Original report from Washington
18 September 2009
The investigation of five more suspects under the Khmer Rouge tribunal continues to be controversial, and the question of whether more suspects will be indicted in a heavily politicized environment remains.
The government promised amnesty for ex-Khmer Rouge in 1996, a move that led to peace and stability in subsequent years. But the government and the UN also established a law between 1999 and 2003 to try Khmer Rouge leaders involved in crimes.
UN prosecutors have moved to investigate five more suspects, but it is now up to the investigating judges to determine if the cases warrant arrests. Prime Minister Hun Sen and other Cambodian officials have warned that widened indictments beyond five Khmer Rouge leaders already in custody could lead to national instability.
James Goldston, executive director of the Open Society Justice Initiative, which monitors the UN-backed tribunal, told VOA Khmer the court must be free of influence from politicians and other outside actors, to allow the investigating judges to do their work.
“Tribunal staff is legally obligated to arrest and investigate the additional suspects if the evidence justifies it,” he said. “It is not an optional exercise.”
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