Chapter Three
On Life in Phnom Penh
This past Wednesday, I had my first holiday from the Tribunal for Eid al-Fitr. To celebrate, a group of the tribunal’s interns headed to Oudong—Cambodia’s former capital. This town acted as the capital from 1618-1866, and sits atop a mountain that hosts a variety of temples and stupas.
We arrived in Oudong after fighting through traffic and swerving around wandering cows. We found ourselves at the base of Phnom Odong Mountain, and the mountain greeted us with a 509 step climb to the first peak. While it was an easy climb to the top, the 95 degree temperature and mischievous monkeys kept us on our toes. The journey was well worth the heat. On the peak, the temples were ornately carved—each inch of the building was beautiful, and the entirety of the temple was overwhelming. My favorite temple showcased images of Buddha’s face on the temple’s turret. As we looked over the countryside from the peak, faint music from a monk’s monastery added to the day’s serenity.
On a Case Tried by the Khmer Rouge Tribunal:
Case 002 concerned Khmer Rouge Leaders Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan. The case was split into two separate trials—Case 002/01 and Case 002/02.
The trial for 002/01 began in 2011. The charges were limited to crimes committed during two phases of forced population movement and violations that occurred at Toul Po Chery execution site. The charges brought by the Co-Prosecutors included the crimes against humanity of murder, extermination, persecution of political groups, and the other inhumane acts of enforced disappearances, forced transfer and attacks against human dignity.
On April 17, 1975, Cambodia’s capital—Phnom Penh—fell to the Khmer Rouge. The Khmer Rouge forced all people living in Phnom Penh out of their homes. This incident was the first phase of forced population movement. The judgment states that two million peopled fled the cities. Those that survived were brought to rural camps, but many babies, toddlers, and elderly persons did not survive the evacuation.
Phase two of the forced population movement occurred when the Khmer Rouge organized individuals into cooperatives. The Khmer Rouge believed that cooperatives would allow for agricultural production, help defend the country from enemies, and spur the economy. The Trial Chamber could not discern how many people the Khmer Rouge displaced, but noted that, at the very least, 300,000-400,000 people were forced to relocate into cooperatives.
The Khmer Rouge used the Tuol Po Chrey execution site to massacre officials of the previous regime. The Trial Chamber recalls that the Khmer Rouge misled these officials to bring them to the execution site. Informed that they would meet the Prince, former officials and soldiers willing stepped onto trucks heading to Tuol Po Chery. The Khmer Rouge immediately shot each person that arrived. The judgment states that at least 250 people were killed at Tuol Po Chrey after Phnom Penh fell to the Khmer Rouge. However, the Documentation Center of Cambodia approximated that the Khmer Rouge killed 10,363 people at this site between 1975-1978.
In August of 2014, the Trial Chamber held that Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan were individually criminal responsible for the crimes against humanity of murder, extermination, persecution of political grounds and other inhumane acts. The Chamber convicted the two defendants a life sentence. Both Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan appealed this decision. The Supreme Court overturned several of the convictions—they reasoned that the evidence did not establish the crimes against humanity of extermination and persecution on political grounds in relation to the second population movement. Further, the Supreme Court argued that the evidence was insufficient to convict the defendants for the crimes at Tuol Po Chrey, because the admitted evidence had low probative value, and the Trial Chamber failed to consider pieces of exonerating evidence. Accordingly, the Supreme Court reversed the convictions for the crimes against humanity of extermination, murder, and persecution on political grounds that occurred at Tuol Po Chrey. The Supreme Court, however, affirmed the life sentences for Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan.
For more, see https://www.eccc.gov.kh/en/case/topic/1295