The United Nations-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal will request US$89 million from the international community next week when officials fly to New York on Monday to present UN headquarters with the tribunal’s budget.

“For the coming two years (2012 and 2013), the ECCC is requesting approval of the proposed budget of roughly $89 million, of which around $45 million is for 2012 and around $43 million is for 2013,” public-affairs officer Huy Vannak told the Post.

“For the two-year plan of the ECCC, the national side of the ECCC is requesting roughly $20 million and the international side of the ECCC is requesting roughly $69 million.”

Cambodian staff at the court are not being paid because the national side of the ECCC has run out of money.

Some Cambodian staff members have not received their salaries since October last year, and a team of legal officers from the Office of the Co-Prosecutors have asked that they be allowed to leave their positions in favour of paid work until the funding crisis is resolved.