High-tech court

Elena Lesley — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 02:10:51 +0100

A very exciting development for those of us trying to keep up with ECCC developments from abroad: the tribunal has launched a “virtual court.”

"The Virtual Tribunal will be a groundbreaking way for the [tribunal] to digitally make available to the public all trial related materials such as decisions, filings, trial transcripts and video of the court proceedings," according to Voice of America.

U.S. univerities partnering with the effort include Stanford and theRead More...

Ambassador says tribunal "worth saving"

Elena Lesley — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 21:06:34 +0100

Last week, I had the opportunity to hear Clint Williamson, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for war crimes issues, speak to a crowd of Rutgers students and professors about international justice efforts in a number of different countries. While it wasn't the sole focus of his presentation, Williamson did discuss the Khmer Rouge tribunal, and I was pleased with what he had to say.

Americans not following tribunal developments, according to NY Times

Elena Lesley — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 03:33:29 +0100

A recent commentary in the New York Times describes the general lack of attention the Khmer Rouge tribunal has received in the United States. I have to say that, sadly, since I returned to the U.S. in August, I have found this largely to be the case.

It is particularly inexcusable considering the role America played in decimating the country and creating circumstances that allowed the Khmer Rouge to come to power in the first place.

As Richard Bernstein writes, the lack of attenRead More...

New Granta piece on the tribunal

Elena Lesley — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 04:10:50 +0100

My second piece for Granta.com about the tribunal was recently posted online. You can read it here. It discusses the scope of culpability for Khmer Rouge atrocities and includes an interview I conducted with former S-21 guard Him Huy (pictured at left) before I left Cambodia.

The recent lecture at Rutgers was a great experience and the students had a number of interestingRead More...

Upcoming Rutgers lecture

Elena Lesley — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:25:04 +0100

For those of you in the New Jersey area, I will be giving a lecture at Rutgers University, Newark on Thursday about the Khmer Rouge tribunal. The event is part of a speaker series hosted by the university's Center for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights. You can find information about the talk here.

I believe most of the students who will be attending are enrolled in a seminar that examines the role of perpetrators in genocidal violence. Part of their course involves studying ComradRead More...

Khmer Rouge survivors in Oregon can offer evidence to tribunal

Elena Lesley — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 03:10:00 +0100

The Cambodian Diaspora Victims' Participation Project will be holding workshops in Portland this weekend to show Khmer Rouge survivors how they can file testimony with the tribunal. More information can be found here. The workshops will be held Saturday and Sunday, from 9:30am to 3pm at 10301 NE Glisan St. in Portland.

A forum for healing in Portland, Ore.

Elena Lesley — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 03:22:58 +0100

I have been on the road for awhile, so this post is late in coming, but I wanted to make note of a wonderful event that was held last month in Portland, Ore.: a "Collective Sharing and Healing Forum" sponsored by the Cambodian-American Community of Oregon. It is the second event of its kind in Portland and happened to coincide with a trip to my hometown.

I have to admit, before IRead More...

Blog changes

Elena Lesley — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 18:40:00 +0100

After nearly a year and a half in Cambodia, the time has come for me to return to the U.S. While I certainly plan to come back to Cambodia in the future, it most likely won't be before the trial of Comrade Duch has wrapped up. Luckily, a talented journalist at the Post has offered to help me maintain the blog.

Robbie Corey-Boulet received an M.S. in journalism from Columbia University and wrote for publications in India and Seattle before coming to the Phnom Penh Post. A strange coinciRead More...

KRT in brief

Elena Lesley — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 05:29:11 +0100

In recent days, scholar David Chandler has testified to Khmer Rouge stupidity, and a former S-21 gravedigger has described how he helped dispose of bodies.

"The court is yours," Public Affairs head tells Cambodians

Elena Lesley — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 15:22:20 +0100

Luckily, it seems that our webmaster at the Post has been able to work out some of the kinks with the new format, and I am able to post entries again. I still need to correct formatting issues with old entries, but this will be done in the near future.

Since I last wrote, the court has continued interviewing former S-21 staffers. Recaps of these testimonies are aRead More...

