Mennonite Weekly Review

A friend of mine once visited the genocide museum in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. He said the piles of skulls used most often to depict visually what happened in the 1970s did not affect him as much as the pictures on the wall — pictures of Cambodians with numbers on their chests and facial expressions that showed they knew they were about to die.

Kathleen Kern, of Rochester, N.Y., serves with Christian Peacemaker Teams.

More than 30 years later, these victims are finally going to get their day in court at a war crimes tribunal that has begun near Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Called the “Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia,” it is a joint effort of the United Nations and the government of Cambodia.

In 1973, after the United States had dropped more bombs on Cambodia than it had in all the bombings of all the theaters in World War II, Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge emerged as victors in the Cambodian civil war.

The victory was due, in part, to the anti-Western loathing the bombings generated among the Cambodian people. Between 1975 and 1979, the Khmer Rouge caused somewhere between 750,000 to 3.3 million Cambodian deaths.

The FAQ section of the tribunal’s Web site notes that only senior Khmer Rouge decisionmakers are facing charges. Ordinary soldiers who defected to the government are safe, as are “low-level and middle-ranking Khmer Rouge members,” many of whom have reintegrated into society. “Hopefully, these people will live peaceful lives according to Buddhist principles and assist in the development of our country,” the FAQ response notes.

Currently, the five people charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity are Kaing Guek Eav, alias “Duch,” chief torturer for the Khmer Rouge; Nuon Chea, former head of the National Assembly; Ieng Sary, former minister of foreign affairs; Ieng Thirith, former minister of social affairs; and Khieu Samphan, former head of state.

Duch, who testified on April 6, noted that he believed the Khmer Rouge would have died out by 1970 if the United States had not supported Cambodia’s military-led government after the 1970 coup that removed Prince Norodom Sihanouk from power.

U.S. complicity in the Cambodian genocide has led some critics to scoff at the trials. Why, they ask, isn’t Henry Kissinger on trial for his part in creating the atmosphere that led to the genocide?

Although this criticism has some validity, I think, overall, the trials are a good thing — especially since the death penalty is unconstitutional in Cambodia. The existence of the tribunal “sends a powerful signal throughout the world that the international community is getting serious … about accountability for atrocity crimes and that there is no stopwatch for justice,” writes David Scheffer, the former U.S. Ambassador at Large for War Crimes Issues.

Perhaps convictions of the five Khmer Rouge leaders will provide a model for citizens of many countries who are looking for ways to hold accountable the architects of current atrocities, and atrocities yet to come in our sinful world.

Kathleen Kern, of Rochester, N.Y., serves with Christian Peacemaker Teams.