[ { "id": 216389, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-2003", "page_number": 148, "title": "RAS-2003", "content_text": "98\n\nfor Cambodia, and it seems that there will be few, if any, trials other than those planned for the tribunal.\n\n6.4 Distributive Justice and Legal Aid\n\nIn theory, legal aid should be available to all participants in a legal process, to ensure that a fair trial results. In practice, lack of resources means that legal aid is rationed to certain pre-selected cases. The criteria for rationing may mean that legal aid is only available for criminal cases, or only available for criminal cases where the penalties are severe. Also, legal aid may be rationed to the most needy applicants. Sometimes this can mean that the poorest litigants have access to legal aid, the richest litigants have access to paid lawyers, while the bulk of people in the middle effectively have no access to the courts.\n\nArticle 13 of the March 2003 Agreement between the United Nations and the Royal Government provides the right of defendants to have legal counsel if they wish. Then Article 17 of the Agreement makes financial provision for defence counsel the responsibility of the United Nations, which will act as a form of legal aid.\n\n7. Law, Justice, and other Values\n\nThe limitations of legal systems have meant that societies have sought other methods besides Courts and Tribunals to achieve desired objectives.\n\n7.1 Discovering the Truth:\n\nOne objective, going beyond what a court can do, is to provide for a system which “tells the truth\" about an era, and enables reconciliation. Sometimes, the pattern of injury and counter-injury is such that punishment is not appropriate, and simply telling the truth opens the possibility for healing and reconciliation. One of the earliest international examples is the provision under the Geneva Conventions and Protocols for an International Fact Finding Commission.18 Not surprisingly, there are those in communities who would prefer the truth to remain hidden, and these structures have rarely been used. So we should not be surprised to discover that the International Fact Finding Commission has never been used.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-2003.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/2v242g390", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 216390, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-2003", "page_number": 149, "title": "RAS-2003", "content_text": "99\n\n7.2 From Truth to Reconciliation:\n\nOne of the more successful examples of such a structure is the Truth and Reconciliation Commission process in South Africa. But a limitation is apparent: while the Commissions may be able to discover the truth, this does not automatically lead to reconciliation. Reconciliation is a more complex process, involving acknowledgement of fault (perhaps on both sides), a change of heart or repentance, a giving and receiving of forgiveness, and a desire to walk together again. The law is a very limited instrument, and cannot by itself bring about internal change.19\n\nReconciliation also requires sensitivity to the particular culture of those involved. The primary source of meaning for many Cambodians is their religion. The majority are Buddhist, and the process of reconciliation needs to be based on a Buddhist understanding of what reconciliation means. But Buddhism, as with other religions, suffered great losses during the period of Khmer Rouge rule, and both monks and people may lack the religious sophistication to approach the task well20. One of the questions, for example, is the Buddhist belief in Karma, which sees suffering in this life as the consequence of wrong-doing in a previous life. If taken in an over-simplified way, this may lead to blaming the victim of atrocities for their suffering, and taking the focus away from the perpetrator.\n\nAlthough Buddhism is the principal religion of Cambodia, and is the state religion, observations have suggested that the generation who were formed during the period of Democratic Kampuchea may not be committed to religion, and may indeed be in practice secular.21 Their approach to reconciliation will be different from the approach of those who are deeply rooted in Buddhism.\n\nSmaller groups in Cambodia are the Muslims (especially the Chams and those of Malay descent) and Christians. Both groups were particular targets of the Khmer Rouge. Both religions have sophisticated approaches to reconciliation, although because of the years of troubles, individual Muslims or Christians may be poorly informed about these approaches.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-2003.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/2v242g390", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 216394, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-2003", "page_number": 153, "title": "RAS-2003", "content_text": "103\n\n'Decision to Establish the Task Force for Cooperation with Foreign Legal Experts; Decree 55$Sr, 10 August 1999.\n\n* Ea Meng Try: Victims and Perpetrators? Testimony of Young Khmer Rouge Comrades, Documentation Center of Cambodia, Phnom Penh, 2001. See also Rasy Pheng Pong: \"Tuy Kin: A Traumatized Perpertrator\" Searching for the Truth, special English Edition, Third Quarter 2003, page 23.\n\n* Sok Siphana: Formation of a Legal and Judicial Reform Strategy for Cambodia, Cambodia Legal Resources Development Center, Phnom Penh, 2002, page 41-42.\n\n\"See the statement of the Bar Association of the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Cambodian Defenders Project and Legal Aid of Cambodia reproduced in Michael Hayes: \"Cambodian Lawyers United for UN Trial”, Phnom Penh Post, page 1-14 October 1999.\n\n11 See CUL Seminar on Judicial Functions, Phnom Penh, 5-23 July 1993, reproduced in Basil Fernando (ed) Problems Facing the Cambodian legal System, Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong, 1998, at page 133.\n\nTom Fawthrop: \"Khmer Rouge trial makes legal history\", Phnom Penh Post, 5-18 January 2001.\n\n11 Richard Woodd: \"Guillotine aimed at KR trial funds\", Phnom Penh Post, 2-15 July 2004, page 1 and 3.\n\n14 See Stephen Heder with Brian Tittlemore, Seven Candidates for the Prosecution: Accountability for the Crimes of the Khmer Rouge, 2nd edition, 2004, Documentation Centre of Cambodia, Phnom Penh, page 1.\n\n15 Australia, for example, has supported capacity building of the Cambodian legal system, and has also committed to a voluntary contribution for the proposed Tribunal.\n\n16 See, for example, the Report to the General Assembly A/58/268 (15 August 2003) Role and Achievements of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in assisting the Government and people of Cambodia in the promotion and protection of human rights.\n\n17\n\n\"Ea Meng Try: Justice and Reconciliation, MA Dissertation, Coventry University, September 2003, page 27-31.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-2003.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/2v242g390", "rank": 0 } ]