ECCC, Case 002/01, Issue 1

Case 002/01

ECCC

Cambodia

English

Beginning 27 June 2011, the Trial Chamber of the ECCC presided over several days of Initial Hearings in the case against four alleged senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge: Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Ieng Thirith and Khieu Samphan. This marked the official commencement of the trial pursuant to Rule 80 bis. During the hearing, the Chamber considered the parties’ lists of potential witnesses and the initial specifications of reparations awards the CPLCL intend to seek under Rule 23 quinquies (3)(b). The parties also presented their oral arguments on the following legal issues: (i) ne bis in idem (also known as “double jeopardy” in common law systems), (ii) the royal pardon and amnesty granted to Ieng Sary by King Norodom Sihanouk, (iii) the statute of limitations for grave breaches of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, and (iv) the statute of limitations for the national crimes within the jurisdiction of the ECCC. 

All four of the Accused in this case are charged with crimes against humanity, genocide, and grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, as well as murder, torture, and religious persecution in violation of the 1956 Cambodian Penal Code. The Indictment alleges that the Accused are responsible on account of their participation in a joint criminal enterprise for their acts or omissions in Cambodia, between 17 April 1975 and 6 January 1979. The Indictment further alleges that the Accused are liable, additionally or in the alternative, for having planned, instigated, ordered, and/or aided or abetted the various crimes charged and/or that they are culpable by way of command responsibility. In addition to the regularly scheduled legal arguments addressed during the hearing, the Court also allowed the Nuon Chea Defense to raise additional concerns, after the Accused threatened to quit the proceedings for the day if his concerns were not addressed. Early in the hearing, Nuon Chea declared that he was “not happy” with the agenda, and requested permission for his Counsel to address additional matters, outside the scope of the hearing. Mr. Nil Nonn, the President of the Chamber, initially denied Nuon Chea’s request, but the latter’s international lawyer, Mr. Michiel Pestman, proceeded to raise the issues. Pestman conveyed his client’s objections to the manner in which the Investigating Judges carried out the investigative phase of the trial. He also reiterated his client’s demand that the Chamber allow the Nuon Chea Defense to call all 300 of their witnesses to testify at the trial. Significantly, Pestman informed the Court that unless Nuon Chea’s objections and all his witnesses were included in the agenda, his client no longer wants to honor the proceedings.4 Shortly thereafter, Nuon Chea abruptly requested permission to leave the Courtroom, stating that he would only return if the issues his counsel raised were addressed before the public in open court. The Chamber acquiesced to his request.