VZCZCXRO7317
OO RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHPF #1983/01 3061106
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 021106Z NOV 06
FM AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7556
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN PRIORITY 0138
RUEHSW/AMEMBASSY BERN PRIORITY 0024
RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA PRIORITY 0529
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 0548
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 3103
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 2193

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PHNOM PENH 001983 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS, S/WCI, AND DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KJUS PREL EAID CB
SUBJECT: RECENT ECCC DEVELOPMENTS 
 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  Summary.  Recent meetings concerning the 
Extraordinary Chambers have highlighted funding gaps and the 
need for additional support from donors.  The role of the 
judicial police is looming as an issue requiring 
clarification and possible donor intervention with the RGC to 
ensure that the ECCC receives appropriate MOI support. 
Victim/witness support remains an underfunded area.  Defense 
Office Director Rupert Skilbeck provided a briefing on his 
office's staffing, budget, and operational plan during an 
October 26 Friends of the ECCC meeting.  Separately, David 
Tolbert, who has prior experience working with the ICTY, met 
with ECCC officials in late October during an OSJI-sponsored 
visit, and provided the Embassy with his observations on 
shortcomings in the current ECCC administration.  End Summary. 
 
October 26 Friends of the ECCC Meeting 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  During a Japanese Embassy-sponsored Friends of the 
ECCC meeting on October 26, ECCC Director of Administration 
Sean Vissoth highlighted recent progress by the ECCC since 
the last Friends meeting in August:  continued work by the 
Co-Prosecutors and Co-Investigating Judges, Principal 
Defender Rubert Skilbeck's arrival, finalization of the draft 
internal rules by the Rules Committee, scheduling of a 
plenary session for the judges from November 20-25, donation 
of pre-fabricated structures for use as a temporary detention 
facility at the ECCC site by the Government of Japan (USD 
45,000), ECCC website (www.eccc.gov.kh) established, fifth 
round of personnel recruitment (93 international and 
Cambodian staff hired so far), and an independent audit will 
be conducted in December 2006 with another to follow in 
January 2007. 
 
¶3.  (SBU)  Vissoth noted that the ECCC has a number of 
challenges in the short term, mostly surrounding the 
inadequate travel budget for the staff to conduct public 
outreach.  The public affairs office continues to work with 
NGOs to use the latter's programs as a vehicle for public 
outreach, and Vissoth cited the recent Center for Social 
Development (CSD)-sponsored public forum in Kratie province 
on the Khmer Rouge trials that involved both Canadian 
Co-Prosecutor Robert Petit and Cambodian Co-Prosecutor Chea 
Leang as an example.  DC-CAM continues to bring several 
hundred people every month to the court site, and ECCC 
personnel are hosting numerous official visitors and training 
sessions each month.  The draft criminal procedure code is 
with the National Assembly awaiting passage, and will form 
the basis for the ECCC's internal rules; the rules committee 
has worked from the draft code in the preparation of the 
court's internal draft rules.  The rules have been finalized 
and are undergoing translation into the court's three 
languages (English, Khmer, and French). 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  Deputy ECCC Administrator Michelle Lee argued that 
some of the funding gaps identified in a recent OSJI study to 
donor states (emailed to the desk) would not preclude the 
ECCC's work.  Lee underscored that the United Nations allows 
for flexibility in the use of UN funds, and she has the 
prerogative to redeploy monies depending on shifting 
priorities.  Two immediate areas where donors could 
supplement the current budget are in victim/witness support 
and the establishment of an audio/visual/transcript capacity 
within the ECCC.  In response to another criticism in the 
OSJI report, Vissoth added that the hiring practices for the 
ECCC Cambodian staff are transparent and based on merit. 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  Rupert Skilbeck, Principal Defender and head of 
the Defense Office at the ECCC, provided participants with an 
overview of his office's budget, staffing, and operational 
plan.  He noted that his office was not envisaged in the 
original agreement between the UN and the RGC; however, 
attention must be paid to the defense side of the trials if 
the ECCC is to meet international standards of justice.  His 
USD 4.7 million budget is predicated on an estimated seven 
defendants; Skilbeck noted that if the Co-Prosecutors agree 
to pursue additional cases, the budget will grow as well.  He 
plans to pay legal defense lawyers the same as the Cambodian 
prosecutors are paid; such fees are far beyond those paid in 
Cambodia and Skilbeck cautioned the salaries will raise 
public relations questions once the trials begin.  A second 
area that may change in how the defense office conducts its 
work is how the ECCC judges will address the role of victims 
 
