Monday, March 30, 2009

Hailstorm, unseasonal rain hit [Vietnam] north-central, southern regions


A hailstorm on Sunday blew off the tin sheet roofing from several houses in Thach Ha District in the north-central province of Ha Tinh

Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Thanh Nien News (Hanoi)

A hailstorm on Sunday damaged power lines and blew away the roofs of hundreds of houses in the north-central provinces of Ha Tinh and Nghe An.
In Ha Tinh Province, two people were injured; and 687 houses and three schools in the districts of Thach Ha, Cam Xuyen and Ky Anh lost their roofs.

About 28 kilometers of power lines were devastated in Thach Ha District.

The hailstorm destroyed 90 hectares of rice paddies and 35 hectares of crops in the province, inflicting damages estimated at more than VND2.5 billion (US$141,000).

In Nghe An Province, nearly 200 houses were unroofed in Thanh Duc and Thanh Nho communes in Thanh Chuong District and Cao Son Commune in Anh Son District.

Dozens of electricity poles in these districts were broken, and hundreds of hectares of rice paddies and crops suffered serious damage.

The unpredictable weather Monday caused unseasonal rains in the south and is forecast to do the same today.

Le Thi Xuan Lan, an official of the weather bureau for the southern region, said Monday’s rains in Ho Chi Minh City and the provinces of Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Ca Mau and Kien Giang came from convection clouds that had been formed by hot weather in the area.

She said the phenomenon will spread to more areas in the south tomorrow, including HCMC and the provinces of Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai and Tay Ninh; the coastal provinces and partially on areas bordering Cambodia.

The center also warned of possible storms and lightning in the coming days.

However, temperatures are expected to increase slightly in the south, with southeastern provinces expected to experience a peak of 37 degrees Celsius.

Reported by Mai Vong – Khanh Hoan

Hailstorm, unseasonal rain hit [Vietnam] north-central, southern regions


A hailstorm on Sunday blew off the tin sheet roofing from several houses in Thach Ha District in the north-central province of Ha Tinh

Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Thanh Nien News (Hanoi)

A hailstorm on Sunday damaged power lines and blew away the roofs of hundreds of houses in the north-central provinces of Ha Tinh and Nghe An.
In Ha Tinh Province, two people were injured; and 687 houses and three schools in the districts of Thach Ha, Cam Xuyen and Ky Anh lost their roofs.

About 28 kilometers of power lines were devastated in Thach Ha District.

The hailstorm destroyed 90 hectares of rice paddies and 35 hectares of crops in the province, inflicting damages estimated at more than VND2.5 billion (US$141,000).

In Nghe An Province, nearly 200 houses were unroofed in Thanh Duc and Thanh Nho communes in Thanh Chuong District and Cao Son Commune in Anh Son District.

Dozens of electricity poles in these districts were broken, and hundreds of hectares of rice paddies and crops suffered serious damage.

The unpredictable weather Monday caused unseasonal rains in the south and is forecast to do the same today.

Le Thi Xuan Lan, an official of the weather bureau for the southern region, said Monday’s rains in Ho Chi Minh City and the provinces of Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Ca Mau and Kien Giang came from convection clouds that had been formed by hot weather in the area.

She said the phenomenon will spread to more areas in the south tomorrow, including HCMC and the provinces of Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai and Tay Ninh; the coastal provinces and partially on areas bordering Cambodia.

The center also warned of possible storms and lightning in the coming days.

However, temperatures are expected to increase slightly in the south, with southeastern provinces expected to experience a peak of 37 degrees Celsius.

Reported by Mai Vong – Khanh Hoan

Hailstorm, unseasonal rain hit [Vietnam] north-central, southern regions


A hailstorm on Sunday blew off the tin sheet roofing from several houses in Thach Ha District in the north-central province of Ha Tinh

Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Thanh Nien News (Hanoi)

A hailstorm on Sunday damaged power lines and blew away the roofs of hundreds of houses in the north-central provinces of Ha Tinh and Nghe An.
In Ha Tinh Province, two people were injured; and 687 houses and three schools in the districts of Thach Ha, Cam Xuyen and Ky Anh lost their roofs.

About 28 kilometers of power lines were devastated in Thach Ha District.

The hailstorm destroyed 90 hectares of rice paddies and 35 hectares of crops in the province, inflicting damages estimated at more than VND2.5 billion (US$141,000).

In Nghe An Province, nearly 200 houses were unroofed in Thanh Duc and Thanh Nho communes in Thanh Chuong District and Cao Son Commune in Anh Son District.

Dozens of electricity poles in these districts were broken, and hundreds of hectares of rice paddies and crops suffered serious damage.

The unpredictable weather Monday caused unseasonal rains in the south and is forecast to do the same today.

Le Thi Xuan Lan, an official of the weather bureau for the southern region, said Monday’s rains in Ho Chi Minh City and the provinces of Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Ca Mau and Kien Giang came from convection clouds that had been formed by hot weather in the area.

She said the phenomenon will spread to more areas in the south tomorrow, including HCMC and the provinces of Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai and Tay Ninh; the coastal provinces and partially on areas bordering Cambodia.

The center also warned of possible storms and lightning in the coming days.

However, temperatures are expected to increase slightly in the south, with southeastern provinces expected to experience a peak of 37 degrees Celsius.

Reported by Mai Vong – Khanh Hoan

Hailstorm, unseasonal rain hit [Vietnam] north-central, southern regions


A hailstorm on Sunday blew off the tin sheet roofing from several houses in Thach Ha District in the north-central province of Ha Tinh

Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Thanh Nien News (Hanoi)

A hailstorm on Sunday damaged power lines and blew away the roofs of hundreds of houses in the north-central provinces of Ha Tinh and Nghe An.
In Ha Tinh Province, two people were injured; and 687 houses and three schools in the districts of Thach Ha, Cam Xuyen and Ky Anh lost their roofs.

About 28 kilometers of power lines were devastated in Thach Ha District.

The hailstorm destroyed 90 hectares of rice paddies and 35 hectares of crops in the province, inflicting damages estimated at more than VND2.5 billion (US$141,000).

In Nghe An Province, nearly 200 houses were unroofed in Thanh Duc and Thanh Nho communes in Thanh Chuong District and Cao Son Commune in Anh Son District.

Dozens of electricity poles in these districts were broken, and hundreds of hectares of rice paddies and crops suffered serious damage.

The unpredictable weather Monday caused unseasonal rains in the south and is forecast to do the same today.

Le Thi Xuan Lan, an official of the weather bureau for the southern region, said Monday’s rains in Ho Chi Minh City and the provinces of Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Ca Mau and Kien Giang came from convection clouds that had been formed by hot weather in the area.

She said the phenomenon will spread to more areas in the south tomorrow, including HCMC and the provinces of Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai and Tay Ninh; the coastal provinces and partially on areas bordering Cambodia.

The center also warned of possible storms and lightning in the coming days.

However, temperatures are expected to increase slightly in the south, with southeastern provinces expected to experience a peak of 37 degrees Celsius.

Reported by Mai Vong – Khanh Hoan

“Duch must not be sentenced”: Kar Savuth, Duch’s lawyer


Kar Savuth (Photo: ALG, Cambodge Soir Hebdo)

30 March 2009
By Ky Soklim and Adrien le Gal
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Luc Sâr
Click here to read the article in French


According to the Cambodian defense lawyer of the former S-21 boss whose trial is opening on Monday 20 March, it is “impossible” that a sentence could be handed down to his client.

