Khmer Rouge Genocide Trial

(Phnom Penh, Cambodia) There has been uncertainty about whether the victims of the Khmer Rouge would ever receive justice. It has taken years but progress toward a trial is finally being realized.

From TheStar.com.my:

Judges and prosecutors from Cambodia and foreign countries were sworn in Monday to begin the historic U.N.-backed judicial process to try former Khmer Rouge leaders for genocide and crimes against humanity.

The swearing-in was a major step forward in the process of seeking justice for the victims of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime, whose extremist policies in the late 1970s are estimated to have taken 1.7 million lives.

After decades of inaction and delays, trials are expected to start in 2007, although no date has been set.

I would argue that waiting three decades to begin the judicial process is criminal. It becomes an historical symposium rather than a legal proceeding. Nonetheless, there are probably a few old and decrepit war criminals still alive.