PHNOM PENH 00001983  002 OF 003 
 
 
joining the criminal proceedings as civil parties, which is 
permitted under Cambodian law.  Skilbeck noted that this 
question is likely to be addressed by the internal rules 
currently under consideration by the ECCC judges. 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  Discussions with donors highlighted several new 
issues with budgetary/legal ramifications.  First, there is a 
sense among some ECCC staff that the pre-trial chamber may 
have to begin its work sooner than expected with both 
Cambodian and international judges beginning work on a 
full-time basis early in 2007.  An area of discussion within 
the rules committee revolved around absentia trials and 
whether the ECCC should permit them.  The draft internal 
rules reportedly envision a central role for the judicial 
police, but so far the MOI has provided no clarity on their 
role, supervision, and authorities.  A list of 25 names has 
been provided to the ECCC so that training can begin, but 
these officers have not been assigned to the ECCC; they will 
be made available within 48 hours notice for specific 
assignments and details.  In a separate lunch with donors 
following the general meeting, Michelle Lee and others argued 
that the judicial police should be assigned on a full-time 
basis to the ECCC.  She promised to remain in touch with 
donors on this issue should diplomatic pressure be needed to 
prod the RGC -- and more specifically, the MOI -- to provide 
the necessary cooperation and support. 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  Aside from the issue of the judicial police, a 
further concern of the ECCC staff surrounds victim/witness 
protection.  One relatively junior international staff member 
has joined the ECCC while the Cambodian side has two people, 
but Lee and others realize this is wholly inadequate.  Lee 
noted she would be approaching donors in the near future with 
a more specific proposal.  Separately, investigatory staff 
members from Petit's office have told the Embassy that they 
are purposefully not interviewing more sensitive witnesses at 
this time because of the lack of an adequate victim/witness 
support capacity within the ECCC. 
 
The ECCC:  Judge-led Court or Administration-led Court? 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  David Tolbert, formerly associated with the ICTY, 
visited Cambodia in late October during an OSJI-sponsored 
trip to work with the ECCC administrative staff on 
establishing a positive relationship between the various 
offices on both the legal and administrative sides of the 
ECCC.  Tolbert met with Pol/Econ Chief on October 27 and 
outlined several areas where he sees room for improvement. 
Not surprisingly, some of his observations mirrored those 
expressed the previous day during the Friends meeting. 
Specifically, he identified victim/witness support as a key 
shortcoming, in addition to the lack of progress in 
establishing a judicial police unit within the ECCC.  He 
noted that the ECCC's budget on public outreach and media was 
underfunded and while not an immediate priority, would be 
detrimental to any hopes for a legacy effect of the ECCC on 
Cambodia's judicial system.  Another problem Tolbert 
highlighted was the lack of a Registrar or legal 
representative on the ECCC's Administrative staff.  Many of 
the current problems are legal in nature, and might be more 
easily addressed if such an office existed as it does in 
other international tribunals, noted Tolbert.  OSJI's Kelly 
Askin and Heather Ryan added that the question boils down to 
whether the ECCC will be a judge-led court or an 
administrative-led one.  At the moment, it appears that the 
court is being driven by the administrative function and 
budgetary limitations, which OSJI believes is not optimal for 
delivering international standards of justice. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶9.  (SBU)  Much of the foregoing is not new information, and 
we were aware of the issues surrounding victim/witness 
support as well as public affairs budgetary limitations based 
on other meetings with ECCC personnel.  Neither issue is 
precluding the ECCC's work and progress thus far, but will 
require attention over the coming weeks.  However, the 
problems between the ECCC and the MOI concerning the role of 
judicial police may require diplomatic intervention, and 
several Missions (e.g., Canada, Germany, Switzerland) 
mentioned possibly coordinated action.  The latter issue was 
 
PHNOM PENH 00001983  003 OF 003 
 
 
one that has frustrated Michelle Lee, who indicated she would 
approach donors for assistance if she did not receive 
satisfaction from the Ministry of Interior.  End Comment. 
MUSSOMELI