Cambodge Soir Hebdo: How is your client feeling?

Kar Savuth: When his trial started, Duch was very happy and he was not worried at all. He knows that if the tribunal is fair, he will be freed because he is not part of the high-ranking KR officials who should be the only ones to be tried by the KR Tribunal (KRT).Is there still an uncertainty on the sentence that will be handed over to him?

It is possible that there will be sentence. It’s the law. Duch should not be in jail. He did not want to be the chief [of S-21], he wanted to do something else, but he was not allowed to. He told me clearly that he never wanted to be in charge of this place where people were being killed. Who wants to kill human beings? No one! But, what could he do? If he refused to obey the orders, he would have been killed also.

The civil parties want to re-open the investigation to determine if Duch was involved in forced marriages…

It’s too late, the investigations are closed. In any case, forced marriages were done everywhere under the KR regime. They should not accuse Duch who is only obeying his bosses.

You fought so that Duch is not charged with “participation in joint criminal enterprise”…

This charge is not right. In any case, there were 196 jails in the country. It is unfair to accuse Duch. In his center, 12,381 people died, whereas in other jails, more than 150,000 died… We seek justice. Duch is a scapegoat, others who killed are still roaming free.

You were Hun Sen’s lawyer… How do you get along with François Roux who, in France, defends civil disobedience followers?

François Roux and I, we have the same strategy. But, it is wrong to say that I defend only people close to power. I am interested in important affairs, and I defended the KR since 1982. Duch must have heard about me, and that’s why he chose me. The other people charged were also interested [in me], but we can only defend one of the accused.

As Cambodian, do you consider yourself a victim of the KR regime?

Yes, I am victim. But, I don’t have a grudge against Duch, nor the other four who were charged. I am not angry against the minor officials, I am angry against those who issued orders, i.e. Pol Pot. The others were only following orders.

“Duch must not be sentenced”: Kar Savuth, Duch’s lawyer


Kar Savuth (Photo: ALG, Cambodge Soir Hebdo)

30 March 2009
By Ky Soklim and Adrien le Gal
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Luc Sâr
Click here to read the article in French


According to the Cambodian defense lawyer of the former S-21 boss whose trial is opening on Monday 20 March, it is “impossible” that a sentence could be handed down to his client.

Cambodge Soir Hebdo: How is your client feeling?

Kar Savuth: When his trial started, Duch was very happy and he was not worried at all. He knows that if the tribunal is fair, he will be freed because he is not part of the high-ranking KR officials who should be the only ones to be tried by the KR Tribunal (KRT).Is there still an uncertainty on the sentence that will be handed over to him?

It is possible that there will be sentence. It’s the law. Duch should not be in jail. He did not want to be the chief [of S-21], he wanted to do something else, but he was not allowed to. He told me clearly that he never wanted to be in charge of this place where people were being killed. Who wants to kill human beings? No one! But, what could he do? If he refused to obey the orders, he would have been killed also.

The civil parties want to re-open the investigation to determine if Duch was involved in forced marriages…

It’s too late, the investigations are closed. In any case, forced marriages were done everywhere under the KR regime. They should not accuse Duch who is only obeying his bosses.

You fought so that Duch is not charged with “participation in joint criminal enterprise”…

This charge is not right. In any case, there were 196 jails in the country. It is unfair to accuse Duch. In his center, 12,381 people died, whereas in other jails, more than 150,000 died… We seek justice. Duch is a scapegoat, others who killed are still roaming free.

You were Hun Sen’s lawyer… How do you get along with François Roux who, in France, defends civil disobedience followers?

François Roux and I, we have the same strategy. But, it is wrong to say that I defend only people close to power. I am interested in important affairs, and I defended the KR since 1982. Duch must have heard about me, and that’s why he chose me. The other people charged were also interested [in me], but we can only defend one of the accused.

As Cambodian, do you consider yourself a victim of the KR regime?

Yes, I am victim. But, I don’t have a grudge against Duch, nor the other four who were charged. I am not angry against the minor officials, I am angry against those who issued orders, i.e. Pol Pot. The others were only following orders.

“Duch must not be sentenced”: Kar Savuth, Duch’s lawyer


Kar Savuth (Photo: ALG, Cambodge Soir Hebdo)

30 March 2009
By Ky Soklim and Adrien le Gal
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Luc Sâr
Click here to read the article in French


According to the Cambodian defense lawyer of the former S-21 boss whose trial is opening on Monday 20 March, it is “impossible” that a sentence could be handed down to his client.

Cambodge Soir Hebdo: How is your client feeling?

Kar Savuth: When his trial started, Duch was very happy and he was not worried at all. He knows that if the tribunal is fair, he will be freed because he is not part of the high-ranking KR officials who should be the only ones to be tried by the KR Tribunal (KRT).Is there still an uncertainty on the sentence that will be handed over to him?

It is possible that there will be sentence. It’s the law. Duch should not be in jail. He did not want to be the chief [of S-21], he wanted to do something else, but he was not allowed to. He told me clearly that he never wanted to be in charge of this place where people were being killed. Who wants to kill human beings? No one! But, what could he do? If he refused to obey the orders, he would have been killed also.

The civil parties want to re-open the investigation to determine if Duch was involved in forced marriages…

It’s too late, the investigations are closed. In any case, forced marriages were done everywhere under the KR regime. They should not accuse Duch who is only obeying his bosses.

You fought so that Duch is not charged with “participation in joint criminal enterprise”…

This charge is not right. In any case, there were 196 jails in the country. It is unfair to accuse Duch. In his center, 12,381 people died, whereas in other jails, more than 150,000 died… We seek justice. Duch is a scapegoat, others who killed are still roaming free.

You were Hun Sen’s lawyer… How do you get along with François Roux who, in France, defends civil disobedience followers?

François Roux and I, we have the same strategy. But, it is wrong to say that I defend only people close to power. I am interested in important affairs, and I defended the KR since 1982. Duch must have heard about me, and that’s why he chose me. The other people charged were also interested [in me], but we can only defend one of the accused.

As Cambodian, do you consider yourself a victim of the KR regime?

Yes, I am victim. But, I don’t have a grudge against Duch, nor the other four who were charged. I am not angry against the minor officials, I am angry against those who issued orders, i.e. Pol Pot. The others were only following orders.

“Duch must not be sentenced”: Kar Savuth, Duch’s lawyer


Kar Savuth (Photo: ALG, Cambodge Soir Hebdo)

30 March 2009
By Ky Soklim and Adrien le Gal
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Luc Sâr
Click here to read the article in French


According to the Cambodian defense lawyer of the former S-21 boss whose trial is opening on Monday 20 March, it is “impossible” that a sentence could be handed down to his client.

Cambodge Soir Hebdo: How is your client feeling?

Kar Savuth: When his trial started, Duch was very happy and he was not worried at all. He knows that if the tribunal is fair, he will be freed because he is not part of the high-ranking KR officials who should be the only ones to be tried by the KR Tribunal (KRT).Is there still an uncertainty on the sentence that will be handed over to him?

It is possible that there will be sentence. It’s the law. Duch should not be in jail. He did not want to be the chief [of S-21], he wanted to do something else, but he was not allowed to. He told me clearly that he never wanted to be in charge of this place where people were being killed. Who wants to kill human beings? No one! But, what could he do? If he refused to obey the orders, he would have been killed also.

