2007年VOA标准英语-Agreement Reached on Khmer Rouge Tribunal Rules

By Rory Byrne
Phnom Penh
13 June 2007

A panel of Cambodian and U.N.-appointed judges has approved the ground rules for the prosecution¹ of the former leaders of the Khmer Rouge², who were responsible for the deaths of almost 2 million Cambodians in the late 1970's. The agreement opens the way for the long-awaited genocide trials to begin, three decades after the atrocities³ were committed. Rory Byrne reports from Phnom Penh. 

prosecutors4 sit during a press conference inside the court hall of Khmer Rouge Tribunal headquarters in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 13 June 2007" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070628/0921280.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

Cambodian and foreigners, judges and prosecutors sit during a press conference inside the court hall of Khmer Rouge Tribunal headquarters in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 13 June 2007

Final agreement on the rules governing the day-to-day running of the Khmer Rouge tribunal was reached during a two-week meeting of Cambodian and international judges.  Wednesday's announcement ended almost 12 months of delay and rancor⁵ that had threatened to derail the entire process.

Disputes had arisen over a number of issues, including the role of victims in the tribunal, and whether foreign defense⁶ lawyers would be allowed. Helen Jarvis is the spokeswoman for the tribunal, officially known as the Extraordinary Chambers⁸ in the Courts of Cambodia.  

"The whole thing really boiled down to the difficulty of the court having its foundation in Cambodian law, but the particular structure of the court is unique: we have co-investigating judges, co-prosecutors, we have a pre-trial chamber⁷, we have a super-majority formula for decision-making by the judges," she said.  "All these things are quite unique, so working out how the Cambodian law works in this particular structure, and then always ensuring that international standards were met, was extremely complicated."

Despite the agreement, some are warning that unforeseen legal obstacles may come back to haunt the tribunal.

Rupert Skilbeck, the head of the court's defense support section, says some of the new rules may not comply with international standards of fair trial.  He says these concerns are likely to be raised by defense lawyers during the proceedings⁹. 

Helen Jarvis, however, says agreement on the new rules mean that the tribunal is now built on a solid foundation.   

"Of course, we know that this is a complicated process, and I would never expect that there won't be obstacles, of course there will be obstacles," she added.  "But we believe that with the adoption¹⁰ of the internal rules, unanimously, and after due consideration and long discussion among the judges, that this will form a very firm foundation for the court."

The tribunal is modeled on the legal system of France, which ruled Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos from the 1890's until 1954.

According to the system, the co-prosecutors are expected to file introductory statements within a few weeks. At that point, the trial process will move to the judicial-investigation phase, in which the investigating judges will begin a review of the evidence gathered so far.

The first defendant¹¹ is not expected to appear before a judge before early 2008. 

The Khmer Rouge tribunal was officially established last year, almost a decade after negotiations¹² between the Cambodian government and the United Nations first begun. The Khmer Rouge, an ultra-Maoist movement, took power in Cambodia in 1975, and was driven out in 1979.

1 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

2 rouge   

n.胭脂，口红唇膏；v.(在…上)擦口红

参考例句：

• Women put rouge on their cheeks to make their faces pretty.女人往面颊上涂胭脂，使脸更漂亮。
• She didn't need any powder or lip rouge to make her pretty.她天生漂亮，不需要任何脂粉唇膏打扮自己。

3 atrocities   

n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪

参考例句：

• They were guilty of the most barbarous and inhuman atrocities. 他们犯有最野蛮、最灭绝人性的残暴罪行。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The enemy's atrocities made one boil with anger. 敌人的暴行令人发指。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

5 rancor   

n.深仇，积怨

参考例句：

• I have no rancor against him.我对他无怨无仇。
• Their rancor dated from a political dogfight between them.他们的积怨来自于他们之间在政治上的狗咬狗。

6 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

7 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

8 chambers   

n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅

参考例句：

• The body will be removed into one of the cold storage chambers. 尸体将被移到一个冷冻间里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Mr Chambers's readable book concentrates on the middle passage: the time Ransome spent in Russia. Chambers先生的这本值得一看的书重点在中间：Ransome在俄国的那几年。 来自互联网

9 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

10 adoption   

n.采用，采纳，通过；收养

参考例句：

• An adoption agency had sent the boys to two different families.一个收养机构把他们送给两个不同的家庭。
• The adoption of this policy would relieve them of a tremendous burden.采取这一政策会给他们解除一个巨大的负担。

11 defendant   

n.被告；adj.处于被告地位的

参考例句：

• The judge rejected a bribe from the defendant's family.法官拒收被告家属的贿赂。
• The defendant was borne down by the weight of evidence.有力的证据使被告认输了。

12 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。