Duch to appeal war crimes conviction

Khmer Rouge prison chief Duch will appeal against his conviction by Cambodia's UN-backed war crimes tribunal, which sentenced him to 35 years in jail, his defence lawyer said Tuesday.

“Duch”, whose real name is Kaing Guek Eav, was found guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity by the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) on Monday.

He was convicted of religious political persecution, extermination, imprisonment, torture perpetrated against at least 12,272 victims (full judgement). But the 67-year-old the former schoolteacher only has 19 years left to serve because the judges reduced his sentence by 16 years, giving him credit for time served as well as his illegal detention in a Cambodian military prison before he was handed over to the tribunal.

Duch's lawyer Kar Savuth on Tuesday announced that "he will appeal against the decision."

Acquittal
During his 72-day trial, Duch repeatedly apologised for overseeing the mass murder of thousands of men, women and children at Tuol Sleng prison - also known as S-21 - but shocked the court in November by finally asking to be acquitted.

Kar Savuth - during closing arguments - in November said Duch wanted to be acquitted on the grounds that he was not a senior member of the Khmer Rouge hierarchy, while his other defence lawyer Francois Roux had argued for leniency based on his contrition. Duch then sacked Roux for "loss of confidence", just weeks before a verdict.

Roux said in November the change in plea was a "bad surprise" and apparently linked to political interference in the trial, noting that Prime Minister Hun Sen - himself a former Khmer Rouge cadre before turning against the movement - had previously said he hoped the tribunal would fail.

Duch's appeal for release "calls into question Duch's plea of culpability, but also the competence of the court," the French lawyer said last year.

But after the verdict Roux, who is now head of the defence section for the UN special tribunal for Lebanon (STL), said he hoped the trial had helped Duch reconcile with the Cambodian people.

"I express my hopes that this trial, including the cooperation of the accused to justice, has provided an initial response to the Cambodian people about the tragedy he has lived," Roux said in a statement.

"Well-reasoned judgment"
Prosecutors have said they are considering whether to appeal against the sentence. They had sought a 40-year prison term from the tribunal, which did not have the power to impose the death penalty.

But international co-prosecutor Andrew Cayley said Tuesday he thought it was a "logical, well-reasoned judgment".

"You must recall that this is a man who actually acknowledged responsibility and pleaded guilty but still received a sentence of 35 years, which is actually on the high side as far as guilty pleas are concerned," Cayley said.

Completely different trials
The tribunal in Phnom Penh is holding four other Khmer Rouge leaders, with the second trial scheduled to start next year. Awaiting trial are: Nuon Chea (82) the highest-ranking Khmer Rouge leader still living; Ieng Sary (84) the regime’s foreign minister; Ieng Thirith (78) minister for social affairs and wife of Ieng Sary; and Khieu Samphan (77) who was head of state while the regime was in power.

Dutch lawyer Viktor Koppe represents Nuon Chea – the right-hand man of Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, a.k.a. Brother Nunber 2 – who is accused of genocide. Mr Koppe is not surprised by the ruling against Duch:

"The prosecution sought a 40-year jail sentence, but the tribunal decided to reduce it by a number of years because he had been held illegally prior to his arrest. The tribunal also decided not to impose a life sentence because he pleaded guilty right from the start and consistently cooperated with the investigation."

Duch pleaded guilty right from the start, but the four other suspects claim to be innocent. According to Mr Koppe, this is why the second trial, “Will be completely different from Duch’s.”

The Dutch lawyer told Radio Netherlands Worldwide he is concerned about political interference in the tribunal’s future trials of Khmer Rouge leaders:

"There has been widespread, and justified criticism of the hold the Cambodian government has over the tribunal. … I expect that the extent of the government’s influence on the Cambodian judges in particular will be extensively discussed during the second trial. This is really the most important issue: whether the Cambodian judges will be independent and impartial.”

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