The civil parties want to re-open the investigation to determine if Duch was involved in forced marriages…

It’s too late, the investigations are closed. In any case, forced marriages were done everywhere under the KR regime. They should not accuse Duch who is only obeying his bosses.

You fought so that Duch is not charged with “participation in joint criminal enterprise”…

This charge is not right. In any case, there were 196 jails in the country. It is unfair to accuse Duch. In his center, 12,381 people died, whereas in other jails, more than 150,000 died… We seek justice. Duch is a scapegoat, others who killed are still roaming free.

You were Hun Sen’s lawyer… How do you get along with François Roux who, in France, defends civil disobedience followers?

François Roux and I, we have the same strategy. But, it is wrong to say that I defend only people close to power. I am interested in important affairs, and I defended the KR since 1982. Duch must have heard about me, and that’s why he chose me. The other people charged were also interested [in me], but we can only defend one of the accused.

As Cambodian, do you consider yourself a victim of the KR regime?

Yes, I am victim. But, I don’t have a grudge against Duch, nor the other four who were charged. I am not angry against the minor officials, I am angry against those who issued orders, i.e. Pol Pot. The others were only following orders.

Khmer Rouge prison chief on trial


30 March 2009
AFP

PHNOM PENH : The Khmer Rouge regime's prison chief finally stood trial on Monday for Cambodia's "Killing Fields" atrocities, accused of overseeing the torture and execution of 15,000 people three decades ago.
Former teacher Kaing Guek Eav -- better known as Duch -- appeared before a UN-backed war crimes court set up to deal with senior members of the 1975-1979 communist movement which killed up to two million people.

Wearing a white striped shirt, the frail 66-year-old heard charges that prisoners at the notorious Tuol Sleng prison he ran were subjected to beatings, suffocation and electrocution before being killed.

"I have already been notified of the charges against me," Duch told the court in response to initial questions, after greeting judges in the traditional Cambodian manner of putting his hands together.

"Before I was arrested by the military court, I was a teacher."

Duch sat in the dock while a clerk read the order charging him with war crimes, crimes against humanity, premediated murder and torture relating to his time as head of Tuol Sleng, also known as S21.

He faces life in prison if found guilty.

"Several witnesses said Duch was feared by everyone at S21. He enforced both the general rules of the (Khmer Rouge) in relation to the security police, as well as strict rules which he devised for the operation of S21," the clerk said.

"In addition to executing prisoners condemned in advance as traitors, an overriding purpose of S21 was to extract confessions from prisoners in order to uncover further networks as possible traitors."

The clerk said Duch permitted his staff to use torture techniques including beatings, electrocutions, placing plastic bags over prisoners' heads or pouring water into their noses.

Prosecutors and defence lawyers will make their opening statements for the trial on Tuesday and Duch is expected to apologise in court later this week. The trial is expected to last several months.

"It's certain that he will use the opportunity given to him to speak to the judges, to the victims and, beyond that, with the Cambodian population," Duch's French lawyer Francois Roux told AFP.

But many of the hundreds of Khmer Rouge survivors who watched the hearing behind bulletproof glass in an auditorium appeared reluctant to forgive the past.

"I am angry because they killed my wife, and I am happy because I have the court to try Khmer Rouge leaders," said Bou Meng, one of the handful of people who survived Tuol Sleng because his artistic skills were useful to the regime.

Duch, who became a born-again Christian while in hiding in the 1990s, previously told investigators that the decision to arrest people and send them to Tuol Sleng was made by the Khmer Rouge central committee.

He also denies personally torturing or executing prisoners, although he has consistently accepted responsibility for the atrocities at Tuol Sleng.

Many Cambodians believe the controversial tribunal, established in 2006 after nearly a decade of negotiations between Cambodia and the United Nations, is the last chance to find justice for the Khmer Rouge's crimes.

The joint trial of four other leaders of the 1975-1979 regime is set to start later this year after Duch's trial is completed, although no date has yet been set.

Tuol Sleng was at the heart of the Khmer Rouge's security apparatus and thousands of inmates were taken from there during Duch's tenure for execution at nearby Choeung Ek, an orchard now known as the "Killing Fields."

Many were allegedly forced to confess that they were spies for the US Central Intelligence Agency, the Soviet KGB or for neighbouring Vietnam.

Led by Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge wiped out nearly a quarter of the population through starvation, overwork and execution as they tried to take society back to a rural "Year Zero" in a tragic spin-off to the Vietnam War.

Pol Pot died in 1998.

Duch has been detained since 1999, when he was found working as a Christian aid worker in the jungle, and was formally arrested by the tribunal in July 2007. He was indicted last year.

Khmer Rouge prison chief on trial


30 March 2009
AFP

PHNOM PENH : The Khmer Rouge regime's prison chief finally stood trial on Monday for Cambodia's "Killing Fields" atrocities, accused of overseeing the torture and execution of 15,000 people three decades ago.
Former teacher Kaing Guek Eav -- better known as Duch -- appeared before a UN-backed war crimes court set up to deal with senior members of the 1975-1979 communist movement which killed up to two million people.

Wearing a white striped shirt, the frail 66-year-old heard charges that prisoners at the notorious Tuol Sleng prison he ran were subjected to beatings, suffocation and electrocution before being killed.

"I have already been notified of the charges against me," Duch told the court in response to initial questions, after greeting judges in the traditional Cambodian manner of putting his hands together.

"Before I was arrested by the military court, I was a teacher."

Duch sat in the dock while a clerk read the order charging him with war crimes, crimes against humanity, premediated murder and torture relating to his time as head of Tuol Sleng, also known as S21.

He faces life in prison if found guilty.

"Several witnesses said Duch was feared by everyone at S21. He enforced both the general rules of the (Khmer Rouge) in relation to the security police, as well as strict rules which he devised for the operation of S21," the clerk said.

"In addition to executing prisoners condemned in advance as traitors, an overriding purpose of S21 was to extract confessions from prisoners in order to uncover further networks as possible traitors."

The clerk said Duch permitted his staff to use torture techniques including beatings, electrocutions, placing plastic bags over prisoners' heads or pouring water into their noses.

Prosecutors and defence lawyers will make their opening statements for the trial on Tuesday and Duch is expected to apologise in court later this week. The trial is expected to last several months.

"It's certain that he will use the opportunity given to him to speak to the judges, to the victims and, beyond that, with the Cambodian population," Duch's French lawyer Francois Roux told AFP.

But many of the hundreds of Khmer Rouge survivors who watched the hearing behind bulletproof glass in an auditorium appeared reluctant to forgive the past.

"I am angry because they killed my wife, and I am happy because I have the court to try Khmer Rouge leaders," said Bou Meng, one of the handful of people who survived Tuol Sleng because his artistic skills were useful to the regime.

Duch, who became a born-again Christian while in hiding in the 1990s, previously told investigators that the decision to arrest people and send them to Tuol Sleng was made by the Khmer Rouge central committee.

He also denies personally torturing or executing prisoners, although he has consistently accepted responsibility for the atrocities at Tuol Sleng.

Many Cambodians believe the controversial tribunal, established in 2006 after nearly a decade of negotiations between Cambodia and the United Nations, is the last chance to find justice for the Khmer Rouge's crimes.

The joint trial of four other leaders of the 1975-1979 regime is set to start later this year after Duch's trial is completed, although no date has yet been set.

