Today in Phnom Penh the UN war crimes tribunal for the Khmer Rouge trials sentenced the commander of Tuol Sleng prison, Kaing Guek Eav a.k.a Duch, to 35 years in prison. Duch is the first of the Khmer Rouge officials to be tried and sentenced.
After visiting Tuol Sleng a few weeks ago, it is so surreal to think that today, in the same city, the UN finally sentenced the prison commander after thirty years. From what I've gathered these trials have been a long time in the making and are just now beginning in earnest.
I read on NPR this morning that Duch's trial would conclude today, but I didn't learn the outcome until this afternoon when an Australian journalist I met told me that he had been reporting the trial.
I wonder what this is like for Cambodians. Nothing seemed different today, but I can imagine there must be some relief--though there are still a lot more Khmer Rouge trials to come.
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