The Future of ECCC

By: HIM Sokunthea
DMC
Should it become a museum, historical place or else? If it is destroyed what are the materials and documents should be kept?

There is a question mark (?) in many Cambodian people toward future of Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC). People are doubtful what ECCC will be in the near future after all the cases have been completed. Until now, there is no clear respond regarding this issue whether it will be a museum, historical place and many other things. Yet, it totally depends on Cambodian government to decide on this matter.

Mr. Reach Sambath, a Chief Administration of ECCC, said the future of ECCC building and land is still unclear. We can not assume about the future of ECCC now because everything depends on Cambodian Government’s decision.

The ECCC should become a….?
Many Cambodian people have various opinions toward the future of ECCC. Mr. Kaing Chansopheak, a teacher of English said that ECCC should be keep as a court room as today. The court at Phnom Penh should move to ECCC after all the cases have been completed by adding that the Phnom Penh’s court is quite small. However, Miss. Ip Makara, an assistance at Khmer Dev Company say that ECCC should become a museum because it helps our next Cambodian people aware of this special court as well as to let them know about the Khmer Rouge Regime. Similary, Mrs. Sok Tida, a staff at Canadiana Bank said that if ECCC became a museum in order to attract foreigners to visitor. Thus, it could be another new historical place for both international and national visitors.

Documentary and useful file/information
At ECCC, there are plenty of useful documents related to the Khmer Rouge Regime. The court takes so long times to gather all those files for each case. It is beneficial to younger Cambodia people when they wish to learn or understand more about the Khmer Rogue Regime. Where the documents or files should will be after the ECCC have completed all the cases?

According to Mr. Reach Sambath, he said that all those legal documents will be formally stored at a new museum, which will soon be constructed outside Phnom Penh city. We have already got two million dollars fund from Japanese Government to build museum to store all the file and documents at ECCC in order to maintain all useful documents for Cambodian people to see.

Where all the staffs at ECCC go?
ECCC is a multicultural and international staffs working environment. As it is stated in a Court Report for 2009, at the moment, there are various nationalities represented among the staffs of ECCC, the largest share of the international staffs come from Australia while the rest are from United States, France and other countries. With the new arrival of new employees in next few months, the number will rise. In total, there are 350 staffs with 40 interns both national and international working at ECCC.

For international staffs, they will move back to their home countries whereas Cambodian staffs will find other jobs after ECCC will have been finished. These staffs could gain plenty of experience and knowledge as they have been working at ECCC, Mr. Reach Sambath said.

The establishment of ECCC
The ECCC, established in 2003 under an agreement between the UN and Cambodia, is tasked with trying senior leaders and those most responsible for serious violations of Cambodian and international law committed during the Khmer Rouge rule.

In 1997 the government requested the United Nations (UN) to assist in establishing a trial to prosecute the senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge.

In 2001 the Cambodian National Assembly passed a law to create a court to try serious crimes committed during the Khmer Rouge regime 1975-1979. This court is called the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia for the Prosecution of Crimes Committed during the Period of Democratic Kampuchea (Extraordinary Chambers or ECCC).

The government of Cambodia insisted that, for the sake of the Cambodian people, the trial must be held in Cambodia using Cambodian staff and judges together with foreign personnel. Cambodia invited international participation due to the weakness of the Cambodian legal system and the international nature of the crimes, and to help in meeting international standards of justice. An agreement with the UN was ultimately reached in June 2003 detailing how the international community will assist and participate in the Extraordinary Chambers.

According to ECCC website, it is stated that ECCC was established to find justice for Cambodian people who have been suffered from traumatized time during Khmer Rouge Regime.

It is a unique court Cambodia
This special new court was created by the government and the UN but it will be independent of them. It is a Cambodian court with international participation that will apply international standards.

According to Mr. Reach Sambath, he said that ECCC is a new role model court operation in Cambodia because 1. It adopts both national and international law to use, 2. It exists with cooperation between Cambodian government and foreign aids, 3. It appeals in real place where the genocide occurred. With all these points that make ECCC become a unique court in Cambodia.