Tuol Sleng was at the heart of the Khmer Rouge's security apparatus and thousands of inmates were taken from there during Duch's tenure for execution at nearby Choeung Ek, an orchard now known as the "Killing Fields."

Many were allegedly forced to confess that they were spies for the US Central Intelligence Agency, the Soviet KGB or for neighbouring Vietnam.

Led by Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge wiped out nearly a quarter of the population through starvation, overwork and execution as they tried to take society back to a rural "Year Zero" in a tragic spin-off to the Vietnam War.

Pol Pot died in 1998.

Duch has been detained since 1999, when he was found working as a Christian aid worker in the jungle, and was formally arrested by the tribunal in July 2007. He was indicted last year.

Khmer Rouge prison chief on trial


30 March 2009
AFP

PHNOM PENH : The Khmer Rouge regime's prison chief finally stood trial on Monday for Cambodia's "Killing Fields" atrocities, accused of overseeing the torture and execution of 15,000 people three decades ago.
Former teacher Kaing Guek Eav -- better known as Duch -- appeared before a UN-backed war crimes court set up to deal with senior members of the 1975-1979 communist movement which killed up to two million people.

Wearing a white striped shirt, the frail 66-year-old heard charges that prisoners at the notorious Tuol Sleng prison he ran were subjected to beatings, suffocation and electrocution before being killed.

"I have already been notified of the charges against me," Duch told the court in response to initial questions, after greeting judges in the traditional Cambodian manner of putting his hands together.

"Before I was arrested by the military court, I was a teacher."

Duch sat in the dock while a clerk read the order charging him with war crimes, crimes against humanity, premediated murder and torture relating to his time as head of Tuol Sleng, also known as S21.

He faces life in prison if found guilty.

"Several witnesses said Duch was feared by everyone at S21. He enforced both the general rules of the (Khmer Rouge) in relation to the security police, as well as strict rules which he devised for the operation of S21," the clerk said.

"In addition to executing prisoners condemned in advance as traitors, an overriding purpose of S21 was to extract confessions from prisoners in order to uncover further networks as possible traitors."

The clerk said Duch permitted his staff to use torture techniques including beatings, electrocutions, placing plastic bags over prisoners' heads or pouring water into their noses.

Prosecutors and defence lawyers will make their opening statements for the trial on Tuesday and Duch is expected to apologise in court later this week. The trial is expected to last several months.

"It's certain that he will use the opportunity given to him to speak to the judges, to the victims and, beyond that, with the Cambodian population," Duch's French lawyer Francois Roux told AFP.

But many of the hundreds of Khmer Rouge survivors who watched the hearing behind bulletproof glass in an auditorium appeared reluctant to forgive the past.

"I am angry because they killed my wife, and I am happy because I have the court to try Khmer Rouge leaders," said Bou Meng, one of the handful of people who survived Tuol Sleng because his artistic skills were useful to the regime.

Duch, who became a born-again Christian while in hiding in the 1990s, previously told investigators that the decision to arrest people and send them to Tuol Sleng was made by the Khmer Rouge central committee.

He also denies personally torturing or executing prisoners, although he has consistently accepted responsibility for the atrocities at Tuol Sleng.

Many Cambodians believe the controversial tribunal, established in 2006 after nearly a decade of negotiations between Cambodia and the United Nations, is the last chance to find justice for the Khmer Rouge's crimes.

The joint trial of four other leaders of the 1975-1979 regime is set to start later this year after Duch's trial is completed, although no date has yet been set.

Tuol Sleng was at the heart of the Khmer Rouge's security apparatus and thousands of inmates were taken from there during Duch's tenure for execution at nearby Choeung Ek, an orchard now known as the "Killing Fields."

Many were allegedly forced to confess that they were spies for the US Central Intelligence Agency, the Soviet KGB or for neighbouring Vietnam.

Led by Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge wiped out nearly a quarter of the population through starvation, overwork and execution as they tried to take society back to a rural "Year Zero" in a tragic spin-off to the Vietnam War.

Pol Pot died in 1998.

Duch has been detained since 1999, when he was found working as a Christian aid worker in the jungle, and was formally arrested by the tribunal in July 2007. He was indicted last year.

Khmer Rouge prison chief on trial


30 March 2009
AFP

PHNOM PENH : The Khmer Rouge regime's prison chief finally stood trial on Monday for Cambodia's "Killing Fields" atrocities, accused of overseeing the torture and execution of 15,000 people three decades ago.
Former teacher Kaing Guek Eav -- better known as Duch -- appeared before a UN-backed war crimes court set up to deal with senior members of the 1975-1979 communist movement which killed up to two million people.

Wearing a white striped shirt, the frail 66-year-old heard charges that prisoners at the notorious Tuol Sleng prison he ran were subjected to beatings, suffocation and electrocution before being killed.

"I have already been notified of the charges against me," Duch told the court in response to initial questions, after greeting judges in the traditional Cambodian manner of putting his hands together.

"Before I was arrested by the military court, I was a teacher."

Duch sat in the dock while a clerk read the order charging him with war crimes, crimes against humanity, premediated murder and torture relating to his time as head of Tuol Sleng, also known as S21.

He faces life in prison if found guilty.

"Several witnesses said Duch was feared by everyone at S21. He enforced both the general rules of the (Khmer Rouge) in relation to the security police, as well as strict rules which he devised for the operation of S21," the clerk said.

"In addition to executing prisoners condemned in advance as traitors, an overriding purpose of S21 was to extract confessions from prisoners in order to uncover further networks as possible traitors."

The clerk said Duch permitted his staff to use torture techniques including beatings, electrocutions, placing plastic bags over prisoners' heads or pouring water into their noses.

Prosecutors and defence lawyers will make their opening statements for the trial on Tuesday and Duch is expected to apologise in court later this week. The trial is expected to last several months.

"It's certain that he will use the opportunity given to him to speak to the judges, to the victims and, beyond that, with the Cambodian population," Duch's French lawyer Francois Roux told AFP.

But many of the hundreds of Khmer Rouge survivors who watched the hearing behind bulletproof glass in an auditorium appeared reluctant to forgive the past.

"I am angry because they killed my wife, and I am happy because I have the court to try Khmer Rouge leaders," said Bou Meng, one of the handful of people who survived Tuol Sleng because his artistic skills were useful to the regime.

Duch, who became a born-again Christian while in hiding in the 1990s, previously told investigators that the decision to arrest people and send them to Tuol Sleng was made by the Khmer Rouge central committee.

He also denies personally torturing or executing prisoners, although he has consistently accepted responsibility for the atrocities at Tuol Sleng.

Many Cambodians believe the controversial tribunal, established in 2006 after nearly a decade of negotiations between Cambodia and the United Nations, is the last chance to find justice for the Khmer Rouge's crimes.

The joint trial of four other leaders of the 1975-1979 regime is set to start later this year after Duch's trial is completed, although no date has yet been set.

Tuol Sleng was at the heart of the Khmer Rouge's security apparatus and thousands of inmates were taken from there during Duch's tenure for execution at nearby Choeung Ek, an orchard now known as the "Killing Fields."

Many were allegedly forced to confess that they were spies for the US Central Intelligence Agency, the Soviet KGB or for neighbouring Vietnam.

Led by Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge wiped out nearly a quarter of the population through starvation, overwork and execution as they tried to take society back to a rural "Year Zero" in a tragic spin-off to the Vietnam War.

