CAMBODIA RATIFIES DEAL ON KHMER ROUGE TRIAL

No Peace Without Justice welcomes the ratification by the Cambodian Legislative Assembly of the Agreement with the United Nations to create a Tribunal for the investigation and prosecution of those leaders of the Khmer Rouge who are still living. NPWJ would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Cambodian Parliament for having finally decided to create a Tribunal that can shed light, nationally and internationally, on those people responsible for the crimes committed during the Khmer Rouge regime, for whom there has been impunity for nearly 30 years.

No Peace Without Justice remains fully committed to the protection of human rights, the strengthening of the rule of law worldwide and the establishment of an effective and universal international criminal justice system.

From the creation of the new legal system in East Timor, to the Special Court in Sierra Leone, to the fight for the creation of the International Criminal Court, NPWJ has always worked towards an international order that does not allow impunity for those that would commit the most serious crimes under international law, namely war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

The concrete steps taken by Cambodia towards a legal system that prevents impunity for the commission of these grave crimes is an important and courageous decision. This decision not only has repercussions for national and regional law reform, but also makes a significant contribution towards strengthening the rule of law and promoting the respect of civil and political rights.

In order to realise these possibilities as soon as possible, NPWJ urges the Cambodian Government and its international partners to ensure the speedy and effective establishment of this Tribunal.

No Peace Without Justice would also like to take this opportunity to urge States to fulfil their primary responsibility for the investigation and prosecution of serious crimes under international law, noting at the same time the possibility of referring cases to the International Criminal Court.

Through steps such as those taken by Cambodia, we look forward to a time when this type of crime will no longer be committed or, at the very least, a future where there will no longer be impunity for these types of crimes, as has unfortunately been the case until today.