Hun Sen accused foreign judges and prosecutors at the U.N.-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal of seeking to arrest new suspects as part of a plot by foreign governments to incite unrest
Chim
By SOPHENG CHEANG,Associated Press Writer - 2 hours 24 minutes ago
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – Cambodia's prime minister accused foreign
judges and prosecutors at the U.N.-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal of
seeking to arrest new suspects as part of a plot by foreign
governments to incite unrest.
Hun Sen's accusation was the latest in a series he has launched
against the tribunal and its ruling last week to allow foreign
prosecutors to pursue more suspects.
On Monday, Hun Sen said such action could lead to civil war. He has
repeatedly spoken out against expanding the list of defendants beyond
the one currently on trial _ Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, _ and
four others in custody.
He elaborated Wednesday, saying foreign governments want war in
Cambodia, a former French colony that was later wracked by decades of
civil war.
"I know that some foreign judges and prosecutors have received orders
from their governments to create problems here," Hun Sen said while
inaugurating a Buddhist pagoda south of the capital. "There is no
doubt that they have received advice from their government to do so."
Hun Sen did not name specific countries. The tribunal includes 12
foreign judges and two foreign prosecutors from countries including
Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Zambia.
"What Cambodia needs is peace," Hun Sen added. "If Cambodia has peace,
they (foreign governments) are not quite happy with us _ but if
Cambodia has war, they are happy because then we'll be easy to
occupy."
A tribunal spokesman, Lars Olsen, said Hun Sen's comments were being
verified before a comment could be issued.
Critics accuse Hun Sen of trying to limit the tribunal's scope to
prevent his political allies from being indicted. Hun Sen once served
as a Khmer Rouge officer and many of his main allies are also former
members of the group.
On Tuesday, the tribunal's acting international co-prosecutor, William
Smith of Australia, formally recommended that five more suspects be
investigated for possible crimes against humanity and other offenses.
The tribunal's Cambodian co-prosecutor opposed further indictments,
but the tribunal ruled last week that his international counterpart
could seek them. The tribunal, created last year under an agreement
reached in 2003 between Cambodia and the United Nations, employs joint
teams of Cambodian and international court personnel.
The tribunal is seeking justice for the estimated 1.7 million people
who died in Cambodia from execution, overwork, disease and
malnutrition as a result of the ultra-communist group's radical
policies while in power in 1975-79.
The Khmer Rouge took control after a bitter 1970-75 civil war, and
after being ousted from power in 1979, fought an insurgency from the
jungles until 1999.
Jesus Christ the Cunt Fucker
to be implicated in these new arrests .
Chim
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There are lots of issues involved. Although he may not be the suspect,
he may be close enough to the suspect that it would create political,
social and psychological repercussions. Just like he said, there will
be instability. But that kind of destabilization can be regulated and
restored if the leaders are sincere in seeking justice and healing the
wounds from the war.
Change is very unsettled but that's part of the progress.
This is very important that the masses should be educated and that
leadership be filtered through clean electoral process where good and
honest ideas are being assessed by voters. Otherwise, ordinary folks
would not want to change even if they're going to benefit from the
change.
Hun Sen has so many issues to resolve and each one of them is very
challenging. He doesn't want to have more issues on his plate. That
was the reason of the coup in July 1997.
But that's the way people change things when they don't know any
better. When they know more about life in general, challenge becomes
the opportunity to use the mind, the heart and the spirit. Hun Sen and
most of the Khmer leaders may not realize that wisdom of problem
solving.
Chim
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Other issues are time and money. If international prosecutors and
judges would like to add more suspects to the current schedule, they
may need to come up with the money and time. Cambodia is a poor
country and it has no time to think about an expanded search for
justice.
So, if other nations care deeply about justice for humanity and
certainly for the Khmer people, then they need to be more generous.