Pol Pot died in 1998.

Duch has been detained since 1999, when he was found working as a Christian aid worker in the jungle, and was formally arrested by the tribunal in July 2007. He was indicted last year.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Dr Dolittle Million Dollar Mutts 2009 DVDRiP




Image
Info:
RELEASE DATE: 20-03-2009 (512)
THEATRE DATE: 19-05-2009 (USA) STV
DVD DATE: 19-03-2009 (Poland)
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
RUNTiME: 01:23:01
GENRE: Comedy
LANGUAGE: English
FRAMERATE: 25.000 FPS PAL R 2
IMDB RATING: SUBTiTLES: SIZE: 1 CD: 38x20 MB (699 MB)
VIDEO CODEC: XviD 2-pass 1036 Kbps
ViDEO RESOLUTiON: 608 x 336
AUDiO CODEC: MP3 128-160 Kbps

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Pokemon Giratina and the Sky Warrior 2009 TVRip



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Info:
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Movie Name...............: Pokemon - Giratina And The Sky Warrior
Year..........................:2009
Source.......................: TV
File size.......................:704 MB
Duration.....................:1:28:35
Resolution...................:704*388
FPS.............................:29
Video Compression.....:Xvid
Audio Language.........:English
Subtitles......................:None

Screen:
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Dr Dolittle Million Dollar Mutts 2009 DVDRiP




Image
Info:
RELEASE DATE: 20-03-2009 (512)
THEATRE DATE: 19-05-2009 (USA) STV
DVD DATE: 19-03-2009 (Poland)
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
RUNTiME: 01:23:01
GENRE: Comedy
LANGUAGE: English
FRAMERATE: 25.000 FPS PAL R 2
IMDB RATING: SUBTiTLES: SIZE: 1 CD: 38x20 MB (699 MB)
VIDEO CODEC: XviD 2-pass 1036 Kbps
ViDEO RESOLUTiON: 608 x 336
AUDiO CODEC: MP3 128-160 Kbps

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Pokemon Giratina and the Sky Warrior 2009 TVRip



Image
Info:
General:
Movie Name...............: Pokemon - Giratina And The Sky Warrior
Year..........................:2009
Source.......................: TV
File size.......................:704 MB
Duration.....................:1:28:35
Resolution...................:704*388
FPS.............................:29
Video Compression.....:Xvid
Audio Language.........:English
Subtitles......................:None

Screen:
Image
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http://rapidshare.com/files/213047697/Pokemon.Movie.11.Giratina.and.the.Sky.Warrior.part1.rar
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Knights Of Bloodsteel 2009 DVDRip




Info:
Release Group: GAYGAY
Release Name: Knights.Of.Bloodsteel.2009.TV.DVDRip.XviD-GAYGAY
Filename: gaygay-kob-cd*
Release Date: March 24, 2009
Size: 1CD | 699.64 MB
Genre: Fantasy
Video: 816 kbps | 608×336 (1.810:1) | 23.976 fps
Audio: English | 138 kbps MP3
Runtime: 1h 40m
IMDB Rating: 1.2/10 (389 votes)
Directed By: Philip Spink
Starring: David James Elliott, Christopher Lloyd, Natassia Malthe
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1264363/

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Forbidden Legend:Sex & Chopsticks 2009 ( 18++)




Info:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1354553/

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Knights Of Bloodsteel 2009 DVDRip




Info:
Release Group: GAYGAY
Release Name: Knights.Of.Bloodsteel.2009.TV.DVDRip.XviD-GAYGAY
Filename: gaygay-kob-cd*
Release Date: March 24, 2009
Size: 1CD | 699.64 MB
Genre: Fantasy
Video: 816 kbps | 608×336 (1.810:1) | 23.976 fps
Audio: English | 138 kbps MP3
Runtime: 1h 40m
IMDB Rating: 1.2/10 (389 votes)
Directed By: Philip Spink
Starring: David James Elliott, Christopher Lloyd, Natassia Malthe
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1264363/

Screen:


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Forbidden Legend:Sex & Chopsticks 2009 ( 18++)




Info:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1354553/

Screen:

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Perkins 14 (2009) DVDRip



Info:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1230211/

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Perkins 14 (2009) DVDRip



Info:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1230211/

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Ex-Khmer Rouge still dominate regions of Cambodia [-Even Khieu Samphan's son is a rich capitalist]


A young Cambodian school girl pushes her bicycle down a dirt path in former Khmer Rouge stronghold of Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Thirty years after the fall of the Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia. (All Photos: David Longstreath, AP Photo)AP Photo - Former Khmer Rouge cadre Chat Chay, 51, pauses while working near his home in Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Chay joined the Khmer Rouge when he was 14 years old and was wounded and disabled in 1979. Today he breaks rocks for about $1 a day with one hand for use in road construction.AP Photo - Former Khmer Rouge officer Pery Saroen, 55, gestures during an interview in Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Thirty years after the fall of the Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia.AP Photo - Cambodian men and women, their bicycles loaded with fire wood, make their way along an ancient highway Thursday, March 5, 2009, near Siem Reap, Cambodia. Thirty years after the fall of the Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia.AP Photo - A Cambodian Buddhist monk pauses outside the tomb of former Khmer Rouge leader Ta Mok in Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Ta Mok, who was the last leader of the Khmer Rouge was captured near Anlong Veng in 1999 and died in prison in 2006 while waiting for trial for crimes against humanity. Ta Mok, also know as the "Butcher" is remembered fondly by the local residents.

Sat, Mar. 28, 2009

By DENIS D. GRAY
Associated Press Writer


Just as the chief Khmer Rouge torturer takes the stand before a United Nations-backed genocide tribunal, a mausoleum fit for a king will be unveiled for another murderous leader from the same regime.

The entombed Ta Mok, known to his victims as "The Butcher," remains a revered figure in Anlong Veng because practically everyone here - from the district chief to the tourism promoter, from the wealthiest businessmen to dirt-poor farmers - was once Khmer Rouge.

This remote, rough-and-ready town is no aberration. Thirty years after the fall of their Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia. After Anlong Veng, their last holdout, fell in 1998, Khmer Rouge officials abandoned their savage policies and took posts in the new power structure.

They appear unlikely to face justice for alleged crimes during a brutal 1975-1979 reign of terror under which some 2 million died.

"We were the former Khmer Rouge commanders so we knew the area and the people, so after we surrendered we were confident we would get similar positions - in the government, police, the military," explains Pery Saroen, 55, Anlong Veng's deputy district chief, whose superior is also a one-star army general. "When we handed over ourselves, our territory, we became part of the government. We had an agreement with the government and we knew they would forgive us."

An equivalent scenario would have been known Nazi officials and military commanders, some with blood on their hands, serving in 1975 as West Germany's mayors and ministers amid war crimes trials for their leaders.

Only five are expected to face trial. The first, Kaing Guek Eav - better known as Comrade Duch - headed Phnom Penh's notorious S-21 torture center. He is scheduled to testify at the end of the month before a joint international and Cambodian tribunal.

"It's clear that not every Khmer Rouge cadre who carried out killings and crimes is going to come before the tribunal. We don't believe it should stop at the top five most notorious figures. We could do more to bring justice to Cambodians," says Sara Colm of the New York-based Human Rights Watch, echoing criticism of many Cambodians and foreign prosecutors.

