[Tlc] Fwd: FW: Event: The Khmer Rouge Trials: Boon or Bane for Cambodia?

[Danny Marks]

For any readers who live in DC . . .

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*From:* United States Institute of Peace [info at usip.org]
*Sent:* Tuesday, April 07, 2009 3:05 PM
*To:* Bridget Welsh
*Subject:* Event: The Khmer Rouge Trials: Boon or Bane for Cambodia?

[image: United States Institute of Peace] <http://www.usip.org>

*The U.S. Institute of Peace cordially invites you to a public event:*

*The Khmer Rouge Trials: Boon or Bane for
Cambodia?*<http://www.usip.org/events/2009/0414_khmer_rouge.html.>

*Date*: Tuesday, April 14, 2009

*Time*: 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM

*Location*: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Choate Room
1779 Massachusetts Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Get Directions<http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=1779+Massachusetts+Ave+NW+Washington,+DC+20036&fb=1&geocode=3975919503207852708,38.908683,-77.040650&oi=manybox&ct=14&cd=1&resnum=3>

*Overview*

Thirty years after the Khmer Rouge were ousted from power in Cambodia, and
more than a dozen years after Cambodia and the UN agreed to prosecute the
Khmer Rouge leaders for war crimes, the first trial in the Extraordinary
Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) has begun. Duch, the head of the
infamous detention center Tuol Sleng is currently facing charges for crimes
against humanity, and four senior leaders have been indicted to face trial
in the Fall. But with so much time elapsed since the atrocities were
committed, it is reasonable to ask what benefit the trials will bring for
the people of Cambodia?

Please join us for a discussion of the progress the ECCC has made so far in
the quest to bring Khmer Rouge leaders to justice and the substantial
obstacles that remain. The ECCC is unique among war crimes tribunals in that
it allows victims to join proceedings as civil parties to receive
"collective and moral reparations". So far, thousands have expressed
interest, but little is known about how they will participate or what,
exactly, they will receive. The ECCC is also struggling to overcome the low
capacity and prevalent corruption in the Cambodian court system. Given the
substantial allegations of corruption and numerous bureaucratic delays,
critics question whether the Cambodian courts will benefit at all from the
ECCC experience. In the discussion, panelists David Tolbert, Caitlin Reiger,
and Scott Worden will elaborate on the prospects for the ECCC to bring about
positive change to the people of Cambodia and the rule of law there.

*Panelists*

*David Tolbert* <http://www.usip.org/specialists/bios/current/tolbert.html>
is a Senior Fellow at the U.S. Institute of Peace, and previously served as
UN Assistant Secretary General and Special Advisor to the Khmer Rouge
trials.

*Caitlin Reiger* <http://www.ictj.org/en/about/staff/215.html>
is Deputy Director, Prosecutions Program and head of the Cambodia Program at
the International Center for Transitional Justice and just returned from an
assessment mission to the ECCC in Cambodia.

*Scott Worden* <http://www.usip.org/specialists/bios/current/worden.html>
is a Senior Rule of Law Advisor at the U.S. Institute of Peace, and visited
the ECCC in October 2008. He was also legal advisor to the Cambodian
Defenders Project on ECCC issues from June 2003 until June 2005.

*Media Inquiries*

Please contact Lauren Sucher (lsucher at usip.org) in the Office of Public
Affairs and Communications.

*RSVP*

To RSVP, please send your name, affiliation, daytime phone number, and name
of the event to Rachel Steele at rsteele at usip.org <rsteele at usip.org%20>.

*United States Institute of Peace*
1200 17th Street NW -- Washington, DC 20036
(202) 457-1700 (phone) -- (202) 429-6063 (fax)
*www.usip.org* <http://www.usip.org>
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