Khieu Samphan in the courtroom during the pronouncement of appeal judgment in case 002/02 by the Supreme Court Chamber of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) on September 22, 2022. ECCC/Nhet Sokheng
Vongsey Vissoth, Minister in charge of the Council of Ministers, stated that the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), also known as the Khmer Rouge Tribunal (KRT), not only achieved its goals but also stood out in five unique ways compared to other international courts.
He made these remarks at the groundbreaking ceremony for the ECCC’s resource centre expansion project – which includes a consultation room for Khmer Rouge victims, a permanent trial gallery hall and a memorial park – on July 16 in Phnom Penh.
He highlighted that the first singular event was the tribunal's trial and life imprisonment sentencing of the former head of state of the Khmer Rouge regime for genocide crimes. He said this marked the first such sentencing since the establishment of the UN Convention on the Prevention of Genocide in 1948 and was unprecedented in the history of international criminal prosecution.
“The ECCC also allowed victims to participate in legal proceedings on behalf of civil parties, which is an important step forward compared to other international criminal courts,” Vissoth stated.
He further highlighted that the hybrid tribunal conducted direct dissemination to more than 650,000 participants by allowing residents and victims to directly watch the trial and arrange study visits during proceedings.
Vissoth, also chairman of the Task Force for the Implementation of ECCC's Residual Functions, stated, “[the ECCC] is internationally recognised for fully maintaining Cambodia's sovereignty through ownership and leadership”.
“A number of countries, including Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Senegal and Central Africa, have studied this hybrid model and set up similar courts to try genocide and heinous crimes,” he added.
Finally, the minister pointed out that the tribunal spent the least amount of money compared to other international criminal courts, with the national side covering about a quarter and the international side covering about three-quarters of the expenses, with the total estimated at between $80 million and $100 million annually.
“From 2006 to 2023, the ECCC spent a total of $407 million, of which $293 million (72%) was contributed by the international community, $67 million (16%) was direct funding from the UN and $47 million (12%) was contributed by the Cambodian government,” he added.
The tribunal completed the trial of crimes committed during the Democratic Kampuchea regime in late 2022. Since the beginning of 2023, it has carried out its remaining functions, with the first three-year term scheduled to end by 2025.
Vissoth stated that over the past 16 years, the tribunal has accumulated more than 230,000 court documents, equivalent to nearly 2.4 million pages in three languages: Khmer, English and French.
In September 2023, the resource centre was inaugurated to preserve and enhance tribunal-related heritage, allowing the public to access and learn about the history of the regime.
Miguel de Serpa Soares, undersecretary-general for Legal Affairs and the UN Legal Counsel, said at the event that over the years, the ECCC has made significant efforts in disseminating information and reaching stakeholders across the country.
He noted that through these unprecedented efforts, it has reached hundreds of thousands of people since 2009. The centre has continued this “important work”, with more than 26,000 people engaging with the ECCC through study tours, outreach and visits between last year and the first half of this year alone, he added.
“Information sharing and dissemination of information are functions which will also need to continue after the eventual closure of the ECCC, because they are essential to its long-term legacy and will further enhance ongoing remembrance within the Cambodian society and beyond,” Soares said.