Nhem Sarath, with the non-governmental Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association, says villagers outside Khmer Rouge areas often ask why the court doesn't try the many Khmer Rouge suspected of atrocities.

"They also ask us why the powerful leaders now running the country are also not arrested," he says.

Prime Minister Hun Sen, Senate President Chea Sim and National Assembly Chairman Heng Samrin were all Khmer Rouge commanders or officials, and now are unchallenged in their power. Other top positions are filled by their one-time comrades, including Foreign Minister Hor Nam Hong and deputy prime ministers Men Sam On and Keat Chhun, who also holds the finance and economy portfolio.

Although no evidence has come to light implicating Hun Sen, a division commander, in Khmer Rouge crimes, he has sought to narrowly restrict those brought to justice because a number in his government and party are hiding skeletons in their closets.

Among the most notorious is Meah Mut, an ex-Khmer Rouge military official, who is on a prosecution "hit list" of at least five others they want to try. A brigadier general and adviser to the Defense Ministry, he lives in a lovely house amid a fruit orchard in Samlot, about 125 miles from Anlong Veng, in the northwest.

It was to this region that the Khmer Rouge leaders and thousands of followers fled when a Vietnamese invasion force toppled their regime in 1979. While Khmer Rouge in other areas of the country sought to quietly merge back into society, those in the northwest melted into the jungles and mountains to wage guerrilla war until the guns fell silent through an amnesty in 1998, the year Anlong Veng fell, and their leader, Pol Pot, died. All ex-Khmer Rouge in the region express loyalty to Hun Sen and his Cambodian People's Party.

David Chandler, a leading Cambodia historian due to appear as an expert witness at the tribunal, says the deal has proved a "standoff, a trade-off that suits both sides."

"They are not going into dissidence or to secede. They have to behave to a certain extent but Hun Sen is not going to mess with them too much," he says. "I don't think these are dedicated left-wing thinkers or performers. I think they abandoned that and got into the money and the patronage situation and are perfectly happy."

Many of the former Khmer Rouge claim to support the trial of their one-time leaders.

"To be honest, when ex-Khmer Rouge heard that the top five leaders would be tried, they said, 'We don't mind. Let's do it,'" said Nhem En, another district deputy head who was S-21's chief photographer and, like most former Khmer Rouge, points a finger at the leaders while denying any wrongdoing himself.

Ta Mok, who died a prisoner in 2006, is still much admired in Anlong Veng. His mausoleum, copied from ancient Angkorian temples by his rich grandson, will be completed almost to the day that Duch testifies.

"We regarded Ta Mok like a father who takes care of his children. He imposed restrictions and discipline but he gave us food, clothing, places to live," recalls Chat Chay, a poor laborer and former Khmer Rouge soldier. He noted how Ta Mok, whose cruelty was legendary, built roads, a hospital, a bridge and a high school building.

The town's 3,000 schoolchildren are taught nothing about their country's Khmer Rouge past, and only a few posters about the trial have been put around school grounds, says elementary school Vice Principal Reak Smey. He is one of a sizable influx of non-Khmer Rouge from other parts of the country, drawn by the possibility of acquiring land in the sparsely populated area and earning income from a lucrative cross-border trade with nearby Thailand.

"When I first arrived I was worried about having to adapt to life with former Khmer Rouge, but after a few months I discovered their honesty and kindness. The more I lived with them, the better I felt," he says, recalling that the revolutionaries had tried to instill rigid morality, albeit at the point of a gun, during their years in power. Now, he says, their virtues are being eroded by the influence of the newcomers.

Khieu Dum is a wealthy 36-year-old who owns a gas station and money exchange business. He is also the son of Khieu Samphan, who faces charges of crimes against humanity during his time as the Khmer Rouge president. An expensive Lexus sports utility vehicle sits in the son's garage at the dusty crossroads of this district of about 20,000, where the new settlers have had to be friendly because they are the powerless outsiders.

"This is a small and simple place. People just go about their business. The old (Khmer Rouge) people and the newcomers live together amiably. I have never had trouble because of my father," says Khieu Dum.

The Khmer Rouge leaders were off to a head start when the amnesty came, having amassed mini-fortunes during their days as guerrillas through smuggling of timber, gems and antiques to Thailand. Now, the upper echelons own some of the poshest houses and cars in the provinces of Pailin, Preah Vihear, Battambang, Banteay Meanchey and Oddar Meancheay - Cambodia's Khmer Rouge country.

Some have sunk into gross corruption and engage in activities, like gambling, which would have earned them summary execution in the old days. And they have certainly ditched their ideal of a classless society.

In Anlong Veng, a two-class system appears to have emerged: the rich businessmen and government officials living in town and former low-ranking soldiers who barely survive on arid land they don't own in the surrounding countryside. Thus the town witnessed both the final military defeat of the Khmer Rouge and the death of its ideals.

Chat Chay says he joined the movement as a 14-year-old after the Khmer Rouge persuaded him they would liberate the country and create a utopia of neither rich nor poor. Now, he breaks up stones at construction sites, able to use only his right hand since a head wound paralyzed his left side. He earns less than one dollar a day for his family of seven.

"The Khmer Rouge didn't do what they promised. They changed their policies," says the 51-year-old man. "I was wounded but the Khmer Rouge gave me nothing and I have also received nothing from this government."

Ex-Khmer Rouge still dominate regions of Cambodia [-Even Khieu Samphan's son is a rich capitalist]


A young Cambodian school girl pushes her bicycle down a dirt path in former Khmer Rouge stronghold of Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Thirty years after the fall of the Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia. (All Photos: David Longstreath, AP Photo)AP Photo - Former Khmer Rouge cadre Chat Chay, 51, pauses while working near his home in Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Chay joined the Khmer Rouge when he was 14 years old and was wounded and disabled in 1979. Today he breaks rocks for about $1 a day with one hand for use in road construction.AP Photo - Former Khmer Rouge officer Pery Saroen, 55, gestures during an interview in Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Thirty years after the fall of the Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia.AP Photo - Cambodian men and women, their bicycles loaded with fire wood, make their way along an ancient highway Thursday, March 5, 2009, near Siem Reap, Cambodia. Thirty years after the fall of the Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia.AP Photo - A Cambodian Buddhist monk pauses outside the tomb of former Khmer Rouge leader Ta Mok in Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Ta Mok, who was the last leader of the Khmer Rouge was captured near Anlong Veng in 1999 and died in prison in 2006 while waiting for trial for crimes against humanity. Ta Mok, also know as the "Butcher" is remembered fondly by the local residents.

Sat, Mar. 28, 2009

By DENIS D. GRAY
Associated Press Writer


Just as the chief Khmer Rouge torturer takes the stand before a United Nations-backed genocide tribunal, a mausoleum fit for a king will be unveiled for another murderous leader from the same regime.

The entombed Ta Mok, known to his victims as "The Butcher," remains a revered figure in Anlong Veng because practically everyone here - from the district chief to the tourism promoter, from the wealthiest businessmen to dirt-poor farmers - was once Khmer Rouge.

This remote, rough-and-ready town is no aberration. Thirty years after the fall of their Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia. After Anlong Veng, their last holdout, fell in 1998, Khmer Rouge officials abandoned their savage policies and took posts in the new power structure.

They appear unlikely to face justice for alleged crimes during a brutal 1975-1979 reign of terror under which some 2 million died.