Games at Tuol Sleng

Elena Lesley — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 05:00:00 +0100

Sorry for the inconsistent posting and the recent lack of links and photos. The Post website is still being upgraded and we're trying to sort everything out. However, if you would like to see photos from the most recent days of testimony, you can check out the ECCC's new Flickr page: www.flickr.com/photos/krtribunal/

Former S-21 guard Him Huy finished his testimony Monday, which Comrade Duch agreed was largely accurate except for a few "minimal shortcomings." Most notably, Him claimed he sRead More...

Executions at Choeung Ek "took hours," former guard tells court

Elena Lesley — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 17:00:00 +0100

Him Huy gave a chilling account Thursday of executions at the Choeung Ek Killing Fields. Unlike former S-21 deputy Mam Nay, whom Comrade Duch accused of withholding information, Him was very forthcoming in his testimony.

Tuol Sleng detainees destined for the Killing Fields were generally loaded onto trucks around 8pm, under cover of darkness, Him told judges. If they asked where they were being taken, staff had been instructed by deputy chairman Comrade Hor to say they were “goinRead More...

Former S-21 guard Him Huy testifies

Elena Lesley — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 05:00:00 +0100

It was a moving -- and disturbing -- day at the court as Him Huy offered detailed testimony about operations at S-21 and the Killing Fields. I will post about this tomorrow ...

Mam Nay's regret: that the Vietnamese defeated the Khmer Rouge

Elena Lesley — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 05:00:00 +0100

Former S-21 deputy Mam Nay did indeed begin testifying today, although his much-anticipated appearance was somewhat anticlimactic. For the most part, the 76-year-old, bundled in a krama and gloves, claimed he couldn't remember much about his work under Comrade Duch.

He told judges that, despite his status as an interrogator at S-21, he did not torture prisoners. Moreover, he claimed that the detainees brought to him looked neither malnourished nor mistreated -- a comment met with disbeliefRead More...

Former S-21 deputy to testify tomorrow

Elena Lesley — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:00:00 +0100

It has been a little while since I posted, partly because the Phnom Penh Post website has been undergoing an upgrade (sorry that the format is still a bit strange), and partly because I spent the last week traveling with my parents, who are visiting the region.

But I was back at court today, in time to see the chamber wrap up questioning of civil party Nam Mon. Claiming she had been a medic at S-21, Nam’s story was somewhat inconsistent, which seems to have been the case for several other Read More...

Another crowded day at the ECCC as third S-21 survivor speaks

Elena Lesley — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:00:00 +0100

It was another full house today at the ECCC as Tuol Sleng survivor Bou Meng testified before the chamber. The Public Affairs Office has done a wonderful job of getting people out to the court this week and I hope the trend continues. While hearings have often been sparsely attended in the past -- partly due to the incredibly inconvenient location of the trRead More...

Website renovation

Elena Lesley — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:00:00 +0100

It appears that the Phnom Penh Post website is currently under renovation and this is making it difficult for me to post on my blog. I will wait until the work is complete to write about today's testimony of S-21 child survivor Norn Chanpal.

"I cry every night," torture survivor tells court

Elena Lesley — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 22:00:00 +0100

In some of the most powerful testimony to date at the Khmer Rouge tribunal, former Tuol Sleng prisoner Chum Mey told the court today about his harrowing experiences during Democratic Kampuchea. He broke down and wept at several points, when describing the torture he endured and the deaths of his wife and children.

"I cry every night," he told the court. "I am like a mentalRead More...

A life-saving talent

Elena Lesley — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:00:00 +0100

Tuol Sleng survivor Vann Nath testified before the tribunal today and, while he has told his story publicly many times before, it was a poignant moment in the court's development. Nath, who is in poor health, had expressed concern in the past that he may not live to see justice done.

Hopefully, the fact that he has now confronted his former captor in an international court Read More...

Petit calls resignation "a fully private matter"

Elena Lesley — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 20:00:00 +0100

International Co-Prosecutor Robert Petit emphatically told journalists today that his decision to leave the ECCC is "entirely related to personal family matters." And, he continued, "totally unrelated to my professional responsibilities at this court."

He said his decision to leave was made after months of reflection and "has everything to do with issues frRead More...

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