The Phnom Penh Post

The tribunal announced this week that genocide charges had for the first time been brought against three regime leaders: Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary and Khieu Samphan.

The charges stem from the regime's treatment of Vietnamese and the Cham Muslim minority group.

Brother No 2 Nuon Chea and Ieng Sary, the regime's foreign minister, were informed of the charges during a meeting with investigating judges on Wednesday. Former head of state Khieu Samphan was informed Friday. A meeting with Ieng Thirith, former minister of social action, is scheduled for early next week.

The tribunal's security section has completed an investigation into the recent "Waterlilygate" controversy at the court, spokesman Lars Olsen told reporters Wednesday. He said no evidence of "foul play or theft" had been discovered.

Last week, defense lawyers for Nuon Chea said they believed there had been a security breach at the court after a confidential document from their office was found floating in a lily pond outside the ECCC.

Olsen said the security section is drafting a report about the recent investigation and will be strengthening security protocols.

In a mini-scandal the Post has dubbed "Waterlilygate," defense attorneys for Nuon Chea are claiming they found a confidential document from their office floating in a lily pond outside the Khmer Rouge tribunal.

Lawyer Michiel Pestman told reporters Thursday that he believed the document had been stolen from the defense team's office. I was not able to attend the press conference where these allegations were made, but you can read the Post article here.

"We have no explanation," he said. "What we do know is that the documents should have been shredded. They were not, and they were most probably stolen from our office."

Since the recent announcement that Helen Jarvis would become head of the ECCC Victims Unit, the former court spokeswoman has come under increased scrutiny.

In today's Cambodia Daily, lawyers for defendant Nuon Chea said Jarvis' political beliefs were cause for concern, and cited an open letter she had signed in 2006 penned by the Leninist Party Faction.

The letter, which was signed by over 50 people, reads, "We too are Marxists and believe that 'the ends justify the means.' In time of revolution and civil war, the most extreme measures will sometimes become necessary and justified. Against the bourgeoisie and their state agencies we don't respect their laws and their fake moral principles."

The ECCC's fifth plenary session opened Monday, with Judge Silvia Cartwright declaring that international judges "will not allow corruption to interfere with the tribunal's delivery of justice for the people of Cambodia."

Current funding shortfalls on the court's Cambodian side will be resolved once international donors are convinced the tribunal is "a corruption-free environment," she continued.

Before Cartwright made her opening remarks, Kong Srim, president of the supreme court chamber, told those gathered that the court did not have enough money to pay Cambodian staffers' salaries for March. Funding to the court's Cambodian side has stalled amid allegations of kickbacks at the tribunal.

Japan has pledged an additional $21-million to the troubled Khmer Rouge Tribunal, ensuring funding through early 2010. In a recent meeting between Prime Minister Hun Sen and Japan's foreign minister, the issue of corruption at the court was not discussed, according to an article in today's Post.

Meanwhile, lawyers for Nuon Chea, who filed a complaint last week in municipal court related to ECCC corruption, accused judges at the tribunal of using intimidation tactics. The judges claimed Nuon's lawyers had smeared the court and wrote that they "reserve the right to legal recourse against any individuals who have provoked such a problem."

The day after 50,000 Cambodians turned out to celebrate the fall of the Khmer Rouge -- and tribunal officials stated they believe the trial of "Comrade Duch" will begin in March -- defense lawyers lodged a complaint with Phnom Penh's Municipal Court, demanding investigation into corruption at the ECCC.

In their complaint, lawyers for Nuon Chea targeted tribunal administrative head Sean Visoth and former chief of personnel Keo Thyvuth.

"The lawyers say that shortly after the government received the results of a United Nations probe into the graft allegations, Keo Thyvuth was transferred and Sean Visoth went on leave 'until further notice,'" according to an article in today's Post. The results of the probe have never been made public.

* In an interview in yesterday's Post, Prince Sisowath Thomico says "I think that spending US$100 million just to try Duch is a big problem, because I don't think Khieu Samphan, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary and Ieng Thirith will ever be tried." Khieu Samphan's lawyer, Jacques Verges, expressed a similar viewpoint in a recent interview. This is a concern I often hear. Duch's case is by far the most straightforward, and even it is progressing more slowly than originally expected. The cases against the other defendants are far more complicated -- and, unfortunately, those defendants also happen to be older than Duch.

* Another, heartbreaking, article in the Post tells the story of a mother who is still waiting to hear news of a son that disappeared during the Khmer Rouge period. After 30 years, she still lives in the same village, just so her son can find her.

* The November edition of the Court Report is available online. In the newsletter, the Office of Co-Prosecutors reports that it "has accelerated its trial preparations in (Duch's case) dealing with the S-21 Security Centre of Phnom Penh. It prepared its audiovisual and other exhibits, witness lists and summaries, and other materials to be submitted as part of the pre-trial package to the Trial Chamber."

* Judges at the ECCC have extended the provisional detention of Ieng Sary and Ieng Thirith for another year.

* A confrontational meeting between "Comrade Duch" and Nuon Chea, originally scheduled for Wednesday, has been postponed.

As the Water Festival kicks off in Phnom Penh, I thought I should note some significant tribunal news:

* Germany has donated $1.9-million to the Victims Unit at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal. This appears a wise choice, as outreach is so important in ensuring the tribunal's relevance.

* Defense lawyers for Nuon Chea are requesting that Deputy Prime Minister Sok An turn over any correspondence between the Cambodian government and United Nations related to corruption allegations at the court.