia O’Brien, the head of the UN’s Office of Legal Affairs, will arrive in Cambodia this week, following the sudden resignation of a UN judge at the Khmer Rouge tribunal, officials said Monday. German judge Siegfried Blunk said his Oct. 8 resignation was due to continued statements by top Cambodian officials opposing two cases at the court, which critics have called evidence of continued political interference Continue reading →

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Leading Researcher Calls on UN to Investigate Tribunal Judges’ Office

The head of the Documentation Center of Cambodia on Wednesday called for the UN to take “decisive action” to investigate the office of investigating judges at the Khmer Rouge tribunal, following the abrupt resignation of its international judge on Monday. The Documentation Center is a major researcher of Khmer Rouge atrocities, providing thousands of documents that have made the tribunal possible. Chhang Youk, director of the center, said the resignation of German judge Siegfried Blunk—who cited government statements against further indictments as his reason for quitting—required the UN to “restore the reputation” of the court. Continue reading →

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New Book Explores Cambodia’s ‘Hidden Scars’

[Editor’s note: “Cambodia’s Hidden Scars” delves into the trauma caused to the Cambodian population by the Khmer Rouge, even today. One of the authors, Daryn Reicherter, is a professor of psychiatry at Stanford University’s School of Medicine. He has researched mental health and human rights issues in Cambodia, Haiti, Indonesia and other countries Continue reading →

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UN Urges Asia to Enforce Human Trafficking Laws

Senior United Nations officials say countries of the Greater Mekong Sub-region including Thailand, Cambodia and Laos are failing to apply existing laws aimed at combating human trafficking.  The conclusions come as a U.N. envoy on human trafficking concluded a 10-day assessment of Thailand’s efforts to curb labor migration abuses. Continue reading →

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More Calls for UN To Look Into Judges at Tribunal

A leading human rights advocate added his voice to a chorus of criticism for the UN’s handling of the Khmer Rouge tribunal on Thursday, saying the international agency should investigate the way investigating judges handled a controversial third case at the court. Ou Virak, head of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, told “Hello VOA” the UN must “investigate the current chaos” at the court, after judges hastily concluded an investigation into Case 003. The handling of that case, which the government opposes, has set off a raft of complaints from victims groups and legal experts and sparked resignations of staff members and a chief consultant to the judges. Continue reading →

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