Cambodia condemns Khmer Rouge leaders for genocide

A Cambodian court sentenced the two most important Khmer Rouge leaders still alive on the night of Thursday to Friday (Dutch time). Two men were sentenced to life imprisonment for genocide under the dictator Pol Pot, according to the AP news agency. Under his authority, more than 1.7 million Cambodians were killed forty years ago.

It is the right hand of Pot, Nuon Chea, 92 years old, better known as Brother Number 2. The former president Khieu Samphan, 87 years old, was also convicted by the court, supported by the United Nations. Millions of Cambodians followed the process as it was a unique moment in the history of the Cambodian court and his country. For the first time, regime leaders have been convicted of genocide. The two men were already in prison for crimes against humanity

The Guardian told the Guardian that the new genocide conviction was "very important". He compares the verdict handed down on Friday to the Nuremberg process after the Second World War, during which more than twenty Nazi regime leaders were tried. Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan both admitted that they played a very important role in the Pot regime, but denied being guilty of the genocide of the Cham Muslim minority and Vietnamese minority groups.

According to the lawyer of one of the two, it is a political process. Many politicians in power have reportedly been associated with the Khmer Rouge, including current Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Killing Fields

Pot came to power in the mid-1970s. He wanted to create an agrarian utopia and forced the townspeople to settle in rural areas and work on large farms. Medical care was lacking and working conditions were exhausting. During his reign, much of the Cambodian population suffered famine.

Opponents of the regime are jailed, mistreated and murdered. In the infamous " Killing Fields " more than a million people were killed and buried in total. When the regime was overthrown in the late 1970s, it is estimated that 25% of the population was killed.