22 January 2007

Judges Seek Consensus on the Rules

By Anne-Laure Porée

PHNOM PENH — Since January 15, five Cambodian and four international judges have once again been discussing the internal rules for the Extraordinary Chambers within the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) in an attempt to resolve the issues that prevented the rules from being adopted at the end of November 2006.

Failure to adopt the rules led to an outcry by civil society for "politicizing the issue." By the end of January, the ECCC is expected to announce the date of the next plenary assembly, which will likely be held in March. "The PCC supports the current process, which is being conducted in an appropriate timeframe," said Chea Sim, president of the ruling PPC party in a speech celebrating the January 7, 1979 victory over the Khmer Rouge. Speaking to critics, he added: "We hope that they will adopt a more balanced point of view by trying not to hijack the Cambodian judicial system or the nation's sovereignty or honor, and by not deforming history to serve their own political agendas."

International Justice Tribune