"We were the former Khmer Rouge commanders so we knew the area and the people, so after we surrendered we were confident we would get similar positions - in the government, police, the military," explains Pery Saroen, 55, Anlong Veng's deputy district chief, whose superior is also a one-star army general. "When we handed over ourselves, our territory, we became part of the government. We had an agreement with the government and we knew they would forgive us."

An equivalent scenario would have been known Nazi officials and military commanders, some with blood on their hands, serving in 1975 as West Germany's mayors and ministers amid war crimes trials for their leaders.

Only five are expected to face trial. The first, Kaing Guek Eav - better known as Comrade Duch - headed Phnom Penh's notorious S-21 torture center. He is scheduled to testify at the end of the month before a joint international and Cambodian tribunal.

"It's clear that not every Khmer Rouge cadre who carried out killings and crimes is going to come before the tribunal. We don't believe it should stop at the top five most notorious figures. We could do more to bring justice to Cambodians," says Sara Colm of the New York-based Human Rights Watch, echoing criticism of many Cambodians and foreign prosecutors.

Nhem Sarath, with the non-governmental Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association, says villagers outside Khmer Rouge areas often ask why the court doesn't try the many Khmer Rouge suspected of atrocities.

"They also ask us why the powerful leaders now running the country are also not arrested," he says.

Prime Minister Hun Sen, Senate President Chea Sim and National Assembly Chairman Heng Samrin were all Khmer Rouge commanders or officials, and now are unchallenged in their power. Other top positions are filled by their one-time comrades, including Foreign Minister Hor Nam Hong and deputy prime ministers Men Sam On and Keat Chhun, who also holds the finance and economy portfolio.

Although no evidence has come to light implicating Hun Sen, a division commander, in Khmer Rouge crimes, he has sought to narrowly restrict those brought to justice because a number in his government and party are hiding skeletons in their closets.

Among the most notorious is Meah Mut, an ex-Khmer Rouge military official, who is on a prosecution "hit list" of at least five others they want to try. A brigadier general and adviser to the Defense Ministry, he lives in a lovely house amid a fruit orchard in Samlot, about 125 miles from Anlong Veng, in the northwest.

It was to this region that the Khmer Rouge leaders and thousands of followers fled when a Vietnamese invasion force toppled their regime in 1979. While Khmer Rouge in other areas of the country sought to quietly merge back into society, those in the northwest melted into the jungles and mountains to wage guerrilla war until the guns fell silent through an amnesty in 1998, the year Anlong Veng fell, and their leader, Pol Pot, died. All ex-Khmer Rouge in the region express loyalty to Hun Sen and his Cambodian People's Party.

David Chandler, a leading Cambodia historian due to appear as an expert witness at the tribunal, says the deal has proved a "standoff, a trade-off that suits both sides."

"They are not going into dissidence or to secede. They have to behave to a certain extent but Hun Sen is not going to mess with them too much," he says. "I don't think these are dedicated left-wing thinkers or performers. I think they abandoned that and got into the money and the patronage situation and are perfectly happy."

Many of the former Khmer Rouge claim to support the trial of their one-time leaders.

"To be honest, when ex-Khmer Rouge heard that the top five leaders would be tried, they said, 'We don't mind. Let's do it,'" said Nhem En, another district deputy head who was S-21's chief photographer and, like most former Khmer Rouge, points a finger at the leaders while denying any wrongdoing himself.

Ta Mok, who died a prisoner in 2006, is still much admired in Anlong Veng. His mausoleum, copied from ancient Angkorian temples by his rich grandson, will be completed almost to the day that Duch testifies.

"We regarded Ta Mok like a father who takes care of his children. He imposed restrictions and discipline but he gave us food, clothing, places to live," recalls Chat Chay, a poor laborer and former Khmer Rouge soldier. He noted how Ta Mok, whose cruelty was legendary, built roads, a hospital, a bridge and a high school building.

The town's 3,000 schoolchildren are taught nothing about their country's Khmer Rouge past, and only a few posters about the trial have been put around school grounds, says elementary school Vice Principal Reak Smey. He is one of a sizable influx of non-Khmer Rouge from other parts of the country, drawn by the possibility of acquiring land in the sparsely populated area and earning income from a lucrative cross-border trade with nearby Thailand.

"When I first arrived I was worried about having to adapt to life with former Khmer Rouge, but after a few months I discovered their honesty and kindness. The more I lived with them, the better I felt," he says, recalling that the revolutionaries had tried to instill rigid morality, albeit at the point of a gun, during their years in power. Now, he says, their virtues are being eroded by the influence of the newcomers.

Khieu Dum is a wealthy 36-year-old who owns a gas station and money exchange business. He is also the son of Khieu Samphan, who faces charges of crimes against humanity during his time as the Khmer Rouge president. An expensive Lexus sports utility vehicle sits in the son's garage at the dusty crossroads of this district of about 20,000, where the new settlers have had to be friendly because they are the powerless outsiders.

"This is a small and simple place. People just go about their business. The old (Khmer Rouge) people and the newcomers live together amiably. I have never had trouble because of my father," says Khieu Dum.

The Khmer Rouge leaders were off to a head start when the amnesty came, having amassed mini-fortunes during their days as guerrillas through smuggling of timber, gems and antiques to Thailand. Now, the upper echelons own some of the poshest houses and cars in the provinces of Pailin, Preah Vihear, Battambang, Banteay Meanchey and Oddar Meancheay - Cambodia's Khmer Rouge country.

Some have sunk into gross corruption and engage in activities, like gambling, which would have earned them summary execution in the old days. And they have certainly ditched their ideal of a classless society.

In Anlong Veng, a two-class system appears to have emerged: the rich businessmen and government officials living in town and former low-ranking soldiers who barely survive on arid land they don't own in the surrounding countryside. Thus the town witnessed both the final military defeat of the Khmer Rouge and the death of its ideals.

Chat Chay says he joined the movement as a 14-year-old after the Khmer Rouge persuaded him they would liberate the country and create a utopia of neither rich nor poor. Now, he breaks up stones at construction sites, able to use only his right hand since a head wound paralyzed his left side. He earns less than one dollar a day for his family of seven.

"The Khmer Rouge didn't do what they promised. They changed their policies," says the 51-year-old man. "I was wounded but the Khmer Rouge gave me nothing and I have also received nothing from this government."

Ex-Khmer Rouge still dominate regions of Cambodia [-Even Khieu Samphan's son is a rich capitalist]


A young Cambodian school girl pushes her bicycle down a dirt path in former Khmer Rouge stronghold of Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Thirty years after the fall of the Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia. (All Photos: David Longstreath, AP Photo)AP Photo - Former Khmer Rouge cadre Chat Chay, 51, pauses while working near his home in Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Chay joined the Khmer Rouge when he was 14 years old and was wounded and disabled in 1979. Today he breaks rocks for about $1 a day with one hand for use in road construction.AP Photo - Former Khmer Rouge officer Pery Saroen, 55, gestures during an interview in Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Thirty years after the fall of the Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia.AP Photo - Cambodian men and women, their bicycles loaded with fire wood, make their way along an ancient highway Thursday, March 5, 2009, near Siem Reap, Cambodia. Thirty years after the fall of the Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia.AP Photo - A Cambodian Buddhist monk pauses outside the tomb of former Khmer Rouge leader Ta Mok in Anlong Veng, Cambodia, Wednesday, March 4, 2009. Ta Mok, who was the last leader of the Khmer Rouge was captured near Anlong Veng in 1999 and died in prison in 2006 while waiting for trial for crimes against humanity. Ta Mok, also know as the "Butcher" is remembered fondly by the local residents.

Sat, Mar. 28, 2009

By DENIS D. GRAY
Associated Press Writer


Just as the chief Khmer Rouge torturer takes the stand before a United Nations-backed genocide tribunal, a mausoleum fit for a king will be unveiled for another murderous leader from the same regime.

The entombed Ta Mok, known to his victims as "The Butcher," remains a revered figure in Anlong Veng because practically everyone here - from the district chief to the tourism promoter, from the wealthiest businessmen to dirt-poor farmers - was once Khmer Rouge.

This remote, rough-and-ready town is no aberration. Thirty years after the fall of their Maoist regime, former Khmer Rouge officials still run extensive enclaves across northwestern and northern Cambodia. After Anlong Veng, their last holdout, fell in 1998, Khmer Rouge officials abandoned their savage policies and took posts in the new power structure.

They appear unlikely to face justice for alleged crimes during a brutal 1975-1979 reign of terror under which some 2 million died.

"We were the former Khmer Rouge commanders so we knew the area and the people, so after we surrendered we were confident we would get similar positions - in the government, police, the military," explains Pery Saroen, 55, Anlong Veng's deputy district chief, whose superior is also a one-star army general. "When we handed over ourselves, our territory, we became part of the government. We had an agreement with the government and we knew they would forgive us."

An equivalent scenario would have been known Nazi officials and military commanders, some with blood on their hands, serving in 1975 as West Germany's mayors and ministers amid war crimes trials for their leaders.

Only five are expected to face trial. The first, Kaing Guek Eav - better known as Comrade Duch - headed Phnom Penh's notorious S-21 torture center. He is scheduled to testify at the end of the month before a joint international and Cambodian tribunal.

"It's clear that not every Khmer Rouge cadre who carried out killings and crimes is going to come before the tribunal. We don't believe it should stop at the top five most notorious figures. We could do more to bring justice to Cambodians," says Sara Colm of the New York-based Human Rights Watch, echoing criticism of many Cambodians and foreign prosecutors.

Nhem Sarath, with the non-governmental Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association, says villagers outside Khmer Rouge areas often ask why the court doesn't try the many Khmer Rouge suspected of atrocities.

"They also ask us why the powerful leaders now running the country are also not arrested," he says.

Prime Minister Hun Sen, Senate President Chea Sim and National Assembly Chairman Heng Samrin were all Khmer Rouge commanders or officials, and now are unchallenged in their power. Other top positions are filled by their one-time comrades, including Foreign Minister Hor Nam Hong and deputy prime ministers Men Sam On and Keat Chhun, who also holds the finance and economy portfolio.

Although no evidence has come to light implicating Hun Sen, a division commander, in Khmer Rouge crimes, he has sought to narrowly restrict those brought to justice because a number in his government and party are hiding skeletons in their closets.

Among the most notorious is Meah Mut, an ex-Khmer Rouge military official, who is on a prosecution "hit list" of at least five others they want to try. A brigadier general and adviser to the Defense Ministry, he lives in a lovely house amid a fruit orchard in Samlot, about 125 miles from Anlong Veng, in the northwest.

It was to this region that the Khmer Rouge leaders and thousands of followers fled when a Vietnamese invasion force toppled their regime in 1979. While Khmer Rouge in other areas of the country sought to quietly merge back into society, those in the northwest melted into the jungles and mountains to wage guerrilla war until the guns fell silent through an amnesty in 1998, the year Anlong Veng fell, and their leader, Pol Pot, died. All ex-Khmer Rouge in the region express loyalty to Hun Sen and his Cambodian People's Party.

David Chandler, a leading Cambodia historian due to appear as an expert witness at the tribunal, says the deal has proved a "standoff, a trade-off that suits both sides."

"They are not going into dissidence or to secede. They have to behave to a certain extent but Hun Sen is not going to mess with them too much," he says. "I don't think these are dedicated left-wing thinkers or performers. I think they abandoned that and got into the money and the patronage situation and are perfectly happy."

Many of the former Khmer Rouge claim to support the trial of their one-time leaders.

"To be honest, when ex-Khmer Rouge heard that the top five leaders would be tried, they said, 'We don't mind. Let's do it,'" said Nhem En, another district deputy head who was S-21's chief photographer and, like most former Khmer Rouge, points a finger at the leaders while denying any wrongdoing himself.

Ta Mok, who died a prisoner in 2006, is still much admired in Anlong Veng. His mausoleum, copied from ancient Angkorian temples by his rich grandson, will be completed almost to the day that Duch testifies.

"We regarded Ta Mok like a father who takes care of his children. He imposed restrictions and discipline but he gave us food, clothing, places to live," recalls Chat Chay, a poor laborer and former Khmer Rouge soldier. He noted how Ta Mok, whose cruelty was legendary, built roads, a hospital, a bridge and a high school building.

The town's 3,000 schoolchildren are taught nothing about their country's Khmer Rouge past, and only a few posters about the trial have been put around school grounds, says elementary school Vice Principal Reak Smey. He is one of a sizable influx of non-Khmer Rouge from other parts of the country, drawn by the possibility of acquiring land in the sparsely populated area and earning income from a lucrative cross-border trade with nearby Thailand.

"When I first arrived I was worried about having to adapt to life with former Khmer Rouge, but after a few months I discovered their honesty and kindness. The more I lived with them, the better I felt," he says, recalling that the revolutionaries had tried to instill rigid morality, albeit at the point of a gun, during their years in power. Now, he says, their virtues are being eroded by the influence of the newcomers.

Khieu Dum is a wealthy 36-year-old who owns a gas station and money exchange business. He is also the son of Khieu Samphan, who faces charges of crimes against humanity during his time as the Khmer Rouge president. An expensive Lexus sports utility vehicle sits in the son's garage at the dusty crossroads of this district of about 20,000, where the new settlers have had to be friendly because they are the powerless outsiders.

"This is a small and simple place. People just go about their business. The old (Khmer Rouge) people and the newcomers live together amiably. I have never had trouble because of my father," says Khieu Dum.

The Khmer Rouge leaders were off to a head start when the amnesty came, having amassed mini-fortunes during their days as guerrillas through smuggling of timber, gems and antiques to Thailand. Now, the upper echelons own some of the poshest houses and cars in the provinces of Pailin, Preah Vihear, Battambang, Banteay Meanchey and Oddar Meancheay - Cambodia's Khmer Rouge country.

Some have sunk into gross corruption and engage in activities, like gambling, which would have earned them summary execution in the old days. And they have certainly ditched their ideal of a classless society.

In Anlong Veng, a two-class system appears to have emerged: the rich businessmen and government officials living in town and former low-ranking soldiers who barely survive on arid land they don't own in the surrounding countryside. Thus the town witnessed both the final military defeat of the Khmer Rouge and the death of its ideals.

Chat Chay says he joined the movement as a 14-year-old after the Khmer Rouge persuaded him they would liberate the country and create a utopia of neither rich nor poor. Now, he breaks up stones at construction sites, able to use only his right hand since a head wound paralyzed his left side. He earns less than one dollar a day for his family of seven.

"The Khmer Rouge didn't do what they promised. They changed their policies," says the 51-year-old man. "I was wounded but the Khmer Rouge gave me nothing and I have also received nothing from this government."